Right-hander Jason Marquis made his debut as a member of the Nationals on Sunday and struggled in a 6-5 loss to the Mets.
He lasted two innings, gave up five runs on three hits and walked three batters.
"I lost my aggressiveness," Marquis said. "I wasn't getting through the ball. I was just guiding it to spots instead of letting my natural ability take over."
In the first inning, Marquis faced only three batters. With one out, after Luis Castillo singled, David Wright hit into an inning-ending double play.
But the next inning proved to be Marquis' downfall. He walked the first three hitters he faced. After Alex Cora singled to left to drive in Jason Bay, Omir Santos followed and hit an inside-the-park grand slam. Santos hit the ball down the left-field line and the ball was stuck under the left-field wall.
Left fielder Willy Taveras said he raised his hand to third-base umpire Paul Nauert to indicate that he couldn't grab the ball. But Nauert never saw the signal. Taveras panicked, picked up the ball, and by the time it reached the infield, Santos had already scored.
Manager Jim Riggleman went to talk to Nauert, but Riggleman went back to the dugout a few seconds later.
"The ball got stuck and I raised my hands," Taveras said. "I saw [Nauert] raise his hands, but he didn't run over there. He is supposed to run over there. ... I raised mine and I'm not supposed to pick up the ball. I needed to leave the ball there."
How did Marquis feel about the weird play? The last time he saw a play like that was in Little League.
"That's how the breaks go," he said. "But it's a first game of spring [for me]. I felt good. I'll keep working to get better. I'm looking forward to my next outing."
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