Chase Burns SMOKED the M's 10-1 and Carlos Mendoza's Words Are an Echo

Hold up, Emerald City. We need to talk about what just went down in Washington D.C. The Mariners, who were *supposed* to be building momentum, just got absolutely shellacked 10-1 by the Nationals. This wasn't just a loss, it was a gut punch that raises serious questions about where this team is really headed. We needed to keep stacking wins, and instead, we walked into a complete nightmare.

That Fading Momentum Vanished in a Flash

Just yesterday, we were talking about how the M's were finally finding their stride. Coming off a series win against a tough opponent, our guys had bagged three wins in the past four games and a solid ten in the past sixteen. Manager *Carlos Mendoza* was literally just talking about how we "have to start winning series consistently" and that it's all about "controlling what we can control and playing our best baseball here moving forward." We were looking to pull within six games of .500 for the first time since May 21. Then, tonight happened. All that momentum? Poof. Gone. Even *Julio Rodriguez* tearing it up in the last game, hitting a single, a double, and a homer to boost his average to .267, couldn't spark anything. *Mendoza* even praised his young players' ability to "just stay consistent and just control what they can control" no matter the slump or streak. Tonight, consistency was nowhere to be found from the M's bats. We went from "playing well against a very good team" to getting absolutely embarrassed.

The Pitching Mismatch That Left Us Speechless

The plan was for right-hander *Tobias Myers* to start for the M's. This was only his third start of the season after a whopping eighteen relief appearances, with *Mendoza* saying they had a "pitch count in mind." *Myers* came in with an 0-1 record and a 4.05 ERA overall, but he did have a decent 1.35 ERA in six career appearances against the Nationals, including two starts. Maybe that history gave us some false hope, because whatever the M's plan was, it absolutely crumbled when the Nationals started hammering. And then there's Chase Burns. Oh man, this kid is legit. The Nationals' starter is 7-1 with a 2.14 ERA, and he was an absolute beast in May, going 4-0 in five starts with a ridiculous 1.19 ERA. He just threw a career-high 105 pitches in his last outing, and he did it again tonight to our expense. Get this: the Nationals were *struggling* coming into this series! They'd lost five straight series, and their manager, *Terry Francona*, was just saying how "runs are harder to come by than we want them to be." They only scored seven runs in their *last three-game series*. And then they turn around and hang a 10-spot on *our* M's. You can't make this stuff up! This 10-1 drubbing is a painful wake-up call, plain and simple. We needed to stack wins and keep pushing towards .500, and instead, we got flattened. The M's need to dust themselves off fast, because this is the regular season, not a drill. What's next? More Nationals baseball tomorrow. Let's hope for a completely different M's squad to show up and remind us what "controlling what we can control" actually looks like. Geaux M's, but seriously, get it together!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.