Nationals dodge sweep with shutout win over Giants

If Andrew Alvarez knew he’d be making his first major-league appearance of the season on Sunday, he might’ve skipped the 8:30 p.m. nap on Saturday night. Then, he might’ve picked up the first call from the Washington Nationals informing him of his promotion.

Instead, it took 30 minutes for anyone from the Nationals to get the then-Triple-A pitcher to wake up and answer the phone. A whirlwind followed for Alvarez, from informing his family and fiancée of the impending travel before a 5 a.m. flight, a stop at the hotel, a (second) nap and re-introducing himself to the Nationals’ staff and media members. 

A few hours later, he earned a win in his season debut as the Nationals pitched a combined shutout in a 3-0 victory over the visiting San Francisco Giants. 

“I’m just thankful. It’s just a blessing,” said Alvarez, who started five games for Washington last season after making his major league debut. “I know that it doesn’t always happen, so I’m just kind of embracing it, enjoying it.”

An inconsistent pitching staff has been the Achilles’ heel for a young Nationals team that has ridden an explosive offense to the 10-13 start. Entering Sunday’s game, Washington tied for the major league lead in runs scored. 

The batters did their part again on Sunday, with catcher Keibert Ruiz knocking an RBI double in the fourth inning before first baseman Curtis Mead hit a two-run shot into the left-field bleachers.

“It was special,” Mead said after hitting his second homer of the season off of Giants starter Robbie Ray, who earned a loss after allowing three runs across six innings. “Just to give us a little bit more wiggle room. And I think our pitchers did a great job then locking it down, which was nice.”

Nationals manager Blake Butera took an outside-the-box approach to his pitching strategy, partially out of necessity. Washington used five pitchers in Saturday night’s 12-inning loss to the Giants. The Nationals were already running on fumes, midway through a stretch of 17 games in 17 days. 

With his options limited, Butera called up Alvarez — a starter at Triple-A Rochester — to give his bullpen a day off. 

Reliever P.J. Poulin started the game as an opener, recording two outs without allowing a run before handing the ball to Miles Mikolas. 

Mikolas has struggled through the first month of the season. He entered Sunday’s matchup with an abysmal 11.49 ERA. He dropped that number to 9.15 after tossing four scoreless innings, allowing just four hits and a walk to accompany his four strikeouts. 

The 37-year-old journeyman, who has traditionally started games, said he didn’t mind Butera’s modern approach to the pitching staff. 

“The messaging is: ‘We’re trying to win some ball games here, and this is how we think it’s going to work,’” Mikolas said, noting that Sunday’s shutout was a proof of concept. “It feels good to come off the field having not given up a bunch of runs.”

But Alvarez was the star of the matinee. In his first major league appearance since September, he threw 4 1/3 innings, tallying five strikeouts without issuing a walk. He allowed three hits in the game. 

Alvarez, like Mikolas, is typically a starter. He said Sunday marked the first time he ended a game on the mound since his days with Double-A Harrisburg.

“I tossed a Mickey Mouse, seven-inning complete game,” he said, noting that his time with Single-A Fredericksburg in 2022 was his last experience coming out of the bullpen. 

Sunday was different. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to record 13 outs when he took over for Mikolas in the top of the fifth. But the 26-year-old Alvarez kept sending batters back to the bench. 

When he made it to the ninth without any teammates warming up in the bullpen, he was determined. 

“All I wanted to do was finish that game,” he said. “I just wanted to let the bullpen get a break, a much-deserved break.”

The former 12th-round draft pick hasn’t had any time to reflect. He was optioned back to Triple-A after the game.

“You just continue to move on,” Alvarez noted. “Tomorrow is a new day. I’ve got to get ready and continue with my routine. It’s a long season, so I’m just trying to piece each day together.”

Washington, now 10-13, returns to Nationals Park on Monday to open a three-game series against the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves.