Luis Garcia Jr. Has a Career-First in Nationals' Route of Diamondbacks
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It seems like the day off the Washington Nationals had on Thursday before they headed out west to face the Arizona Diamondbacks was exactly what the doctor ordered.
That's because the Nationals' potent lineup wielded their might once again, as they routed the Diamondbacks by a score of 14-1 to open up this three-game series. Four players hit home runs. 10 out of 11 in the starting lineup recorded a hit. And they had 16 total knocks in an offensive explosion that has become common for this group to start the season.
But the star of the show was Luis Garcia Jr., as he blasted two home runs, including a grand slam in the sixth inning that happened to be the first of his major league career.
Luis Garcia Jr.'s Career-First Powered Nationals to Statement Win
In the top of the sixth inning, Washington had a 7-1 lead. Garcia had gotten the scoring started in the top of the first with a two-run homer in the second at-bat of the game. That was followed by James Wood hitting his 17th home run of the year in the third inning, then Daylen Lile recorded an RBI single later that frame. Jorbit Vivas finally broke through with his first hit with runners in scoring position on the season when he had a two-run RBI double to put the Nationals up 6-0. And then Lile hit a solo shot in the top of the fifth.
But Garcia put the punctuation mark on this one when he blasted his first big league grand slam in the sixth. After three straight singles by his teammates, Garcia won the lefty-on-lefty matchup against Arizona's pitcher Philip Abner.
That continued the red-hot form of the lefty slugger, who found his groove at the plate in May when he slashed .288/.305/.513 and hit four longballs with nine extra-base hits and 14 RBIs. Now, Garcia is on pace to reach his home run total from the 2023 campaign when he had 18 blasts and looked like a potential franchise cornerstone for this organization.
Nationals Get Offense Ignited to Start Their Crucial Road Trip
While Garcia was the star of Friday's contest, the story was that Washington once again crushed an opposing pitching staff on the road. They have scored 176 of their 345 total runs away from home, which is a great sign for a young team like the Nationals.
This explosion also came at a crucial time, too. The offense was muted against the Miami Marlins in their last series when they were swept, and there were some concerns that the lineup might be cooling off as they got into the summer months.
But this performance quieted some of those worries. And with two more games against the Diamondbacks before they face the San Francisco Giants to close out this road trip, having the lineup firing on all cylinders will help them stay in the Wild Card race.
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Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai