PHILADELPHIA — It can take weeks, even months, for a ballclub to establish an identity. These things often aren’t decided two days into a new season, and there remains plenty of time for the Washington Nationals to determine their place.
But if the last 48 hours have offered a glimpse into what might be, Washington’s players and fans could be in for an exhilarating ride.
It began Sunday night at pristine new Nationals Park, where the home club debuted in style thanks to Ryan Zimmerman’s game-winning homer in the ninth. It continued yesterday at Citizens Bank Park, where the Nationals’ resiliency again was on display in a 11-6 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Just as they did the night before, the Nationals blew a late lead and allowed the opposition to tie the game. Just as they did on South Capitol Street, they quickly took the lead for good.
And when they wake up this morning and look at the standings, they will see they are the only 2-0 club in the major leagues.
“Even though they came back and tied the game, we didn’t give up,” reliever Ray King said. “Just like last night. They tied the game, but we never gave up. I think we’ve got a little more resilience this year.”
Resilience, talent, good fortune. Whatever it is, the Nationals know they’ve got a good thing going. They have beaten two division rivals in inspiring fashion, topping the Atlanta Braves on Sunday night on Zimmerman’s walk-off homer and now spoiling the Phillies’ opener with a five-run, ninth-inning explosion that left a sellout crowd of 44,533 booing the defending NL East champs.
For the first time since 1962, Washington has a 2-0 ballclub of its own. That Senators squad wound up losing its next 13 games en route to a 101-loss season. This group has no reason to believe a similar collapse is forthcoming.
“We’re a better team this year,” said right fielder Austin Kearns, who reached base four times yesterday. “We expect to do better. We come here, and we think we’re going to win.”
Even when they put themselves into precarious situations.
On Sunday, the Nationals blew a 2-1 lead in the ninth, allowing the Braves to tie the game on Paul Lo Duca’s two-out passed ball before Zimmerman homered in the bottom of the inning.
Yesterday, they blew a 6-2 lead. Starter Matt Chico served up a solo homer to Chase Utley in the sixth, reliever Joel Hanrahan allowed an RBI double to Carlos Ruiz in the seventh and King surrendered a two-run homer to NL MVP Jimmy Rollins moments later that ignited the rabid Philadelphia crowd.
Inside the Nationals’ dugout, though, there was an unspoken feeling of confidence. Somehow, this team would find a way to come back and win.
“We just felt like it’s our game,” manager Manny Acta said.
Sure enough, the rally came in the ninth off veteran reliever Tom Gordon. Lastings Milledge, who earlier clubbed his first homer of the season, beat out a sharp grounder to the left-side hole.
Nick Johnson then delivered the big blow: a well-struck double off the base of the wall in right-center field, allowing Milledge to race around the bases, narrowly step over Ruiz’s tag at the plate and give Washington back its lead.
Johnson, perhaps the franchise’s most-productive offensive player in 2006 before he broke his right leg, already has laced three doubles and given the Nationals the potent bat they sorely lacked a year ago.
“He doesn’t look like he’s missed a beat,” Kearns said. “His swing has been right there.”
The 2007 Nationals might have been content to take that one-run lead, but that’s not the way this team thinks. It goes for the kill.
So Kearns followed Johnson’s double by drawing a walk. Ruiz made a costly blunder trying to pick Johnson off third, bouncing his throw off the runner’s foot and allowing him to score. Lo Duca, Ronnie Belliard and Dmitri Young then added an RBI double apiece, giving Washington seven extra-base hits for the day.
“It’s early, but you can see that our lineup has to be better with those guys in there,” Acta said. “Nick, the most productive hitter we had before, he’s back and he’s in shape. And then you add guys like Lo Duca, a lifetime .280 hitter. We’re definitely a little bit better than last year.”
SEEN AND HEARD AT CITIZENS BANK PARK
PHILADELPHIA — Lest those from the District forget, Opening Day is special around the country. It’s a time not only to look ahead to unlimited possibilities but also to look back on fond memories.
For the Phillies yesterday, that meant honoring last year’s NL East championship club. The team unveiled a large, white “2007” flag above the center-field fence, denoting its first division title in 14 years.
Huge roars were reserved for stars Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, though no one received the kind of lasting ovation afforded to Jimmy Rollins. The reigning NL MVP was clearly the star of the day.
BY THE NUMBERS
9 Batters Nationals reliever Saul Rivera has faced and retired in two games this season.
TOMORROW’S GAME
Nationals RHP Tim Redding (3-6, 3.64 in 2007) vs. Phillies LHP Cole Hamels (15-5, 3.39 in 2007), 7:05 p.m., MASN, AM-1500, FM-107.7.
— Mark Zuckerman
Please read our comment policy before commenting.