WASHINGTON NATIONALS NOTES:
OPPONENT – KANSAS CITY ROYALS
The Nationals and Royals play three times this season, all in KC…Andrés Machado made his Major League debut with the Royals in 2017…Nationals bullpen coach Ricky Bones pitched two seasons in Kansas City from 1997-98…Nationals clubhouse manager Mike Wallace worked three seasons (1989-91) in Kansas City.
CRAZY EIGHT
Behind an eight-run sixth-inning, the Washington Nationals beat the Kansas City Royals, 12-10, in the first game of this three-game weekend series on Friday night…The eight runs scored in the sixth were the most in an inning this season and the most since the Nationals scored nine in the bottom of the second on Sept. 28, 2019 vs. Cleveland.
- Luis García recorded six hits (more on that below), while Joey Meneses (3-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI, BB, 2 R), Corey Dickerson (1-for-3, HR, 3 RBI, BB, R) and Jeimer Candelario (1-for-5, 3B, 2 RBI, BB, 2 R) also filled up the box score.
- Chad Kuhl (1.2 IP, H, 2 SO) entered in the eighth inning and came back out for the ninth to earn his first career save.
A NIGHT FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
Luis García matched a Nationals record (2005-pres.) with six hits on Friday night, going 6-for-6 with two doubles, two RBI and three runs scored…Combined with his two hits on May 25 vs. San Diego, García has hit safely in eight of his last nine at bats.
- The six hits are tied for the second-most in a 9.0-inning game in Major League history…Garcia became one of 74 players in Major League history to record at least six hits in a 9.0-inning game.
- García (23 years, 10 days) became the second-youngest player in Major League history to record six hits in a 9.0-inning game behind San Francisco’s Jesús Alou (22 years, 108 days) who did so on July 10, 1964 at Chicago (NL).
- García checked in with two doubles in the sixth inning, becoming the first player in Nationals history to record at least two doubles in one inning.
STATUS CHECK
The Nationals have won four of the last six, nine of 18 and 13 of their last 25 games…They are 17-16 (.515) dating to April 21 at Minnesota.
- Washington is 21-23 (.477) after losing six of seven games to start the season…That stretch included series against the Atlanta Braves (1-2) and Tampa Bay Rays (0-3) as well as a 1-0 loss to the Colorado Rockies on their Opening Day.
STREAKIN’ LANE TRAIN
Lane Thomas has reached safely in a career-high 22 straight games and has hit safely in a career-high 11 straight games…Thomas is hitting .330/.378/.626 with four doubles, a triple, seven homers, 15 RBI, six walks, one hit by pitch, two stolen bases and 20 runs scored during the on-base streak.
- Thomas ranks fifth in the National League with eight home runs during the month of May, while his .629 slugging percentage ranks 10th in the NL during the month.
- On the season, Thomas ranks in the National League in runs scored (T8th, 34), hits (10th, 56) and average (14th, .290).
CHASING 1,000
With 999 in hand, Corey Dickerson is one hit away from 1,000 for his career…When he collects hit No. 1,000, he will become the 12th player in Nationals history (2005-pres.) to record his 1,000th hit in a Nationals uniform, according to the Elias Sports Bureau…The last to do it was Brian Dozier in 2019.
- Since returning from the Injured List, Dickerson is 7-for-20 (.350) with a double, two homers, seven RBI, one walk and five runs in seven games.
JOEY HITS
Joey Meneses is fourth in the National League with 62 hits and his .305 batting average ranks sixth.
- Meneses is tied for first in Major League Baseball with 51 hits with Freddie Freeman since April 15…His .342 batting average since April 15th ranks second in MLB.
- He is hitting .388/.431/.537 with seven doubles, one homer, 18 RBI, five walks and nine runs scored in his last 16 games.
TODAY’S STARTER – #40 JOSIAH GRAY
Right-hander was acquired by the Nationals from the Los Angeles Dodgers at the 2021 Trade Deadline…Was Los Angeles’ No. 2 prospect entering 2021 and its Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2019…Was originally selected by Cincinnati in the second round (No. 72 overall) of the 2019 First-Year Player Draft out of Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York…Was acquired by the Dodgers on his 21st birthday, Dec. 21, 2018…Is the Player Ambassador to the Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy.
LAST START
Earned his fourth win of the season behind 5.0 innings of three-hit, one-run ball on May 21 vs. Detroit…Worked around six walks while striking out two batters along the way.
RANKS
Gray ranks third in the National League with a 2.65 ERA…He paces the Nationals staff in opponents’ batting average (.241), opponents’ slugging percentage (.361), opponents’ OPS (.692), WHIP (1.39) and home runs allowed per 9.0 innings (0.78).
ON A HEATER
Gray is in the midst of the best stretch of his career, pitching to a 2.05 ERA (12 ER/52.2 IP) with 43 strikeouts and just two home runs allowed in his last nine games.
