Washington Nationals news & notes: Nats over .500 for first time since 2021; Trevor Williams keeps rolling…

Notes and quotes on the Nationals’ win in the 1st of 2 with the Orioles…

TREVOR WILLIAMS LOWERS ERA TO 1.96:

Trevor Williams had nine batters reach base in his five-inning, 79-pitch, scoreless outing last week in Arlington, TX, giving up five hits and four walks.

Williams worked his way out of two bases-loaded, no-out jams in what ended up a scoreless start, with manager Davey Martinez claiming afterwards his right-hander was some sort of a magician.

“He got out of some tough situations,” the skipper said. “That lineup is good over there, it really is.”

“He threw some really, really good pitches in key moments to get out of the inning,” Martinez explained.

“And he battled. I always say the guy grinds, he battles, and he did a great job today.”

“Believe it or not, I’ve been there before,” Williams told reporters, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman after working out the bases-loaded jams in the start.

“I’ve pitched with bases loaded, no outs before. You’re just taking it one pitch at a time. … You just trust that as a pitcher, no matter what, you have the advantage. You’re trying to execute your pitches first, but you’re also trying to exploit the hitter wanting to do a little too much.”

The 32-year-old, nine-year veteran, his manager said, is pitching with some well-earned confidence this season, after struggling upon returning to starting last year following a couple seasons working as a swing man.

“He’s always had confidence,” Martinez qualified. “He really has. And he always wants the ball. He never wants to come out of the game, and it’s a conversation that I have to have with him. Last year, as we know, towards the end he got really tired, and I really don’t want that to happen to him this year because we need him. He’s pitching well. So I’m trying to keep him around that 80-90-pitch mark. When he does that, he’s effective, and he bounces back really well.

“He’s done really, really well. And I’m proud of him. He spent all winter revamping the way his routine is and how he gets himself prepared, and it’s paying off for him.”

Start No. 7 for Williams was another good one. Going up against the Baltimore Orioles in the nation’s capital last night, the righty struck out a season-high eight of the 18 batters he went up against, giving up just two hits in five scoreless innings in which he threw 77 pitches, 53 for strikes.

Williams got just seven swinging strikes (on 39 swings), but picked up 14 called strikes (9 on his fastball). He worked around a single in the first, an error in the second, retired the side in order in the third, striking out two, did the same in the fourth, and wrapped up his outing in the first of two with the O’s in D.C. with a strong sixth in which he stranded a one-out single.

Working with a 1-0 lead after the second, he held the visitors off the board, then lefty Robert Garcia, Derek Law, Hunter Harvey, and Kyle Finnegan worked scoreless innings with just one hit allowed after the fifth (off of Harvey), and the Nationals added two runs on the home-half of the seventh in what ended up a 3-0 win.

“He’s pounding the strike zone, he’s doing everything we’ve asked him to do, and he’s pitching well,” Martinez said after the win in the first of two with the O’s in Nationals Park.

Williams finished the night with a 1.96 ERA, a 2.49 FIP, 2.95 BB/9, and 7.36 K/9, and for a starter who led the NL with 34 home runs allowed last season, it’s been a big change in 2024.

“Keeping the ball down,” Martinez said when asked what’s been different for Williams thus far. “Getting ahead. Those are the things. Mixing his pitches up. Utilizing his fastball when he needs to. But the biggest thing is for the most part he’s keeping the ball down.”

Considering the O’s led the majors in homers (54), and were second in SLG (.451), it was even more impressive how Williams kept Orioles’ hitters in check.

“The game plan going in was just to attack these guys,” Williams told reporters after the win.

“They’re a tremendous lineup. The home run threat is there. The power threat is there. If you start pitching around these guys, they’re going to make you hurt, or make you pay for it. So I think the game plan going in was just attack these guys with everything.

“And thankfully, we were missing bats today, and we didn’t really deviate from that game plan.”

OVER .500!!!:

There was a lot of talk from players, fans, and writers covering the club about how last night the win over the O’s put the Nationals over .500 for the first time since 2021, but asked what he thought of the team getting there, Davey Martinez … as you might have guessed, stayed on message and went 1-0 on the reporter who asked:

“We did? I didn’t even know. I go one game at a time, buddy. I don’t look at the record. I just worry about going 1-0, I really do. It’s nice though. It’s nice.”

VETERAN-Y GRIT AND STUFF:

Nick Senzel, Jesse Winker, and Eddie Rosario went a combined 5 for 11 with Winker and Rosario both homering in another comeback win for the club in their series finale with Toronto in the nation’s capital.

Manager Davey Martinez talked after the 12th come-from-behind victory this year about the contributions the veterans on the roster have made over the first month-plus of the 2024 campaign.

“These guys that we targeted over the winter, we thought that — they’re all very different, you know? Eddie is very quiet. Goes about his business. Winker is just completely out there, but loves to play the game, and then Senzel is just intense, very intense, wants to help us win, but all in all, they bought in, they understand what we’re trying to do, they understand our young players, they’ve done a great job of helping our clubhouse, being engaged with our young players, and they’re helping us on the field win, and it’s been great to have them. I’ve always said — with all three of those guys — especially Winker, who’s had a couple of rough years. He’s playing really well, and really helping us, and I’ve always felt that he had some more left in the tank.

Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images

“Nick, as we all know, he was a top prospect for the Reds, and I felt the same way, I felt if we just kept him in one position, it would definitely help the bat come alive, instead of moving him all over the place. And he’s done well as well. The biggest thing with Nick is to accept his walks, swing at strikes, and he’s done a better job with that.”

Rosario, of course, has really struggled after signing late this spring, but his manager said he hoped the big game in which the slugger hit the go-ahead home run, would spark something and help him start to turn things around.

“Hopefully that will get him going,” Martinez said. “But like I’ve said, I’ve seen this guy many times hit home runs like that in big moments. He’s a bit bat for us. The reason why we signed him is because we felt like against right-handed pitching he can do that and turn the ball around and put us in the lead. Today was awesome. The previous swing before that, the ball he hit up the middle, I thought, ‘Oh yeah,’ to me that was the key, so if he can continue to do that, the rest of it will come.”

The skipper said he thought he saw Rosario breathe a sigh of relief as he crossed the plate after rounding the bases, and the 32-year-old said he did not watch the ball soar out, but knew that he got all of it (just his second this season, and his first since the season opener).

“I honestly didn’t see the ball,” Rosario told reporters of his reaction to the blast. “I knew I made great contact, so I’ve had that feeling before, so I know it was a big hit and a big moment, and again, I needed that to know that I’m the same Rosario that I’ve been in the past.”

Senzel went 0 for 3 with a walk in last night’s win. Winker went 2 for 4. Rosario was 1 for 3 with a walk.