Matt Adams did his best to make Davey Martinez look like a genius. Inserted into the lineup at first base, batting fourth on Saturday afternoon, the hard-hitting left-handed bat, who signed a 1-year/$4M free agent deal with Washington this winter, took a 97 mph 2-1 fastball from Reds’ starter Luis Castillo for a ride to right for a no-doubter of a three-run home run in the top of the first, 3-0.
Coming off a .274/.319/.522, 22 double, 20 home run, 1.6 fWAR campaign split between St. Louis and Atlanta, Adams joined the Nationals as a replacement for bench bat Adam Lind, giving the Nats’ new manager power off the bench and someone who can fill in at first and play left field.