A Juan Soto slump usually needs a few disclaimers.
The first two months of the season haven’t gone as expected for the preseason National League MVP front-runner, but he’s been far from bad. His league-leading 39 walks entering Sunday against the Colorado Rockies more than made up for his underwhelming .228 batting average, and his .795 on-base plus slugging percentage — while far below his career .963 mark — was still 33% better than league average and best among qualified Nationals hitters.
The past two weeks, however, have resembled an actual slump for the 23-year-old superstar. In his previous 13 games, Soto tallied just five base knocks with no two-hit performances and zero home runs. Nationals manager Dave Martinez even moved Soto out of the analytically preferred No. 2 hole and into the third spot last weekend in an attempt to give the slugger a boost.
But, sometimes, all it takes is one great swing to bust a slump. Soto broke out of the funk in the first inning of Washington’s 6-5 win over Colorado when he crushed a two-run home run to help lead the Nationals (18-31) to their first series win at home this season.
“I really felt like he was starting to swing the bat better,” Martinez said. “Today was a result of him getting up there and getting a good pitch to hit and swinging at it. Hopefully, this will kick start him to continue to do what he does.”
Soto took a 2-0 slider from Rockies starter Kyle Freeland and deposited it 399 feet into the red seats in left center field. It was Soto’s first long ball since May 12. He later walked and doubled off the wall for his first two-hit performance in 16 games and his first game with multiple base knocks and a walk since May 5.
“I know it was going to come,” Soto said of breaking out of the slump. “At the end of the day, I won’t be like that the whole year. … I was feeling it. I really feel like I was pretty close.”
After the Nationals’ offense provided the pitching staff a 6-1 lead, the bullpen nearly gave it away as the Rockies scored twice in both the seventh and eighth innings. But closer Tanner Rainey struck out back-to-back hitters with runners on the corners in the eighth and then slammed the door shut in the ninth for his fifth save and Washington’s fourth win in five games.
“We knew we were in some games earlier in the year where things just didn’t go our way,” Rainey said. “We’ve been saying it was going to turn around, it was going to click. Today was a huge team win, all the way around.”
Nationals starting pitcher Josiah Gray, who was trying to bounce back from a troubling outing Tuesday against the Dodgers, allowed a home run to Charlie Blackmon on just the second pitch of the game.
Surrendering long balls has been a problem for Gray this season, as the 24-year-old has allowed the third-most homers (13) of any pitcher in the National League. He gave up three home runs Tuesday against the Dodgers — the team that traded him to Washington as part of a package to acquire Trea Turner and Max Scherzer.
But Gray settled down, allowing just two more hits and no runs in five innings. His day was cut short due to four walks and a couple of elongated at-bats.
“Today was definitely a step in the right direction,” Gray said.
The Nationals plated two more runs in the second, thanks to three straight two-out hits. The rally started with the bottom of the order, as Alcides Escobar lined an 0-2 pitch for a single and Victor Robles blooped a single to center field. Robles, who tallied a career-high six RBIs in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader, then stole second base, and Escobar scampered home after Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers dropped the throw.
Robles then stole third — his fourth swiped bag in two days — and scored on a Cesar Hernandez single. Hernandez, who extended his hitting streak to nine in the win, reached base in four of his five plate appearances with two singles and two walks.
In the sixth, Lane Thomas gave the Nationals a 6-1 lead with a two-run shot — his third big fly of the year.
Reliever Carl Edwards Jr. extended his scoreless innings streak to 11 in the sixth, but Andres Machado and Kyle Finnegan struggled in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively, to bring the Rockies back into the game before Rainey shut the door.
“It’s the biggest part of being in the bullpen,” Rainey said about stranding two of Finnegan’s runners in the eighth to hold the lead. “Everybody’s not going to have their best day every day, so whoever is next in line has to be ready to get in there and pick him up and do what you can to help the team win.”
Washington begins a 10-game road trip Monday with a series against the New York Mets, before traveling to Cincinnati and Miami.
• Jacob Calvin Meyer can be reached at jmeyer@washingtontimes.com.
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