Nationals manager Dave Martinez knows where not to point fingers during his team’s rough patch.
When asked on Saturday about the Nationals’ recent struggles on offense following their 4-3 loss to the Marlins — Washington’s seventh defeat in a row — Martinez said that none of the blame can be put on the team’s coaching staff.
“It’s never on coaching,” Martinez said. “Never on coaching. Coaches work their asses off every single day. We’re not going to finger-point here and say it’s coaches. It’s never on the coaches. They work hard. The message is clear. All the work is done prior. So, sometimes, they have to go out there and play the game. It’s always been about the players. Always.”
The Nationals, who sit fourth in the National League East, hold the third-worst batting average since the start of June, hitting just .227 as a team.
Additionally, Washington is ranked last in MLB in walks (23), runs (30) and slugging percentage (.267) in the month.
Martinez, 60, spent 16 seasons in the MLB as a player, and insisted that he never blamed any coaches during his playing career.
“I played this game a long time,” Martinez added. “Never once have I blamed a coach for anything. We worked our asses off to get better, they gave us information and we used it. These guys understand what the game is, man. I never had a such a group of coaches that work as hard as they do.”
During Saturday’s game, the Nationals went just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, and folded in a bases-loaded opportunity in the ninth inning.
“These coaches, they work their asses off,” Martinez said. “And I know every coaching staff is like that. And the players know. Sometimes you have to put the onus on the players and they have to go out there and they have to play the game and play the game the right way.
“We can’t hit for them, we can’t catch the ball for them, we can’t pitch for them, we can’t throw strikes for them. They’ve got to do that.”