{"id":11231,"date":"2015-09-08T09:22:49","date_gmt":"2015-09-08T13:22:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/?p=11231"},"modified":"2015-09-08T09:22:49","modified_gmt":"2015-09-08T13:22:49","slug":"i-said-call-me-when-they-sweep-atlanta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nationalsarmrace.com\/?p=11231","title":{"rendered":"I said “Call me when they Sweep Atlanta” …"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"If<\/a>

If the Nats want October baseball, they may want to think about how to beat this guy. Photo: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports<\/p><\/div>\n

In the comment thread of the last post, I said something along the lines of “call me when the Nats sweep Atlanta.”<\/p>\n

Well, they just did that.\u00a0 They did what they were supposed to do, had some luck, got some clutch hitting (thanks Matt den Dekker<\/strong>) and swept Atlanta at home.\u00a0 They picked up 2 games on the Mets, who sputtered in Miami.<\/p>\n

… and then they go and drop the ONE “sure thing” match-up in this series.\u00a0 Our “Ace”\u00a0Max Scherzer<\/strong> craps the bed yet again (He now has a 4.52 ERA in the 14 starts since his no-hitter\/one-hitters in June) versus the Mets’ #5 starter Jon Niese<\/strong>.\u00a0 After knocking out said #5 starter in the 4th and after scoring 5 runs, the Nats lose again.<\/p>\n

Coincidentally, the Nats have now dropped three games 8-5 in the last week, after holding the lead in all three.\u00a0 Their record on the season when they score 5 or more runs<\/a>: 45-13 … but they’re just 8-10 when scoring exactly 5 runs.\u00a0 That’s crazy.<\/p>\n

By way of comparison, in 2014 when they scored exactly 5 runs, they were 13-1<\/a>.\u00a0 In 2014 when they scored 5 or more runs, they were 57-6.\u00a0 You want to know why this team is hovering near .500 in September versus running away with the division like they did last year?\u00a0 There’s a big reason.\u00a0 13-1 versus 8-10 in games they should be winning; that’s 9 games in the loss column.\u00a0 Heck, in 2014 when they scored *four* or more runs they were nearly unbeatable, let alone 5 runs.\u00a0 This year when they score 4 or 5 runs they’re a .500 team (18-17).\u00a0 That’s an indictment of the starters *and* the bullpen, two areas that were supposed to be locked down this year.<\/p>\n

Can this team beat Matt Harvey<\/strong> and Jacob deGrom<\/strong> in the next two nights to salvage this series? They have their work cut out for them;<\/p>\n