The Nationals were one out away from winning Game 2 of their NLDS matchup against the Giants on Saturday to even the series before the teams traveled to San Francisco for the next two games. But Washington's closer, Drew Storen, relieved Jordan Zimmermann and the Giants rallied.
Zimmermann had a masterful outing, lasting 8 2/3 innings while giving up only three hits and one walk before being taken out. He retired a franchise postseason record 20 batters before walking Giants second baseman Joe Panik in the top of the ninth. Buster Posey was due up next and Nationals' manager Matt Williams decided to take out Zimmermann and hand the ball over to Storen. But nothing went as planned.
Storen only threw three pitches and gave up a single to Posey and an RBI double to Pablo Sandoval that tied the game 1-1. The Giants tried sending Posey to home all the way from first base on Sandoval's double, but he was thrown out at the plate to end the top of the ninth. The two teams essentially played a whole extra game, as the affair lasted 18 innings, ultimately ending with a Brandon Belt home run off of Tanner Roark in the top of the 18th. The Nationals failed to score in the bottom half of the inning and lost Game 2. The Giants will now take the series to San Francisco leading 2-0.
And on top of that, the Nationals will have to face Madison Bumgarner in a potential elimination game, which doesn't look too great for a Washington lineup that has only managed three runs and 15 hits in 27 innings against the Giants. Bumgarner tossed a gem in the Giants' wild card matchup against the Pittsburgh Pirates - a complete game four-hit shutout. Bumgarner also has a phenomenal postseason resume, compiling a 4-2 record with a 3.02 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in eight appearances (seven starts). He'll face Doug Fister in Game 3 on Monday at 5:07 p.m. at AT&T Park.
But Fister won't lay down to Bumgarner and the experienced Giants lineup. He's the most cultivated Nationals' pitcher, having amassed eight postseason appearances (seven starts) with a 3-2 record, 2.98 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. He was the top pitcher on the Nationals' staff this season thanks to a career year that was headlined by a 16-6 record and a 2.41 ERA in 25 starts. However, as we've seen on Friday and Saturday, it doesn't matter how well a starter performs if a team is unable to hit. The Nationals have only given up five runs in 27 innings and managed to lose both of those games.
Back in June the Fister and the Nationals defeated the Giants 2-1 when Bumgarner took the hill at AT&T Park. The left-handed Bumgarner tossed seven innings and gave up eight hits and two earned runs, while Fister hurled seven scoreless to get his fifth win of the season. But this is playoff baseball and the Giants have shown it's their favorite stage, as they've won 10 consecutive postseason games, which ties them for second all-time with the 1937-1941 New York Yankees and 1989-1990 Oakland Athletics.
The all-time record is 12 straight postseason wins, and the way the Giants are playing right now, they could very well topple that record in 2014.