KEEPING THE BALL IN THE YARD
Gray is tied for seventh in the National League with 0.78 home runs allowed per 9.0 innings (5 HR/57.2 IP)…He allowed back-to-back home runs to lead off the game on April 1 vs. Atlanta (Acuña Jr./Olson) and beginning with the next batter, has allowed just three additional home runs in the next 57.2 innings entering play tonight…This improvement comes after he led Major League Baseball with 38 home runs and 2.30 home runs per 9.0 innings last season.
vs. KANSAS CITY
Has never faced the Kansas City Royals.
SLIDER STATS
Gray’s sider ranks eighth among all Major League pitches (min. 50 PA) with a 21.7% hard hit rate and ranks 12th among Major League sliders with a .169 opponents’ batting average.
THE STORY OF HIS CUTTER
As told to Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post in a recent story: “At the start of spring training, Gray debuted a cutter he learned from Erasmo Ramírez, who drew his grip on a baseball Gray practiced with until he lost it at the gym during the offseason. Gray joked that some Florida teenager could be throwing Ramírez’s cutter in high school games. Yet by the time he misplaced the ball, Gray knew where to put his fingers. The pitch felt like a natural complement to his slider, moving more side-to-side while his gyroscopic slider drops almost straight down.”
KANSAS CITY ROYALS NOTES:
TEN ISN’T ENOUGH: The Royals suffered a 12-10 defeat to the Nationals last night at Kauffman Stadium, a game in which they trailed by 7 runs and closed the deficit to 1 before dropping to 1-10 in games decided by 2 runs… Kansas City held a 2-1 lead into the 6th, when the first four batters reached vs. starter Jordan Lyles, a stretch capped by Corey Dickerson’s go-ahead, 3-run home run…that ended Lyles’ night but the inning continued, as the Nationals scored 8 runs in the 6th—including 4 vs. Josh Staumont—turning a 2-1 Royals lead into a 9-2 deficit…Bobby Witt Jr. homered to begin the bottom half, before the offense erupted for 5 runs in the 7th on a 2-run double by Salvador Perez and a 3-run HR by Witt Jr., his career-high-tying 4th hit and 2nd HR, to turn a 7-run deficit into a 1-run game…the Royals stranded the tying run in scoring position, and Washington scored 3 runs in the 8th off Jose Cuas…the Royals answered again in the bottom half, including Witt Jr.’s career-best 5th RBI on a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded, but MJ Melendez struck out to end the threat with the tying run on base, and the Royals went 1-2-3 in the 9th to suffer their 6th loss in their last 7 games.
There have been 6 games in the Majors this season in which a team has lost despite scoring at least 10 runs, and the Royals have accounted for 2 of those games, including last night and May 4 vs. Baltimore.
The Royals are 0-6 following an off day this season and have been outscored 39-20 (-19) in those games.
Switch hitter Drew Waters made his season debut with 2 hits, including 1 from each side of the plate.
The Royals have held a lead in 17 of 23 games this month, but they’re just 8-15 in May with 9 blown lead losses…their 17 blown lead losses for the season are tied for 2nd most in the Majors behind the A’s (19).
The Royals have lost 6 of their last 7 games and 10 of 13, falling to a season-high 22 games under .500.
Kansas City’s 31 HR this month are its 2nd most in the month of May, trailing the 34 HR hit in May 2017.
MR. DO IT ALL: Bobby Witt Jr. was a human highlight reel in last night’s game, matching a career high with 4 hits and 2 home runs while setting career highs with 3 runs, 5 RBI and 11 total bases…he also recorded his 15th stolen base of the season on a double steal in the 4th inning, a play on which he scored thanks to an E2.
Bobby last night became the 24th player (29th time) in Royals history with 11 total bases and the first shortstop…he’s the second Royal with 11 total bases and 1 steal in a game, joining Carlos Beltrán in 2004.
He’s the third Royal to fall a triple shy of the cycle this month, following Salvador Perez a week ago today and Michael Massey on May 10…the Royals have not had a player hit for the cycle since George Brett on July 25, 1990, and the 33 years since marks the 2nd-longest active drought in the Majors behind the Reds.
Witt Jr. became the first Royals shortstop with a 5-RBI game since Yuniesky Betancourt on Aug. 21, 2010.
Bobby last night became the third shortstop age-22 or younger to record at least 4 hits, 2 HR and 5 RBI in a game, following Carlos Correa on July 9, 2017 and Hall of Famer Robin Yount on Sept. 6, 1978.
STATS LCC notes that Witt Jr. last night became the first player since 1920 to record at least 4 hits, 2 home runs, 5 RBI and a stolen base in a losing effort…players were 47-0 in such games before last night.
He’s the fourth player in Royals history to record 2 HR and 1 steal in the same game, following Mike Aviles, Carlos Beltrán (2 times) and Bo Jackson (3 times)…he’s only the third shortstop in history to do this before his 23rd birthday, following Álex Rodríguez on May 16, 1998 and Bert Campaneris on July 23, 1964.
Including last night, Witt Jr.’s 4 career games with a home run and stolen base are 1 behind Kyle Tucker, Francisco Lindor, Adolis García and Thairo Estrada for the most in the Majors since the start of last year.
With homers in the 6th and 7th last night and an RBI fielder’s choice in the 8th, Witt Jr. became the first Royal, according to Elias, to record an RBI in 3 straight innings since Alcides Escobar in Game 4 of the 2015 ALCS vs. Toronto, a 14-2 win, in which he had sac. flies in the 7th and 8th and a 2-run single in the 9th.
Witt Jr.’s 15 steals rank 3rd in the AL behind Esteury Ruiz (27) and Wander Franco (18)…only one other player in the Majors can match Witt Jr.’s combination of HR (9) and steals (15): Ronald Acuña Jr. (11, 22).
Bobby is now on pace for 28 home runs and 46 stolen bases over 162 team games, a combination that has been matched only seven times by six players in Major League history: Mike Trout in 2012, Hanley Ramírez in 2007, A-Rod in 1998, Barry Bonds in 1990, Rickey Henderson in 1986 and 1990 and Eric Davis in 1987.
SALVY SPLASHES: Royals Captain Salvador Perez batted twice with the bases loaded last night, and had a 2-run double in the 7th inning and an RBI single in the 8th to mark the 15th game in his last 25 (60.0%) in which he’s recorded an RBI…during that 25-game stretch since April 24, his 31 RBI are tied with Freddie Freeman, Josh Jung and Cedric Mullins for the Major League lead…his 9 home runs during that same stretch are tied for 2nd in the Majors behind Jorge Soler (11), his .673 slugging percentage ranks 3rd behind Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (.714) and Yandy Díaz (.679) and both his .337 batting average (33-for-98) and 1.050 OPS rank 6th.
Salvy has hit 8 home runs in 20 games this month, 2 behind former teammate Jorge Soler for the Majors lead…his 8 HR are 1 shy of the single-season club record for the month of May, set by Gary Gaetti in 1995.
Royals catchers have hit 13 HR this season—including 9 by Perez—which are the most of any position on the team and the highest total at the catcher position in the Majors, 2 more than the Braves catchers (11).
Salvy is the Royals all-time leader in Interleague play with 35 HR and 109 RBI and his 188 hits rank 2nd to Alex Gordon (210)…in 6 career games vs. the Nationals, Perez is 7-for-22 (.318) with 1 HR and 8 RBI.
VS. NATIONALS: The Royals are hosting the Washington Nationals this weekend for just the second time and first since 2016…the Royals are 5-14 (.263) all-time vs. the Nationals—and have gone winless in six series—which is their worst mark against any opponent…that includes a 4-9 record since they moved to Washington in 2005.
The Royals are 5-11 in Interleague play this season, including an 0-4 mark vs. the National League East… they’ve lost 3 consecutive games to Washington since their last win on July 5, 2019 at Nationals Park.
In 19 all-time meetings, the Nats have outscored the Royals 109-68 and have out-homered them 25-8.
HOME: The Royals continue a 6-game homestand today with the 2nd of 3 games vs. the Nationals, who are visiting Kansas City for the first time since 2016…Monday night began a stretch in which the Royals are playing 9 of 11 games at home, with the only exceptions being a 2-game set in St. Louis next week…that will continue a run of four consecutive series vs. National League opponents, including a 3-game stay vs. the Rockies next weekend and 3 games in Miami as part of a 6-game trip to begin the first week of June… following the 2-game trip to St. Louis next Monday and Tuesday, the Royals will enjoy back-to-back off days next Wednesday and Thursday to mark their first scheduled back-to-back off days since April 6-7, 2016.
The Royals are 7-20 at Kauffman Stadium, but have won 5 of their last 9 games here after starting 2-16.
After averaging 2.5 runs/game and being outscored 79-32 (-47) at home in April, the Royals are averaging 6.4 runs/game in May, and have outscored opponents 90-82 at home this month despite going 6-8.
TODAY’S STARTERS: RHP BRADY SINGER (3-4, 7.48)
BRADY SINGER is making his 11th start of 2023 and 74th of his career today vs. Washington…it’s his 1st start vs. the Nationals and his 5th Interleague start of the year…he’s in his fourth season in the Majors and was selected by Kansas City in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Florida.
