Inconsistent Washington Nationals show what they can do at their best

The Nationals are a roller coaster that showed what they can do at the top of their game last night

This Washington Nationals team, like a lot of young teams is inconsistent. Some nights, like the first game of this series, they simply don’t have it and look really bad. However, there are some magical nights like last night that make you believe.

It was a complete performance from the Nats last night. Trevor Williams led a four pitcher shutout with his best start of the season, throwing six scoreless. A trio of young, homegrown relievers finished the job, with three scoreless innings of their own. The pitching staff did not walk anyone last night, a very welcome statistic.

However, it was the offense that stole the show. They epitomize the topsy turvy nature of this team, and their performances in the first two games of this series sum up their season. In game one, the offense did absolutely nothing besides a James Wood home run.

Rookie Logan Evans got through 8 innings on just 88 pitches, and the Mariners got through the game throwing less than 100 pitches. It was the type of performance that makes Nationals fans so upset with Darnell Coles. There were too many uncompetitive at bats, not enough walks, and too many ground balls.

However, as they have done for a lot of the season, the offense flipped the switch. The offense showed how explosive they can be at their best, hitting four homers and scoring nine runs.

After a quick first inning, the barrage started in the second inning with back to back jacks from Luis Garcia Jr. and Josh Bell. After wondering how long the Nationals could persist with Bell, the big man responded with his best game of the season. He had his first multi-hit game of the season, and looked really locked in.

In the fourth inning with two outs, Garcia and Bell kickstarted another rally. After a Garcia walk and Bell single, the bottom of the lineup came through. Robert Hassell III ripped an RBI single to score Garcia before Jose Tena drove in two more with a clutch double.

The Nationals were all over Mariners starter George Kirby. With how much Kirby lives in the zone and hates walking people, he might have been a good matchup for the Nats. This Nationals offense is at their worst when they expand and are forced into weak contact. That is not really Kirby’s game with how much he is in the strike zone.

To start the fifth inning, Kirby caught too much of the plate with a first pitch slider and James Wood punished it. For the second straight night, Wood hit a majestic home run in Seattle.

Wood now has 15 homers on the season and has a .949 OPS. He is doing some special stuff at just 22 years of age. James Wood and Shohei Ohtani are the only players in baseball with a .280+ average, 15+ homers and 8+ steals. I wrote earlier this season that James Wood is a superstar, and he is proving me right.

However, there were even more fireworks from the offense later in the game. We saw Robert Hassell III’s first career home run, which was very exciting. As midnight drew near on the east coast, Bobby Barrels uncorked a 416 foot home run deep into the Seattle night.

It was a complete performance from the Nats, who were 9-0 victors. Nights like this make games like the first one in this series so frustrating. We know what this team is capable of, but they need to do it on a more consistent basis. Asking for this kind of effort every night is wildly unrealistic. However, they need to find a B game, where they can win while not being at their best.

With experience, that should come, but there is just so much inconsistency right now. However, it is important to enjoy nights like this where everything comes together for a young team. This is going to be a roller coaster season with a lot of ups and downs, so buckle up and enjoy the ride.