Washington Nationals: A championship parade of miracles

The improbable World Series championship run by the 2019 Washington Nationals should teach every sports fan to believe in miracles.

Ryan Zimmerman was the first player ever drafted by the Washington Nationals. Standing in front of the U.S. Capitol and thousands of jubilant Nats fans during the team’s 2019 World Series championship parade, “Zim” could hardly contain his emotions.

“I came here when I was 20 years old, right out of college,” Zimmerman said. “You guys hadn’t had baseball in a long time. You were learning how to be fans again.”

The beloved ballplayer who earned the nickname “Mr. National” went on to thank D.C. sports fans for more than 14 years of cheering for a team that was by far the worst in baseball during Zimmerman’s first five seasons.

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“Thank you D.C., you guys have been great, you guys were behind us all the time,” he said. “I truly believe this is the greatest city to play sports in the world — thank you.”

Books will be written about Zim’s 2019 Nationals, who started 19-31 yet somehow rallied to grab a spot in the NL Wild Card Game. That’s where the franchise’s first October miracle occurred.

Trailing 3-1 to the Milwaukee Brewers in the 8th inning of a sudden death elimination game, then-20-year-old Juan Soto came up with the bases loaded. The fact that Soto singled shouldn’t surprise anyone, but the ball then somehow got by right fielder Trent Grisham, which allowed the go-ahead run to score. The Nats won in dramatic fashion and advanced to the NLDS.

Not only had the Washington Nationals failed to advance in four previous NLDS tries, but this year’s opponent, the 106-win Los Angeles Dodgers, looked to be the toughest of all. The Dodgers were overwhelming favorites, with the Los Angeles Times writing “this team is clearly better than the Nationals.”

After splitting the first two games at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles was poised to advance after hammering the Nats in Game 3. Washington won Game 4 thanks in large part to Zimmerman’s clutch home run, however, setting the stage for a second postseason miracle, which occurred in Game 5.

Trailing by the exact same score in the same inning as the NL Wild Card Game, future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw took the mound. Seemingly out of nowhere, he surrendered back-to-back solo home runs to Anthony Rendon and Soto to tie the do-or-die game. The raucous Chavez Ravine crowd was stunned.

After Dodgers catcher Will Smith nearly hit a walk-off home run to end the series, the Nationals loaded the bases for veteran Howie Kendrick. His stunning grand slam sent Washington to its first-ever NLCS. For this Nats fan, it was the most memorable moment of the entire postseason.

Some thought the Nationals could beat the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS, but no one expected Washington to sweep the series. That’s exactly what these miracle Nats did; advancing to the city’s first World Series since 1933 in front of their home fans.

When the dust settled, the Nationals had to face the 107-win Houston Astros, who were the biggest favorite in any World Series since 2007. Having just won it all in 2017, Houston had the advantage in playoff experience along with almost every statistical category.

Then, the Washington Nationals once again did the impossible by winning the first two games of the World Series at Minute Maid Park. All of that goodwill was squandered, however, when Washington failed to win a Nationals Park home game. Many thought the flight back to Houston was a formality and that the 2019 Fall Classic was over.

Stephen Strasburg, who had already beaten the Astros on the road in Game 2, repeated his excellence to win Game 6 and ultimately the World Series MVP Award. The Nats then turned to Max Scherzer, who couldn’t even lift his arm two days earlier, for Game 7.

Through six innings, it looked like Washington’s magic had finally run out as one-hitter after another was mowed down by Zack Greinke. That’s when the season’s final miracle occurred.

After a solo home run by Rendon got the Nats on the board, Kendrick topped his NLDS heroics with a go-ahead two-run homer off the right-field foul pole. No Nationals fan will ever forget that swing and the bedlam that followed.

Until the Washington Nationals in 2019, no team had ever won four road games in the World Series, Stanley Cup or NBA Finals. What we all just witnessed was the definition of a miracle, which will be remembered as one of the greatest underdog stories in the history of sports.

“We’re 2019 World Series champs, and nobody can ever take that away from us,” Ryan Zimmerman said.