Nats can't sustain momentum, drop another series (updated)

DENVER - They lose one, they win one, they lose one, they hope to win the next one. It was the Nationals' recurring pattern in 2018, and it has become the recurring theme in 2019 as well.

One day this team looks like a mess, dropping a series opener and digging itself into a hole. The next day, all looks right again and there seems reason for optimism. And then the next day, it falls apart amid poor pitching, poor defense and poor clutch hitting.

"I don't know why; it's really hard to explain," right-hander Aníbal Sánchez said. "Baseball's just crazy."

That summed up this three-game series at Coors Field, which saw the Nationals drop the opener, win the middle game and then drop this afternoon's finale 9-5, a game that was close much of the way before turning ugly late.

Trevor Rosenthal, making his first appearance in a week and trying to finally get himself on track, allowed three insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth, surrendering two hits and a walk while hitting one batter and uncorking three wild pitches. (He actually lowered his ERA from 40.50 to 36.00 by inning's end.)

"We've got to get Rosie in the game; we've got to see what he can do," manager Davey Martinez said. "And at this point, he just doesn't look right, right now. So we've got to figure something out. I know we need him. But we have to figure out what's going on."

"I feel good, and I feel like I'm really close," Rosenthal said. "It's just getting over that hump. I think it'll happen soon. It's just a matter of continuing to get in there and keep working."

Down six runs in the ninth, the Nationals did try to make things interesting with a last-gasp rally. Matt Adams' two-run single trimmed the deficit to four with two outs and forced Rockies manager Bud Black to bring in closer Wade Davis to record the final out.

The Nationals already were in a hole before any of that after a rough start by Sánchez that was hindered by shaky defense behind him.

And so the Nats head home having dropped both series during this road trip, losing two of three to the Marlins and Rockies. They're back under .500 at 11-12, avoiding any long rough patches but also unable to get on any kind of sustained positive run.

"It sucked," Adam Eaton said. "I think we all expected better. Expected better because we have confidence in ourselves. It wasn't the road trip that we would've wanted. If we would've taken this last game, we would've been OK with it. But losing two road series is never fun."

Not that the first at-bat of the game should always be a reflection of things to come, but today's first at-bat certainly did suggest the possibility of a rough day ahead.

Eaton's leadoff grounder to second looked at first like a routine play. But Eaton slowed as he ran down the line and missed a possible opportunity to beat it out when Ryan McMahon bobbled the ball. He then walked gingerly back to the dugout, where he was met by Martinez and director of athletic training Paul Lessard.

"A little something in my lower body," he said. "No big deal. Just something I've been dealing with that kind of crept up on me a little bit. We made an adjustment, throughout the game it felt better."

It may have felt better as the game progressed, but Eaton still didn't seem to be all there. He went hitless until a ninth-inning single, at one point striking out on three pitches with the bases loaded, and he made the worst play of the day in the field, also with the bases loaded.

With Sánchez in a two-out jam after one run had already crossed the plate in the bottom of the third, Eaton broke in on Raimel Tapia's scorched line drive to right. He couldn't recover in time and made a leaping attempt in vain, only to watch the ball sail past him and to the wall as the bases cleared and the Rockies took a 4-3 lead.

"My initial read was he was out in front, he lunged for the ball," Eaton said. "And usually when lefties lunge for the ball, they top them. It's usually not backspun. So my initial read was to come in. And as you could tell, the ball was not topped. It was backspun. And I wasn't even 15 frickin' feet from it. Just was a bad read."

Sánchez wasn't helped by his defense throughout his start, but the veteran right-hander didn't help his own cause, either, with poor command. He issued five walks (two intentional) and missed his spot on several pitches, including a costly 0-2 changeup to Charlie Blackmon that was supposed to be down and away and wound up at the belt on the inside corner. Blackmon launched it to right field for a solo homer, the third home run the Nationals have surrendered on 0-2 pitches this season, the 18th they've surrendered in the last two seasons (most in the majors).

Five starts into his Nats career, Sánchez has yet to find a consistent groove. He notched a quality start against the Pirates and allowed three runs in two other starts. But he has issued 16 walks in 27 innings, and he's now 0-3 with a 6.00 ERA.

"We've got to stay out of those big innings," Martinez said.

The Nationals gave their starter a 3-0 lead today, thanks to early offense for the third straight day. Doubles by Adams and Jake Noll (his first career hit) in the top of the second got them on the board. Juan Soto's two-run blast in the top of the third added to the lead.

But as was the case throughout the series, the Nats couldn't add on as the game progressed. They finished this series scoring 9 runs in innings 1-3, but only four runs after that (two in the ninth inning of Tuesday night's win and the other two in the ninth of today's loss).