Controversial Michael Taylor hit by pitch helps Nationals rally to victory

A controversial Michael Taylor hit by pitch in the eighth inning of Tuesday night’s NL Wild Card Game played a huge role in the Washington Nationals’ ability to come back and beat the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Nats had been down 3-1 to the Brewers since the fourth inning and were facing dominant reliever Josh Hader in the eighth. Hader struck out Victor Robles to start the inning, and then threw a 3-2 fastball inside on Taylor, who was pinch hitting. Taylor started to turn like he was going to swing but stopped when he realized how far inside the pitch was.

The pitch hit the knob of Taylor’s bat and then hit him in the face on a ricochet. The ruling on the field was a hit by pitch, and the umps reviewed the call. They let the ruling stand, allowing Taylor to reach base.

It was hard to say whether the pitch hit Taylor’s hand first or the bat, or whether it was simultaneous.

The hit by pitch on Michael A. Taylor: pic.twitter.com/HXn79Qe1na

— Zachary Silver (@zachsilver) October 2, 2019

Either way, Taylor was given first base. He then moved to third on a bloop single by Ryan Zimmerman. Anthony Rendon walked with two outs to load the bases for Juan Soto, who delivered a huge hit to right field. Brewers rookie Trent Grisham misplayed the ball in right, allowing three runs to score.

The Nationals closed things out 4-3 in the top of the ninth to win the game and advance to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS.