When the Washington Nationals traded Luis García Jr., Curtis Mead and Foster Griffin, they knew they were sacrificing some of their potential success this season from the offense and rotation in exchange for much-needed pitching depth to support them the rest of this year and beyond.
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In doing so, and with arms which recently became available again, they were able to do something on Sunday that would have seemed unfathomable a short time ago: They won a game in which they relied upon their bullpen from start to finish. With the combination of Brad Lord, Will Dion, Trevor Williams and Jake Bird, the Nationals beat the Cincinnati Reds, 7-1, to sweep the series.
“It’s pretty cool, knowing it’s a bullpen day going in and carrying it all the way to the end and holding them to one run. That’s pretty special,” Lord said. “It’s just awesome to see.”
Across the three-game series, the bullpen allowed just two runs in 15⅔ innings, an impressive feat for a unit that had a 4.94 ERA before the Aug. 3 deadline, the fourth-highest ERA in Major League Baseball.
“I think we have some interesting arms down there now, and I think we have some different looks,” Manager Blake Butera said. “It’s a lot of fun when these guys are throwing the way they have this series.”
On Sunday, they got offensive contributions from Keibert Ruiz and Jacob Young, who hit an RBI single and sacrifice fly in the second inning, plus Abimelec Ortiz, who was recalled to replace García. He hit a home run in the third inning, his second since Monday. They added onto their lead in the seventh and eighth innings, Daylen Lile, Young and Andrés Chaparro all coming through to drive in runs.
But it was the bullpen, all series, that held it together, the impacts of the trades already felt.
Cruz, acquired in the García trade on Aug. 2, brought his triple-digit four-seam fastball with him from the New York Yankees’ organization. He had only pitched in four major league games when the Nationals acquired him, but they’ve already trusted him in high-leverage situations.
In Friday’s 5-3 win, Cruz entered the game in the seventh inning with runners on first and third and no outs. He walked one, but got Sal Stewart to ground into a double play to end the inning.
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A day later, Cruz again took on the seventh inning. This time he entered at the top of the inning, walking one and giving up a base hit but nothing further. He’s walked three and allowed one run in his three appearances so far with the Nationals.
“Now that Cruz is here, he’s helping a ton,” Butera said after Cruz’s performance on Saturday. “Obviously we see how good the stuff is. If he continues to gain confidence and pitch the way he has the last two nights, I’m really excited to see what future he has in front of him.”
On Aug. 5, Zack Littell was designated for assignment to clear a roster spot for Lord to return from the injured list. Down a starter, the Nationals turned to Lord to pitch the first the first 2⅔ innings. He allowed one run in the second inning after Tyler Stephenson hit a single, advanced to second after Eugenio Suárez was hit by a pitch, moved to third when Héctor Rodríguez grounded out and scored on a sacrifice fly from Dane Myers.
Following Lord, Dion, acquired from Cleveland in the Griffin trade, made his first appearance at Nationals Park. He pitched three innings, allowing one hit and nothing more. Dion earned the win, his first, and was celebrated postgame with a beer shower.
“He’s not afraid out there, that’s the big thing,” Butera said. “When you have that kind of funky arm action with really good stuff, the curveball is really good, the fastball plays up because of the carry, and then he’s got a good changeup, too. He’s able to neutralize both rights and lefties.”
Dion passed the game to Williams, who was making just his fifth appearance after his year-long return from elbow surgery. He pitched 2⅓ scoreless innings, getting some help in the eighth inning from his defense as CJ Abrams turned a double play. Williams has not allowed a run in his 8⅓ innings, giving the Nationals another multi-inning reliever option.
In the ninth, Bird, also acquired in the García trade, made his first major league appearance for the Nationals with a 7-1 cushion. He didn’t need it: he pitched a 1-2-3 inning, securing the win and a successful bullpen game for the Nationals.
“The bullpen did a really good job getting ahead,” Ruiz said. “All the new guys, they’re really good, and I’m happy that they’re here. We just have to keep going.”
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