Nationals notes: Washington returns to winning ways by sweeping Reds

Sunday was an early start for the Nationals, who are at the end of a hellacious and emotional 17-game stretch before Monday’s day off.

The group was tested by the stressful toll of the trade deadline, saying goodbye to key contributors and, to top it off, an injury to All-Star James Wood.

So a three-game, stress-free sweep was probably what the team needed. In Sunday’s 7-1 win, the Nationals pitched a bullpen game.

Brad Lord started and allowed one run on two hits with four strikeouts. He ran into trouble in the second inning when he had runners on first and second with no outs.

He mitigated the damage, inducing a groundout and a sacrifice fly before ending the inning on a strikeout.

Will Dion — acquired from Cleveland for Foster Griffin — and Trevor Williams combined to throw 5 1/3 scoreless innings.

Bullpen stabilizing?

It’s far too early to make conclusions, but since returning home from their eight-game road trip, the Nationals have received better production from their relievers.

For much of the season, the bullpen has been unsettled as pitchers shuffled between Triple-A Rochester and the majors. The relievers struggled with walks and lacked the stuff to strike out hitters.

Well, manager Blake Butera seems to have found a combination he likes in flamethrowing right-hander Yovanny Cruz, Orlando Ribalta and Clayton Beeter.

“It’s really good stuff coming at you,” Butera said Saturday of the triumvirate. “Getting the ball to those guys late in innings has been tough for us lately. But, now that Cruz is here, he’s helping a ton, and obviously we see how good this stuff is. If he continues to gain confidence and pitch the way he has the last two nights, I’m really excited to see what his future has in front of him.”

Cruz has been the setup pitcher. He worked in the seventh inning in both of his appearances in the weekend series. His stuff is electric, but the challenge is getting him to harness it in the strike zone, which he struggled with in his team debut in Wednesday’s 10-4 win over the Phillies.

Cruz pitched a one-third of an inning, leaving with the bases loaded. But, with a reliever as talented as he is, the Nationals have a tantalizing arm they can help develop.

Though he typically relies on his fastball and slider, he sprinkled in two split fingers Saturday.

“When he’s adding that split, I think he’s going to get more comfortable with that pitch as well [and become] a three-pitch guy that has confidence in all three of those pitches,” Butera said. “And, when you’re throwing 102, definitely helps.”

Bird recalled

Righty reliever Jake Bird, who was acquired from the Yankees in the Luis García Jr. trade, was recalled Sunday from Triple-A Rochester and pitched a scoreless inning Sunday.

Bird found out about the trade in an unusual way. He was pitching the ninth inning for the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate last Sunday when he received a mound visit. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre manager Shelley Duncan placed his right hand on Bird’s left shoulder as he relayed to him that he was being dealt to the Nationals.

“It’s weird because you’re in compete mode,” Bird said before Sunday’s game. “I don’t think it processed at all for me. I was just full of compete mode. People were trying to give me hugs in the dugout, and I’m still thinking about being out on the field.”

Bird’s ERA isn’t eye-popping at 5.93. Since he debuted in 2022, his lowest ERA was the 4.33 mark he posted in 2023.

His best offering is his sweeper, which opponents are batting just .189 against. Bird struggled immensely in April (11.12 ERA) but was solid in May (3.00) and June (3.24).

In May and June, he leaned heavily on his sweeper, and it led to the best results. Reliability has largely eluded Bird, but that’s his goal with Washington. He believes he’s thrown well at points this season; now it’s about being dependable.

“That’s where the consistency comes into,” Bird said. “Can’t have those blowup outings really.”