Holt, McGowin find their stride in Atlanta

Time flies when you’re waiting patiently to get back into a baseball groove.

In the Nationals’ 10-4 win against the Braves on Saturday at Truist Park, utility man Brock Holt and right-handed reliever Kyle McGowin stood out after nearly a year of waiting to make their mark.

“They were really good,” manager Dave Martinez said of the two players.

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Holt entered the night with a total of four hits on the season between his time with the Nationals and Brewers. In his first 13 at-bats with Washington, he had hit just .077 since signing last Saturday.

Starting in place of Juan Soto, who is day to day with left elbow soreness, Holt broke out of his 2020 slump. He belted not one, but two doubles in a 4-for-5 performance. Holt had not doubled since Sept. 20, 2019, as a member of the Red Sox.

It was only his sixth multi-double game of his career, the most recent coming on July 30, 2018, against the Phillies. Holt was a sparkplug in a lineup that outhit the Braves, 14-6.

“Our offense, starting with Brock, picked us up tonight again,” Martinez said.

The last time McGowin took the mound in a regular-season game was Aug. 19, 2019. One year and 17 days later, he showed no signs of rust, throwing 2 1/3 innings of shutout baseball in relief of starter Erick Fedde. McGowin, 28, fanned four and walked one in a hitless outing to earn his first career win.

He leaned on his slider, a pitch the Nats liked during Spring Training and wanted him to hone in on at the alternate training site, and he used it for 29 of his 36 pitches. He recorded 14 swings and nine whiffs with it.

“It’s my comfort zone,” McGowin said. “My slider’s my favorite pitch. I never have a problem throwing it. So the more they want me to throw it, the happier I’m going to be, honestly.”

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Martinez said McGowin could be a candidate as a long man in the bullpen. Fedde had been an option for that role before he was moved into the starting rotation when Stephen Strasburg (carpal tunnel neuritis) was shut down for the season. The Nationals could also turn to McGowin with right-handed hitters due up.

“Good things happen when you throw strikes,” Martinez said. “He got big outs for us. We needed that.”

The Nationals won their second straight game against the Braves after breaking a seven-game losing skid on Friday, with Holt and McGowin showing it’s not too late to hit a stride at this point in the season.