WASHINGTON -- Braves quotes after Tuesday’s 4-1 loss to the Nationals and Stephen Strasburg, who threw eight scoreless innings against the Braves a night after the Nats’ Max Scherzer pitched a two-hit shutout against them.
DANSBY SWANSON
On Scherzer and Strasburg:
“They’re really good, and I think they showed that the last couple of nights. They compete and challenge you real well, and they’ve just been able to make pitches consistently. I think that’s why they’ve been able to go deep in games. They’re tough, we know what we’re getting into when we’re facing those guys, and the last two days just kind of tip your cap a little bit.”
On Strasburg’s change-up tonight:
“I think that was more of his go-to than the curveball tonight. He made good pitches all night, that’s just one of those things where you just try and battle each at-bat and hope for the best.”
Folty had to throw some extra pitches, some his own doing vs. Strasburg batting, some due to shaky plays (including two Ender Inciarte misplays and Swanson’s error that led to an unearned run):
“That’s baseball, right? Just one of those days. But we’ll get it figured out and clean it up. Looking forward to coming out tomorrow and playing well.”
BRIAN SNITKER
On Strasburg pitching nearly as well as Scherzer did the night before:
“Yeah, he did. I mean, it was a couple of tough rides there. (Strasburg) was really good. He had a good change-up. Both of those guys, they’re two of the better pitchers in the league, and his stuff is probably right there with Scherzer....
“Just one of them games, I think a couple of feet either way on Folty, by Zimmerman and Goodwin, balls just out of the reach of Ender. I mean, just out of reach. He was doing everything he could to get there. So it was just tough there.”
On Folty throwing 104 pitches in five innings including 13 to Strasburg:
“That and early on, what’d he have, 54 in the first two innings, something like that? And we’ve just got to keep working to putting the pitcher away quicker for him. But overall, he hung in there. He went back out in the fifth and probably was as good as he was (all night). But I’m seeing progress in him. I see a lot of things moving forward that are really positive. The outcome wasn’t what he wanted today but the process is pretty good with him, I really like what I’m seeing. There’s just some things, like I say, a couple of almost-catches is three runs.”
On Inciarte’s attempted sliding catch that turned into a two-run triple:
“Yeah, but he’s just going, he’s trying to get it. He’s getting after it and trying to do everything he can to try to end the inning right there. And it’s tough too because you’re kind of on the other side of second base when he’s up; that’s where he hits the ball. Lot of times when he hits the ball where he hit that ball, it’s usually out of the ballpark. Didn’t get it real good and we almost … just out of the reach.”
On Strasburg struggling against Braves some in past, usually hot weather:
“I noticed the last couple of years, I think he’s kind of getting it going. I mean, he’s tough. That’s a rough two days when you have to face those two guys. But we gave ourselves a chance and hung in there. When Shane (Carle) threw the ball away, that’s kind of a big run in a game like this because you want to keep trying to limit damage just to give yourselves a chance. Something we (practice) a thousand times in spring training and if he does it night more times he’ll be good (on all of them).”
On what he likes about Folty:
“Mound presence, how he’s going about it. Like I say, it’s going to happen some nights. He threw a lot of pitches and couldn’t put hitters away early, but the big thing was, a couple of feet either way and he does five innings with no runs through all that. There’s going to be days like that. But I just, like I said, the whole process is going in the right direction with him. I really like what I saw all spring and to this point in the season.”
Post-game videos: Mike Foltynewicz | Brian Snitker
