Handing out credit after Friday night’s dramatic 5-2 extra-inning victory over the Braves should seem like a pretty simple task. After all, it was Matt den Dekker and Michael Taylor that came through in crucial late-game at-bats to seal a critical Nationals win to close the gap between them and the Mets.
But there may have been another hero on this night, and an unlikely one at that: Matt Williams.
That’s right, the Nats’ embattled skipper, who 72 hours earlier faced heavy criticism for a few questionable in-game tactical maneuvers, seemed to push all the right buttons Friday night that helped give his club a chance to pull off the victory.