Soto sends Nats fans home happy with a walk-off win
WASHINGTON — There had to be comfort in feeling the scoreboard swing, the balls soar over the fence, the game hinge on whether Cristian Pache had hit a home run or a mammoth foul ball off Daniel Hudson in the ninth inning Tuesday. It was the sort of mundane micro-moment that seemed so absent Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday in Washington, when the Nationals were sidelined by a coronavirus outbreak that kept nine players in quarantine while the rest tried to beat the Atlanta Braves.
They did because, in that ninth inning, the umpires overturned an initial call that Pache had broken a tie. They won, 6-5, because that call was soon followed by Juan
Soto’s walkoff single, which skipped to the fence in center as Victor Robles charged home from second base. Soto chucked his helmet into the outfield grass and leaped into Trea Turner’s arms behind second. The small crowd managed a big roar, then another, then chants of “Let’s go, So-to!” as he waved his arms for more noise.
That Opening Day happened at all — in front of 4,801 fans, on April 6 instead of April 1 — was a small victory in itself. Soto made sure it would also count in the National League East standings.
In normal times, as in most other years, this was when fans meet the players signed and traded for in the offseason.
That could have meant first glimpses of first baseman Josh Bell, left fielder Kyle
Schwarber, closer Brad Hand, starter Jon Lester and catcher Alex Avila.
Josh Harrison, too, if you count the infielder who returned after 33 games in Washington last summer. But that entire group remains sidelined by MLB’s coronavirus protocols.
Add starter Patrick Corbin, catcher Yan Gomes and utility man Jordy Mercer to that list, too.
The Nationals have 11 players who tested positive for the coronavirus or are in quarantine because of potential exposure as close contacts. It turned their roster into a shell of what they envisioned when leaving spring training last week.
But there was still a game, still fans with tickets, still a chance to play despite the long break and missing pieces.
The Nationals woke up Tuesday and leaned on that.
Moments before first pitch, Manager Dave Martinez grabbed a microphone and stepped in front of the home dugout.
He did a half-spin, looking at those who had just watched a championship flag rise above the left field concourse.
The stands had been empty since the Nationals hosted the Houston Astros in Game 5 of the 2019 World Series.
Martinez’s voice shook a bit as he addressed the scattered, spaced-out crowd.
“Nationals fans, welcome back!” he yelled with a hand raised. “Welcome home! Let’s play ball!”