August 31, 2026 [LINK / comment]
The Washington Nationals showed promising signs that they really had pulled out of their August nose dive this weekend, winning the first two games against their division rivals from Miami, and [had] a 2-0 lead going into the top of the 9th inning. And then, everything suddenly fell apart. Max Kranick gave up a single and two walks to load the bases and left the game with one out, and was charged with all 3 runs that later scored and became the losing pitcher. His replacement, Tom Cosgrove, hit the first batter he saw with a pitch, making it a 2-1 game, and then a sacrifice fly to left field allowed the tying run to score. [But] the throw to 3rd base was mishandled, with Cosgrove not in position to back it up, allowing the Marlins to take the lead. Absolutely disgusting performance! The next batter walked and then bamboozled Cosgrove by [unexpectedly stealing] 2nd base, while the runner on 3rd base scooted home to score. To top it all off, the next batter, Otto Lopez, hit a home run to give the Marlins a 6-2 lead. Un-effing-believable!!! So Cosgrove he was charged with a blown save in one of the most embarrassing moments in Nationals history.
In today's game, the Marlins took a 3-0 lead in the 4th inning, and it looked liked they were going to split the 4-game series. But the young hustling National named Daylen Lile had other plans. Having hit 3 homers over the past 4 games and being named National League Player of the Week, he led off with a single in the 1st inning, and then hit 2-run homers in both the 5th and 7th innings. That crazy guy almost single-handedly lifted the Nationals from the pits of despair to the heights of comeback glory! Pitching for the Nationals was a succession of relievers and recently-acquired pitchers. Will Dion pitched the first 3 innings, and former Blue Jay Matt Waldron pitched the 5th, 6th, and 7th innings, being credited with the win. A guy named Erik Tolman came in to pitch in the 8th inning, and promptly loaded the bases with 3 straight singles. Oh, no! Here we go again! But Blake Butera kept him on the mound, perhaps wanting to let the guy prove himself or perhaps just not having any good alternatives. I cringed in horror, anticipating the worst. But guess what? Tolman struck out the next batter and then got out of the inning intact as the batter grounded into a double play. Then in the 9th inning, he struck out all 3 batters! Talk about major-league nerve! I hope this was a sign of better things to come for the Nationals' mostly-deplorable bullpen. Final score: Nats 6, Marlins 3.
The crushing defeat at the hands of the Marlins on Saturday reminds us that the Nationals hold the dubious distinction of leading the major leagues in total blown saves: 35. I forget what the all-time record is, but the Nats are getting dangerously close to it. The Nationals and the Rays are tied for first place in the majors with 69 save opportunities, and whereas the Rays lead the majors in saves (with 54), the Nationals are tied in 18th place in saves (with 34). (Blown saves equals save opportunities minus saves.) Let's take a look at some of the most egregious cases this year in which the Nats' bullpen not only faltered, but suffered a total meltdown in the ninth inning, or later:
| Date | Opponent | Home or Away? | Opp. 9th-inning runs | Nats' 9th-inning runs | Opp. total runs | Nats' total runs | Nationals' pitchers at fault |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18 | New York Mets | Home | 0 * | 0 * | 16 | 7 | Paxton Schultz (L) |
| June 10 | San Francisco Giants | Away | 5 ** | 1 | 11 | 10 | Mitchell Parker (L) |
| June 23 | Philadelphia Phillies | Home | 8 | 1 | 14 | 9 | Brad Lord (L, BS) |
| June 24 | Philadelphia Phillies | Home | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | Richard Lovelady (L, BS) |
| July 10 | New York Yankees | Home | 3 | 0 | 5 | 3 | Matt Krook (L, BS) |
| Aug. 15 | New York Mets | Away | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | Yovanny Cruz (L, BS) |
| Aug. 30 | Miami Marlins | Home | 6 | 0 | 6 | 2 | Max Kranick (L), Tom Cosgrove (BS) |
* The May 18 home game against the New York Mets was decided in the 12th inning, when Nats reliever Paxton Schultz gave up 5 hits and 7 runs, and then infielder Jorbit Vivas came in to pitch, giving up 3 more runs, for a total of 10 runs in that inning.
** In the June 10 game in San Francisco, the Giants scored 5 runs in both the 8th AND the 9th innings.
It is remarkable that none of those names are repeated, i.e., the failures of Nats' relief pitching is widely distributed. In most cases, the pitcher at fault recorded both a loss (L) and a blown save (BS), but on June 10 the Nationals had a 10-6 lead going into the bottom of the 9th inning, which is not a save situation, so Mitchell Parker was charged with a loss but not a blown save. In the game on Saturday night, Max Kranick loaded the bases and was charged with all 3 runs that later scored, thus becoming the losing pitcher. After Tom Cosgrove came in to pitch, the Marlins took the lead, so he was charged with a blown save.
Over the last three days I have updated the three stadium pages for Florida: Tropicana Field, Dolphin Stadium, and Loan Depot Park. They are now all consistently formatted, with a section describing the locations and attractions of the respective cities, along with a composite photo of Miami -- but not St. Petersburg-Tampa, which I have yet to visit. This completes my project of updating all the regular MLB stadium (past and present) pages, which I began in early July. So when am I going to update the pages of the various stadiums used on special occasions for MLB games, or other significant minor league ballparks, such as Hamtramck Stadium? (After all, I recently did so for the Field of Dreams in Iowa.) Good question! Actually, I did pay an in-person visit to Hamtramck Stadium, located in an enclave within Detroit, so that will probably be first one. But that still leaves Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, among others...
Scenes from my two visits to what was then called "[Marlins Park" (NOT Dolphin Stadium!)]*** in February 2017.
And just in case that semi-tropical scenery isn't enough for you, here are some scenes from elsewhere in Miami and (with a mouse rollover) further south in the Everglades:
Miami high-rises as seen from a bridge across the Miami River, and one of the "Little Pink Houses" for you and me (cue John Mellencamp), also in February 2017. Ain't that America??!
And speaking of page updates, the Washington Nationals page now has all the data up through the month of August, during which the Nats won a paltry 11 games and lost 18. There are lots of new players' photos (in miniature size), taken in the game I saw on August 8.
In the Toronto Blue Jays' 7-0 win over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday, former Nats pitcher Max Scherzer surpassed Gaylord Perry (3,534) in the all-time list of strikeouts, with 3,535, and now ranks #9. (He recently surpassed Walter Johnson, who struck out 3,508 batters in his illustrious career.) Don Sutton ranks #[7] with 3,574 strikeouts, [while Justin Verlander ranks #8 with 3,554]*** and it's possible Max could reach that number this year. But will he continue pitching in 2027? That game was only his second win of the year (2-7 record), since he hardly pitched at all from May through July, and his ERA is 6.16. In any event,
Well done, Max!
*** "After further review," I had to make multiple corrections the next day, indicated above with brackets around the affected text. That ought to teach me to try to squeeze in a summary of the preceding month's action before the first day of the next month!