Nats' manager Martinez uses photo evidence to demand baseline rule fix

HOUSTON -- — Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez is demanding that Major League Baseball change its basepath rule after catcher Keibert Ruiz's ninth-inning throw hit runner Jake Meyers, resulting in a throwing error that gave the Houston Astros a 5-4 win Wednesday night.

Martinez printed out a photo of Meyers running on the grass inside the first-base line after hitting a grounder and brought it to his postgame press conference.

“There it is right there,” Martinez said. “Take a look at it. Is that on the line? I don’t think so. I’m over this play. Seriously. They need to fix the rule. If this is what the umpire sees that he’s running down the line, I’m tired of it. I’m tired of it. Fix it. We lost the game, and he had nothing to say about it because he can’t make the right call. Brutal.”

Martinez was ejected from Game 6 of the 2019 World Series in Houston for arguing after the Nationals' Trea Turner was called out on a similar play.

MLB rules state that “when running the last half of the way to first base while the ball is being fielded in the vicinity of first, a baserunner must stay within the three-foot runner’s lane to the right of the foul line unless they are avoiding a player fielding a batted ball.”

Kyle Tucker led off the inning with a single off Hunter Harvey (2-3), and Jose Abreu followed with an infield single. Yainer Diaz struck out before Corey Julks walked to load the bases to set up Meyers’ grounder to short.

C.J. Abrams threw home to get the second out, but Ruiz’s throw to first went off Meyers’ helmet and allowed Abreu to score.

The Nationals argued the final play with the umpires, and Martinez said he was not given an explanation except that home plate umpire Jeremy Riggs saw Meyers run down the line.

“I think they were disputing whether he was in the baseline or not,” Houston manager Dusty Baker said. “That’s always a questionable call. Nobody really has the vantage point very good except really the home plate umpire, and he said it was nothing.”

Meyers said he ran up the line and collided with first baseman Michael Chavis’ glove, adding that he was touching the base.

“I think that kind of sent the ball elsewhere,” Meyers said. “I’m not really sure, but I know we scored, and we won. That’s good.”

Washington rallied for three runs in the ninth off Houston closer Ryan Pressly (1-2). Joey Meneses reached on an error by Alex Bregman to start the inning and scored on an RBI double by Corey Dickerson.

After Ruiz grounded out, Ildemaro Vargas grounded to the pitcher, but Pressly threw wide to home, allowing Dickerson to score. Dominic Smith tied it at 4 with an RBI triple, but Pressly recovered to get two groundouts to end the inning and keep it tied.

“What was going through my mind was we had to get out of there with at least a tie because we had some horses coming up in the ninth,” Baker said. “We gave them three runs in the ninth, and they gave us one run in the bottom of the ninth.”

Abreu hit a two-run double in the first, and Abreu and Diaz hit back-to-back solo home runs in the fourth to make it 4-0. Abreu finished with three hits and is 5 for 7 in the two games against Washington.

Framber Valdez allowed one run on five hits with six strikeouts in seven innings. He lowered his ERA to 2.27. Valdez has allowed one run or fewer in four of his last five starts.

The Nationals got a run back in the fifth on an RBI groundout by Abrams, scoring Smith, who had doubled to lead off the inning.

Josiah Gray allowed four runs on six hits with five strikeouts in seven innings. It was second time in the last three games Gray has surrendered four runs.

Washington has lost eight of its last nine games.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Astros: SS Jeremy Peña was out of the lineup for a third straight game with an unspecified illness. Baker said Pena would be in the lineup Thursday. … RHP Lance McCullers Jr. will miss the remainder of the season after having right forearm surgery Tuesday to repair his flexor tendon and remove a bone spur, Astros General Manager Dana Brown announced. … DH Yordan Alvarez could miss at least four weeks with a right oblique strain, Brown said. … OF Michael Brantley (right shoulder surgery) is pain-free and looking good, Brown said, adding that Brantley is running, throwing and hitting. Brantley will continue to be given more to do, but a timeline on his return is still uncertain, Brown said. … RHP José Urquidy (right shoulder) is throwing off flat ground over 100 feet, with an expected return date around or after the All Star break, Brown said.

UP NEXT

Nationals LHP MacKenzie Gore (3-5, 4.04 ERA) will start Thursday against RHP Cristian Javier (7-1, 3.13) in the finale of the three-game series.

------

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP--Sports