Dylan Cease delivers seven dominant innings and the Nationals’ late rally is too little, too late as the Padres finish off a sweep.
SAN DIEGO — Entering the ninth inning Wednesday afternoon and on their way to an 8-5 loss, the Washington Nationals looked like they were tracking toward another nadir against the San Diego Padres. They weren’t walked off, as had happened twice in the previous four days. They weren’t involved in a scuffle, nor did they yield a grand slam to the very player at the center of that scuffle, as was the case in Tuesday’s defeat.
Once again, they were diced up with breaking balls. For the fourth time this season, they were on the wrong side of a sweep.Those struggles, in part, could be explained by the mastery of Cease, who looked every bit the pitcher that finished second in American League Cy Young voting in 2022. The right-hander threw seven dominant frames, striking out nine. The Nationals, as teams know by now, handle velocity just fine. Fastballs, sinkers and cutters haven’t been a problem.
“Cease was really, really good, our guys couldn’t pick up the slider,” Manager Dave Martinez said. “It was sharp, really sharp today. We’ve seen him before, when he’s on, he’s on.” “All of us are just trying to prove our worth, if that makes sense, and take those last at-bats serious,” Thomas said. “We at least got within striking distance, a couple more hits and we’re right back in it.”
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