Doug Fister dominates as Nationals lock up home-field advantage with win over Miami

The Nationals woke up Friday morning with only one regular-season goal left to accomplish, one last benchmark to reach.

So they handed the ball to Doug Fister and watched the unflappable right-hander take them there.

Fister cruised through nine scoreless innings in the first leg of Friday’s doubleheader against Miami, limiting the Marlins to just three hits in a 4-0 win. He finished with a season-high nine strikeouts and no walks en route to the third complete game of his career. He also doubled at the plate and came around to score for good measure.

Fister’s dominance ensured that the Nationals will finish atop the National League standings for the second time in three years, giving them home-field advantage up until the World Series. Entering Friday’s nightcap, they had 94 wins this season with three games remaining. They hold the tiebreaker with the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had 91 wins with three games left to play.

“That was a big milestone for us today,” Fister said. “It’s always nice to be home. You’ve got your home fans. We’ve got our own lockers, our own chairs, whatever it may be. Guys are comfortable here. And that means a lot.”

Ten days have passed since the Nationals clinched the division title with a 3-0 win in Atlanta, securing a spot in the playoffs. In the following days, manager Matt Williams stressed the importance of continuing to push through the remainder of the regular season, both to clinch home-field advantage and maintain momentum.

In the nine games since clinching, the Nationals are 7-2.

“I think it just starts from the top, with Matt staying even keel even since we’ve clinched,” center fielder Denard Span said. “He’s been the same from Day 1, from opening day to now, and I think it’s just carried over to us on the field. … You see a lot of guys taking deep breaths once you’ve clinched, and we haven’t done that.”

Starting pitching has certainly helped. Since clinching the division, Nationals starters have gone 7-0 with a 2.01 earned-run average, eight walks and 41 strikeouts. On Friday, it was Fister’s turn.

In his final start of a stellar debut season in Washington, the towering right-hander retired nine of his first 10 batters and 20 of his first 22. He struck out nine, induced 10 groundouts and retired nine batters on fly balls. Only once did he throw more than 14 pitches in an inning.

“What can I say about him?” catcher Jose Lobaton said with a smile. “He was throwing strikes, making outs. Three hits? That’s awesome. You want to have somebody late in the game like that. I’m happy that I was catching today.”

Fister specifically asked Williams if he could pitch the first game of Friday’s doubleheader because matinees remind him of Saturday mornings playing as a kid. “I just like being able to get up and play ball,” he said.

The 30-year-old had only pitched into the eighth inning twice this season, completing the eighth once. Lobaton said it had been Fister’s goal to pitch a complete game this year. When he got his opportunity and walked out to the mound for the ninth on Friday, the crowd rose to its feet and gave him a standing ovation.

“Obviously some adrenaline, some emotions run through there and you’ve got the fans cheering on their feet,” Fister said. “It’s one of those things where you kind of take a second and you soak it in, and then you get back to work.”

Afterwards, Fister stood in front of his locker and was asked about his outing. “You know, it’s a great team win,” he said, skirting the question. A reporter noted that he doesn’t like to talk about himself.

“Not particularly,” Fister replied. “This is a team game. We are a team. We’re all brothers in here, and that’s how we play it. That’s how we want to play it. We have something special in here.”

Just how special will become clear over the next month.

With home-field advantage now secured, the Nationals have a weekend of regular-season games remaining, then four days off before the Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Oct. 3. Statistically speaking, they have nothing left to play for in the regular season.

Williams, though, said nothing will change.

“It’s their DNA. … You just don’t flip that on and off,” he said. “It’s important to us. I’m proud of that fact. And they should be proud of that, too.”