Nats settle for series win after failing to sweep Marlins (updated)

MIAMI – A little over a month ago, the Nationals still had the longest streak without a three-game series sweep in major league history. Then, in a weekend series at home against the Giants, they finally pulled off their first sweep since June 14-16, 2021 against the Pirates.

They’ve repeated that feat twice more since, and entered today’s finale against the Marlins with a chance for their fourth sweep in a month after going more than two years without one.

Although they weren’t able to complete this one, suffering a 2-1 loss to the Marlins in front of 17,216 fans at loanDepot Park, the Nationals will still leave town with their eighth series win in their last 10 attempts.

"We had a couple of opportunities and we couldn't capitalize on them. So that's how it goes," said manager Davey Martinez after the game. "We're gonna come back tomorrow, we're playing well. Let's forget about this one, come back tomorrow and go 1-0 tomorrow.”

Trevor Williams turned in his second consecutive impressive start, giving the Nationals a strong chance at the sweep.

After pitching six shutout innings against the Phillies in Sunday’s Little League Classic, Williams came back today to toss seven innings of two-run ball with five hits and five strikeouts.

“I think it was just attacking the strike zone," said Williams, who pitched exclusively out of the stretch for the second straight start. "Riley (Adams) and I were on the same page from the beginning. He's seen these guys three times in a row now, so the trust was all in his hands. Thankfully with the bullpen game, they were getting into a rhythm as well. So it was quick for the most part, guys were going back out there. But just attacking the zone. And the guys that I didn't attack the zone with were the times that I got hurt.”

The two runs on his line came off a two-run home run by Jorge Soler in the third after Luis Arraez led off the inning with a single to left. The 78-mph sweeper from Williams wasn’t necessarily a bad pitch down in the zone. It just caught too much of the plate for the slugger to hit his 35th homer of the year 418 feet to left-center field.

Other than that, Williams stuck with what has been most successful for him this season: Pitching to weak contact. He induced nine groundouts and four popouts compared to four flyouts. And he got 11 swings and misses en route to his five strikeouts.

Usually entrusted to complete five or six innings, Williams went back out for the fifth with the Nats still trailing 2-1. He got the two right-handers at the bottom of the Marlins lineup out with two ground balls. But with one of the best hitters in the league, left-hander Arraez, coming up to the plate, Martinez made a quick trip to the mound with Mason Thompson warming in the bullpen.

But Martinez departed back to the dugout without Williams, who got Arraez to fly out after falling behind 3-0 in the count.

“For him to come out there and tell him what his plan was was great," Williams said. "I'm glad we stuck with Plan A. He gave me a couple of options on that mound and we stuck with Plan A. Thankfully, he trusted me in that spot and the defense was able to pull through and get that last out.”

“I wanted to see if we could get him through that inning," Martinez said. "I just kind of wanted to slow him down a little bit, take a little breather. Just talk to him about what I thought and what I saw. He fell behind, but he came back and got a big out for us right there. So I wanted to give him an opportunity to try to stay in that game, and hopefully we come back and score. He did a great job.”

This is the first time Williams has pitched back-to-back quality starts this season, this one coming on 104 pitches, 63 strikes.

“Awesome," Martinez said. "He was pounding the strike zone. Good fastball, but that secondary-pitch changeup was really effective again today. So, man, another guy that picked us up, picked up the bullpen a little bit. The offense just couldn't score any runs."

The Nationals put together a ninth-inning rally to win last night’s game, but were unable to do so this afternoon. Their only run came in the top of the third when CJ Abrams and Lane Thomas started the frame with a single and a double. Abrams then scored on Dominic Smith's groundout to first.

Other than that, the Nats struggled against a barrage of Marlins relievers in a bullpen game. Their biggest challenge was right-hander Bryan Hoeing, who followed opener JT Chargois and tossed four innings of one-run ball on four hits, a walk and five strikeouts.

The Nats did get two runners on in the ninth against left-hander Tanner Scott, but Jacob Young, making his first major league start, grounded into a game-ending double play.

“I think everybody out in their bullpen is pretty good," Thomas said. "You come in knowing that and you hope you take a few at-bats off the same guy. So today I think it's tough because you face a new guy every at-bat most of the time. Even their starters. Their starters all throw hard, good stuff. So you know coming in here it's going to be a challenge every game.”

But the Nationals will still hold their heads high as they leave Miami for Toronto. They have won 11 of their last 14, with a 16-8 record in August and 25-16 record since the All-Star break. And with some other games yet to be completed across the league today, the Nats are still only 7 ½ games out of a National League Wild Card spot.

“We're playing great ball," Williams said. "We're at that point where we're chasing a couple of teams in front of us. Anything can happen. We've seen weird things happen. As long as we keep winning ballgames and winning series, good things will happen.”

* The Nats optioned Blake Rutherford to Triple-A Rochester after today's game.