It’s a cliché, of course, the talk of one bad inning dooming a start. But for Jake Irvin Friday night in the nation’s capital, the second inning was a doozy.
In an otherwise effective turn in the rotation for the Nationals’ starter, Irvin, 27, gave up three straight singles, the third of which drove one in for the visiting Chicago Cubs, then he threw a wild pitch, surrendered a two-run double, a run scoring ground ball, an RBI double, then a two-out, two-run home run in a six-hit, one-wild-pitch, one hit-by-pitch, seven-run, 36-pitch frame.
perfect perfect.