ST. LOUIS — DJ Herz doesn’t have elite velocity. His fastball averages a little under 94 mph — good enough to get him to the major leagues but unlikely to wow anyone with a radar gun these days.
Yet that’s what made his outing in the Washington Nationals’ 4-3 loss Sunday afternoon at Busch Stadium all the more impressive. Many of the St. Louis Cardinals’ swings made it appear Herz was throwing 100. No matter how many times he attacked with his fastball, the Cardinals almost always were a tad late.
Herz struck out eight in five innings and was in line to earn the win after James Wood tripled and former Cardinal Juan Yepez drove him in with a sacrifice fly to break a 2-2 tie in the sixth. But the Cardinals responded with a run in the seventh before Paul Goldschmidt slugged a walk-off homer against Dylan Floro, who hadn’t allowed a home run since September, in the ninth.
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“A hitter like Goldschmidt, I’ve faced him quite a few times,” said Floro, whose 2-2 sinker got too much of the plate. “He kind of knows, has an idea, and when I don’t execute a pitch, that’s what’s going to happen.”
Floro entered in the seventh but threw just 10 pitches before the ninth, so Manager Dave Martinez stuck with him instead of going with closer Kyle Finnegan. The loss denied the Nationals (49-57) a sweep of the Cardinals (54-51), but they still won the series after getting swept by San Diego at home. And they got a strong performance from their rookie left-hander, who has allowed two runs in each of his two outings since the all-star break.
“[Herz] didn’t rely on his off-speed stuff,” Martinez said. “He got ahead and stayed with the fastball, which was good. Our [scouting] reports were to try to get the ball up on some of these guys, and he did a great job, especially those lefties. … He was very, very effective.”
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In the first inning, Herz allowed a second-deck solo homer to Willson Contreras. Pedro Pagés followed with an RBI triple in the second to extend the Cardinals’ lead to 2-0. The Nationals answered in the third when CJ Abrams hit an RBI groundout before Lane Thomas laced a double down the left field line to even the score. By that time, Herz noticed his fastball had extra life on it.
“I could feel it out of the hand. I could see it,” he said. “... I told [catcher Riley Adams], and then we kind of rode with it. Pretty much majority fastball, and when we needed to flip in an off-speed or a change-up, we did.”
Entering Sunday, Herz had induced whiffs on 32.1 percent of swings at his fastball, a very strong mark. But he was better than usual Sunday: Of the 79 pitches Herz threw, 49 were fastballs. The Cardinals swung at 27 of the fastballs and whiffed on 15. Six of his strikeouts came on the pitch.
Herz seemed to get better as his outing rolled along — he struck out the side in the third and fifth innings and retired 10 of the final 11 batters he faced. His change-up — typically his best pitch — and his slider were effective, too. He finished his outing by striking out Masyn Winn with a slider.
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The Nationals optioned out Herz ahead of the all-star break to get extra bullpen help — and to give him a breather. He threw 111⅓ innings a season ago, including a stint in the Arizona Fall League. After Sunday, he is up to 80⅔ this season.
As the Nationals head down the stretch, Martinez has reiterated that his team will be careful with its young pitchers while also pushing them to pitch the whole year. He has hinted at a six-man rotation. He said he’s limiting Herz to 80 pitches (or five innings) as he builds him up after the all-star break. But Herz will have every opportunity to prove he’s worthy of being in the rotation beyond this season.
“I’m getting ahead. I’m attacking. I’m being efficient,” he said. “That’s all the things I want to see for myself, and that’s their main goals for me. ”
Winker trade is official
On Sunday morning, the Nationals announced they acquired right-hander Tyler Stuart from the New York Mets for outfielder Jesse Winker. Stuart, 24, has spent this season with the Mets’ Class AA affiliate and has a 3.96 ERA in 17 starts.
The Mets selected him in the sixth round of the 2022 draft out of Southern Mississippi, where he primarily was a reliever. As a pro, he has made 41 appearances — 40 of them starts — with a 3.09 ERA. Stuart, who stands 6-foot-9, uses a fastball, slider, change-up and cutter. His slider is considered his best pitch.
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