LAST START: Singer did not figure into the decision of Kansas City’s 8-5 loss in 10 innings on Monday night vs. the Tigers, in which he was charged with 5 runs on 7 hits and a season-high 4 walks in 3.2 innings, with 3 strikeouts…he retired only 11 of the 22 batters he faced, and allowed five to reach in Detroit’s 3-run 1st inning in which the Tigers scored on a bases-loaded walk by Akil Baddoo and a 2-run single by Matt Vierling…he stranded a pair of baserunners in the 2nd but allowed a go-ahead, 2-run home run to Vierling in the 3rd and issued a 2-out walk in the 4th before exiting after 87 pitches in favor of Josh Taylor, who stranded the inherited runner.
He issued more walks (4) than strikeouts (3) last Monday for just the sixth time in 73 career starts and the first since Sept. 28, 2021 vs. Cleveland, when he faced five batters and exited after recording 2 outs, with 1 walk and no strikeouts.
JEKYLL AND HYDE: Brady has been charged with at least 5 runs in 6 of his 10 starts this season, after doing so in only 2 of his 27 appearances (24 starts) last year…the Royals, predictably, are 1-5 in games that he allows at least 5 runs…but on the flip side, he’s held opponents to 2 earned runs or fewer in his other 4 starts, in which the Royals are 4-0, including wins on April 3 vs. Toronto, April 25 at Arizona, May 11 vs. the White Sox and May 16 at San Diego…in fact, the Royals have won 11 consecutive games since last August in which Singer has allowed 2 earned runs or fewer.
WALK THIS WAY: Brady has issued 20 walks in 49.1 innings this season for a 3.7 BB/9, after issuing just 35 walks in 153.1 innings all of last year, which resulted in a 2.1 BB/9 that ranked 8th in the American League (min. 150.0 IP)…after not walking a batter in 3 of his 1st 5 starts this season, he’s issued multiple walks in each of his last 5.
CASTING CALLS: In 34 starts since his recall on May 17 of last season, Brady has induced a called strike on 650 of 3,235 pitches (20.1%), 4th most in the Majors behind Logan Webb (656), Gerrit Cole (653) and Aaron Nola (653)…Singer’s rate of 20.1% called strikes since May 17, 2022 leads the Majors (min. 2,500 pitches), ahead of Sonny Gray (17.9%), and since his 2020 debut season, Singer’s called-strike rate of 20.8% ranks 2nd in the Majors (min. 5,000 pitches), trailing only Adam Wainwright (21.1%).
CAN’T TOUCH THIS: Singer has recorded 385 strikeouts in 395.1 innings since his 2020 debut for an 8.8 K/9, which is the best rate in Royals history among pitchers who’ve started at least 70 games, ahead of Ian Kennedy (8.4), Jakob Junis (8.1) and Danny Duffy (8.1)…his 385 strikeouts are tied with Yordano Ventura for the 2nd most by a Royal through 76 career appearances, 1 shy of Jakob Junis (386)…with at least 6 strikeouts today, he would pass Junis (390) for the most through 77 career outings.
STOPPER: Singer has had success in his career following a Royals loss, and he’ll attempt to be the stopper again today after Kansas City’s 12-10 loss last night vs. the Nationals…in 45 career appearances following a Royals loss, Singer is 16-11 with a 3.90 ERA (103 ER in 237.2 IP), and all 3 of his wins this year have followed a team loss.
DAY & NIGHT: In 12 daytime starts last year, Singer went 7-3 with a 2.54 ERA (21 ER in 74.1 IP)—holding opponents scoreless in 4 of those 12 starts—and his 7 daytime wins were 1 off the Major League lead…that success has not translated to this season, as he’s 0-2 in 4 afternoon starts with an 8.69 ERA (19 ER in 19.2 IP)…but in his most recent daytime start on May 11 vs. the White Sox, he allowed 1 run in 6.0 innings.
INTERLEAGUE INTRIGUE: Brady is making his team-high 5th Interleague start of the season today in his 1st career start vs. the Nationals…he’s 2-1 in his previous 4 Interleague starts, including 5-4 wins in his last 2 such starts, on April 25 in Arizona and May 16 in San Diego, in which he’s combined to allow 3 earned runs in 12.0 innings.
In 11 career starts in Interleague play, he’s 5-3 with a 4.60 ERA (31 ER in 60.2 IP).
AT HOME: Singer is 1-3 with a 7.85 ERA (25 ER in 28.2 IP) in 6 starts at Kauffman Stadium this season and already has more losses than he had all of last season at home…in 2022, he went 8-2 over 15 appearances (14 starts) at The K with a 2.76 ERA (29 ER in 94.2 IP), including a 6-0 record and 1.67 ERA (11 ER in 59.1 IP) over his last 9 home starts…Brady’s 3 home starts this month have been eventful ones, including a 5-4 loss to Oakland on May 6, a 4-3, walk-off win on May 11 vs. the White Sox, and an 8-5 loss in extra innings in his most recent start on Monday vs. Detroit.
