Much like their series with the Tampa Bay Rays, the Washington Nationals would ordinarily be relatively happy with a series split against the San Francisco Giants, who had the best record in Major League Baseball coming into the four-game set.
But again, in the two losses, it wasn’t a case of being outplayed as such, it was that the Nationals’ anemic offense let plenty of opportunities slip, especially in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader when they lost in extra innings.
That leaves the Nationals hoping for a sweep of the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates, who have the second-worst record in the National League and third-worst in baseball, in order to try and make up for lost time and kickstart any potential comeback they might be able to do.