Little things in the field cost Nats late in loss

PITTSBURGH – Davey Martinez has been talking about “the little things” since joining the Nationals in 2018. It’s a common refrain from the fifth-year manager, highlighting the importance of all those small, mundane moments during the course of a ballgame that actually make a difference in the final outcome.

And there were several little things during Saturday night’s 6-4 loss to the Pirates that did make a difference, not in a positive way.

The bottom of the eighth, most notably, featured a string of defensive mistakes that helped Pittsburgh score three tack-on runs against Kyle Finnegan, turning a one-run deficit into a four-run hole the Nats couldn’t climb all the way back from in the ninth.

It all began on the first ball in play of the inning. Michael Chavis’ line drive into the left field corner should’ve been an easy standup double for the Pirates first baseman. But then Yadiel Hernandez turned it into a triple.

Playing his first inning in the field after pinch-hitting for Victor Robles in the top of the inning, Hernandez was slow to get to the ball in the corner. Then he made a casual throw to the infield, and Chavis (who was all set to stop at second base) noticed it and immediately took off for third.

That forced the Nationals to bring their infield in, hoping to cut down a run at the plate. And wouldn’t you know it, a few minutes later, Diego Castillo sent a sharp grounder past the drawn-in Alcides Escobar at shortstop for an RBI single.

If Hernandez holds Chavis to a double, the ensuing situation plays out quite differently. And Martinez wanted to make sure his outfielder understood that.

“I brought him in the office, and I already talked to him about it,” the manager said after the game. “And I told him it can’t happen. You know, it’s a big moment right there. He was upset about it. You won’t see it again.”

The inning continued to devolve from there. With one out and the bases loaded, Andrew Knapp hit a chopper to third. Maikel Franco came charging in and faced a split-second decision: Throw to the plate to get the lead runner out, or attempt a tough 5-4-3 double play that would end the inning?

Franco opted to try the more difficult play, and it cost the Nats. Though his throw to second was on time and on target, César Hernández struggled to make the turn and wound up throwing the ball away for an error. Two runs scored, and now the Nationals were down 6-2.

The runs were charged to Finnegan (two of them earned, one of them unearned). Better defense, though, might have altered the outcome of the entire inning.

“We wanted to keep it at one run with the top of the order coming up,” Martinez said. “We thought we had a great, great chance like that, and it didn’t happen.”