Bryce Harper’s ninth-inning heroics send Nationals to third straight loss

The “Tarps Off” crowd is a rowdy bunch.

Whenever Washington’s favorite villain, Bryce Harper, was at the plate, they showered him with obscene chants: An “F— Bryce Harper” chant broke out as he stepped up in a tie game in the ninth.

Harper silenced the hecklers by hammering a 1-0 changeup off right-hander Gus Varland to left field for a go-ahead, two-run homer. He strutted and roared with the ferocity befitting a perennial All-Star as he rounded the bases and embraced his teammates on his way back to the dugout. He raised his middle finger to the critics in right field as he completed his home run trot.

It was the death knell as the Nationals squandered a five-run lead, losing 10-5 to drop the series against the Phillies.

No matter how potent the Nationals’ offense was, or how stellar Cade Cavalli was, the game didn’t begin until the right-hander left the mound and the relievers had to protect the lead.

Manager Blake Butera said his bullpen was the biggest takeaway from the game and that the group is “not getting outs.”

The Nationals led 5-0 until the sixth inning, when the Phillies tagged Cavalli for two runs on left fielder Brandon Marsh’s homer. Still, a three-run lead should be sufficient for most major league bullpens.

In the seventh, left-hander Mitchell Parker entered in relief of Cavalli and struck out Wednesday night’s hero, Derek Hill, before allowing back-to-back singles, setting up a showdown with All-Star slugger Kyle Schwarber. He walked Schwarber to load the bases and was replaced by right-hander Clayton Beeter.

Beeter walked back-to-back hitters to score two runs and tie the game. He collected himself to induce a forceout that allowed the tying run to score and a groundout to end the inning. Beeter and Parker combined to throw 36 pitches (16 strikes). Eschewing the strike zone isn’t a winning formula, particularly against a veteran, star-laden Phillies lineup.

“You got to attack. You got to throw strikes,” Butera said. “If we’re afraid to do so, we’ll keep giving the next guy opportunity until somebody steps up and shows they want the ball and they’re ready to go attack.”

Varland was optioned to Triple-A Rochester after the game — and more shuffling could be on the horizon as the team searches for answers in the bullpen. With the unit’s struggles contributing mightily to the team’s three-game losing streak, Butera has to evaluate which guys he uses in high-leverage spots.

“They’re going to get opportunities to do so,” Butera said. “How much rope that is, that’s to be determined. This is our group right now, and at the end of the day, we’re going to turn to the bullpen and whoever’s ready to pitch is going to get in there and get an opportunity to pitch.”

The bullpen squandered a strong performance from Cavalli, who threw six innings of two-run ball with seven strikeouts. Butera said he “looked like a No. 1.”

“We asked a lot out of Cade today because he’s our No. 1 [starter],” Butera said. “He got the ball on opening day, and No. 1’s, they stop momentum. When we’re going through a swing like we’ve been going through the last few days, you put a lot on his shoulders to help us get through this, and that’s what he did.”

Cavalli didn’t feel this game was different from his previous starts. He approached Thursday’s game with the same mentality.

“We’ve had a rough stretch, but you just want to come in and do your job,” Cavalli said. “I know that the guys in the bullpen ... we feel for them. There’s nobody that feels worse than them.”

Cavalli said the bullpen’s work ethic and professionalism are why he’s confident the relievers are going to right the ship. But even for a Nationals team that’s battle-tested in bouncing back, it doesn’t make absorbing the losses any easier.

“It hurts,” Cavalli said. “I’m not going to sit here and say it doesn’t hurt, but we know that there’s 162 games in this season. We’re barely halfway. We’ve got a lot of ball left. We’re not going to lay down. We’re just going to dig deeper and try to go win those ballgames.”

What’s most vexing about this three-game losing streak is it’s not just one reliever struggling; it’s the entire unit. The Nationals don’t have the most talented bullpen, but they need someone to emerge as a late-inning stalwart.

“We’ve seen a lot of different pitchers get the ball in big spots,” Butera said. “We’re gonna give guys opportunities to earn the ball in big situations, and we’re gonna find out who wants it and who can execute. It has nothing to do with work ethic. These guys are working their tails off every day in pregame. At the end of the day, it’s a matter of execution. That’s what it comes down to.”

Butera said after Wednesday’s loss that, if the team is going to go down, he wants to go down being aggressive. But on Thursday the relievers’ passivity bit them.

“It sucks getting your teeth kicked in,” Varland said.

The season is quickly spiraling. A .500 record would have been welcome at the start of the year, but with how well the offense has performed, expectations have been heaped upon this young group. How it responds will be telling.

“The problem’s not coming from the series. It’s going to come from if we let it affect the next couple weeks,” center fielder Jacob Young said.

The team has another game Friday against the Orioles in Baltimore. The Nationals are 24-16 on the road, so maybe getting away from Nationals Park will be good for them.

The offense has rejuvenated the fans and given them hope. If the Nationals are to stop the bleeding, they will have to put this tough series behind them.

“We have a lot of confidence in this room,” Young said. “A lot of us have been through tough times in this clubhouse. We’ve shown multiple times this year that we can bounce back, and that’s something that that’s we’re looking forward to now. You know, [this] series is over, let’s move on to Baltimore and Boston, bounce back and do what we do.”

This article has been updated.