The Washington Nationals keep on winning. Friday, they toppled the Cleveland Indians 8-2 behind Gerardo Parra, who went 3-for-4 with four runs driven in. Washington helped eliminate the Indians from playoff contention in the process.
The win by the Nationals clinched the first of two AL wild-card berths for the Oakland Athletics, and reduced the Tampa Bay Rays’ magic number to one. The Rays later beat the Toronto Blue Jays, clinching the second AL wild-card spot effectively eliminating the Indians.
The Nationals Twitter handle sent out a hilarious tweet to the Rays handle, asking for thank you flowers and/or edibles with their address in full.
The Nationals have been in an eliminating and clinching mood all week. Tuesday they eliminated their NL East rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies with a 4-1 win in the day game of a doubleheader. Then they rallied to beat the Phillies 6-5 in the nightcap and with the Chicago Cubs’ loss to the Pirates that night Washington clinched their own NL wild-card berth.
With the win over the Indians, the Nationals also reduced their magic number to two to clinch home-field advantage for the NL wild-card game.
No word on if the Rays intend to said a special thank you to the Nationals.
