Gore overcomes wet mound to strike out 9

CINCINNATI – As the rain poured harder, MacKenzie Gore didn’t let up.

Neither the inclement weather nor a slip on the wet mound deterred him in the Nationals’ 4-1 win over the Reds on Sunday at Great American Ball Park.

“I can’t say enough about what MacKenzie did in those conditions,” said manager Dave Martinez. “I think we got lucky with him. He took a spill there, but he says he’s OK.”

The game was tied at 1-1 when the precipitation picked up in the fifth frame. Gore faced Cincinnati’s RBI leader, Elly De La Cruz, with two outs and a runner on second base.

De La Cruz crushed a cutter from Gore and sent it soaring toward the left-field foul pole. The ball bounced off a red seat, and the crowd celebrated. Originally called a go-ahead home run, the long fly ball was ruled foul after the umpires conferred. The foul call was confirmed after an official review.

"I saw it right away; we knew it was foul,” said Martinez. “We had to wait for him to cross home plate. But he hit the ball hard. We're glad it went foul."

Gore remained steadfast on the field, and De La Cruz returned from the dugout to finish the at-bat. But the elements had begun to take a toll. Gore slipped and fell while throwing ball four in the dirt.

“It’s a weird spot to feel something,” said Gore, the MLB leader with 68 strikeouts. “But we’re fine, we’ll be OK.”

A concerned Martinez and head athletic trainer Paul Lessard ran out to check on the Opening Day starter. Gore appeared to grab at the back of his right leg, while the grounds crew applied drying dirt to the mound.

“He slipped there, and he was adamant about wanting to finish,” Martinez said. “He did a great job; he really did. I don’t think when you’re out there and you’re competing, the weather really matters if you’re playing. You’re going to get through it, and he got through it.”

Gore stayed in the game, and a battle ensued to complete the frame. With two outs and two runners on, he fought through a seven-pitch at-bat by Noelvi Marte. Despite throwing three more balls in the dirt, Gore got Marte to swing and miss at a curveball, his 100th pitch of the day.

“He was lights out,” shortstop CJ Abrams said. “He fought through it, he kept his head up and he did his thing out there. It was fun to watch.”

Gore allowed four hits and one run while issuing four walks and striking out nine across five innings in his eighth start of the season. He gave up a second-inning home run to Tyler Stephenson before retiring the next seven batters.

“His fastball plays really well. It’s hard and it’s firm,” said Stephenson. “He threw me a curveball, and it just stayed up enough for me to scoop and get in there. He’s got a live fastball, and you’ve got to honor that.”

This was only the second time this season Gore did not complete six innings. This may not have been his most seamless start, but he stayed patient to piece together a gritty performance that kept the Nationals on track for their third win in four games.

“Just one at a time,” Gore said. “I thought we threw the ball really well for four innings. I thought we did not in the fifth. But it is what it is, and you try to make pitches one at a time. It wasn’t pretty at all, but we made it work and gave us a chance.”