With so much attention focused on Daniel Murphy’s return to

Washington for the first time since he was traded to the Chicago Cubs http://www.marlinsfanproshop.com/authentic-nick-wittgren-jersey , it was his in-game replacement — David Bote — who once again tormented the Nationals.Bote had a pinch-hit RBI double and scored in the 10th inning as the Cubs came back to beat the Nationals 6-4 on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series.Bote, who hit a two-out grand slam in the bottom of the ninth to give the Cubs a 4-3 win over Washington on Aug. 12 at Wrigley Field, knocked a 100 mph fastball from Jimmy Cordero (1-2) into right field to score Albert Almora Jr. Bote came home on a single by pinch-hitter Taylor Davis.Bote, who finished the game at second base, was certain Nats fans hadn’t forgotten what he did in Chicago last month.“I heard the boos today,” Bote said. “I love it. It’s fun. You love to be part of that.”Murphy went 1 for 5 with a strikeout during his first game in Washington since he was dealt to the Cubs on Aug 21.While Chicago has the best record in the National League and leads the NL Central by 4½ games over Milwaukee, manager Joe Maddon is still looking to tighten up some things and admits he becomes a perfectionist at times.“We’ve got to work better at-bats,” Maddon said. “I’m talking about October, I’m not just talking about Sept. 6. I love the fight, tremendous fight, but there’s little things now that have held us back in the past that I don’t want to see hold us back now.”Washington has lost three straight to fall to 69-72. The Nationals are three games under .500 for the first time since April 30.Pedro Strop (5-1) pitched a scoreless ninth, and Jesse Chavez earned his third save.Washington took a 3-2 lead in the fourth when Mark Reynolds belted his 13th homer of the season, a two-run shot to left field.Murphy scored on Ben Zobrist’s sacrifice fly to tie it at 3 in the fifth.Spencer Kieboom had a career-high three hits for Washington.Stephen Strasburg pitched 5 2/3 innings for the Nationals, allowing six hits while walking three and striking out six. He gave up three runs, two earned, while throwing 111 pitches — his most since tossing a season-high 115 on May 20.SUPPORTING MARTINEZDespite being traded away, Murphy had nothing but positives to say about Nationals manager Dave Martinez.“I thought that in the midst of a lot of trials he was always positive Orlando Arcia Jersey ,” Murphy said. “I thought we always played hard for him, which I think is a reflection of the manager. I wish I would have been able to play more for him. I wish I would have been able to (play) better for him.”FORMER TEAMMATESStrasburg and Murphy were teammates from 2016 until last month, and in that time the Nationals pitcher tried to learn a thing or two about hitting from the 2015 NLCS MVP. “Yeah, he talks a lot about hitting, so I eavesdropped on him for a few years,” Strasburg said. “So, kind of knew what he was trying to do and have him avoid trying to barrel the ball.”TRAINER’S ROOMCubs: Maddon said OF Kyle Schwarber (back) is day to day. Schwarber left Wednesday’s game after hitting his 25th home run. He pinch-hit in the sixth Thursday, reaching on a walk. … RHP Brandon Morrow (right biceps inflammation) will throw from the mound Sunday, but his long-term plan is still uncertain. “Every time he does something we have to evaluate it afterwards and make sure everything is well,” Maddon said. “That’s where it’s at right now.”Nationals: 1B Ryan Zimmerman was rested and then used as a pinch-hitter in the ninth.UP NEXTCubs: LHP Jon Lester (15-5, 3.53 ERA) will start in Washington for the first time since the 2017 NL Division Series. Lester is 2-2 with a 4.25 ERA in seven career starts against the Nationals.Nationals: RHP Joe Ross makes his season debut and first start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2017. Ross is 0-2 with a 3.44 ERA in three career starts versus the Cubs. NEW YORK (AP) — Their ace got booed off the mound, loudly. Their manager let things get out of hand. And their backup catcher wound up pitching.“It was an embarrassing day today,” New York Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius said.Not much else to say after the Yankees absorbed the most-lopsided loss in their distinguished, 396-game postseason history, routed by the Boston Red Sox 16-1 Monday night in the AL Division Series.Now down 2-1 and in danger of being eliminated in the best-of-five matchup, they’ll turn to CC Sabathia on Tuesday night in hopes of saving their season. Rick Porcello starts for Boston.“No choice but to flush,” manager Aaron Boone said. “The good thing about today is it’s one game. And as awful of a night as it was for us Jonathan Villar Jersey , we got to turn the page. And tomorrow’s obviously do or die.”Luis Severino looked out of sorts from the start. There was a TBS report that he began to warm up only 10 minutes before the game began, but Boone insisted he had enough time to get ready. Severino also said there was no issue.“I always go to the bullpen 10 minutes before the game,” Severino said. “I warm up quickly.”The game fell apart quickly, too.Severino was tagged for six runs on seven hits and two walks in three-plus innings. Jeered as he walked to the dugout during a seven-run burst in the fourth, it soon was 10-0.By the seventh, the stands had started to empty. The fans who left early missed a bit of history — Austin Romine became just the second position player to pitch in a postseason game.The second-string catcher actually hit 90 mph with his fastball. And he squarely hit Brock Holt’s bat, and the result was a two-run homer in the ninth that gave Holt the first cycle in postseason history.“I was just trying to get it over the plate,” Romine said.Romine joined Toronto infielder Cliff Pennington, who pitched in the 2015 AL playoffs against Kansas City, as non-pitchers to take the hill at this time of year.“No, I didn’t envision myself getting into the playoffs in this role,” he said.Holt’s homer helped the Red Sox post the biggest rout of the Yankees in postseason play, surpassing Arizona’s 15-2 pasting in Game 6 of the 2001 World Series.A sellout crowd arrived early at Yankee Stadium, loudly chanting and cheering even before the teams lined up for pregame introductions. Clearly, no one rooting for the home team expected anything like this.Catcher Gary Sanchez dropped a pitch on a stolen base that set up Boston’s first run. Left fielder Andrew McCutchen was slow to retrieve a hit that proved costly. And Boone was slow to pull a struggling Severino, admitting he could’ve made the move sooner, rather than waiting until Boston loaded the bases in a hurry.“I mean http://www.brewersfanproshop.com/authentic-lorenzo-cain-jersey , in hindsight because he didn’t get an out, sure,” Boone said.And when Boone did call for a reliever, he summoned a starter, Lance Lynn, rather than someone from the deep New York bullpen.Lynn promptly walked Mookie Betts on four pitches to force home a run that made it 4-0, then gave up a three-run double to Andrew Benintendi.“Lance had a little bit of trouble, obviously, coming in there. So it just turned into a really bad inning for us,” Boone said.It was a sharp turnaround for Severino.Severino started New York’s postseason with four shutout innings in the AL wild-card win over Oakland last Wednesday. The performance also alleviated fears in the Bronx — temporarily, anyway — the 24-year-old righty had put past playoff troubles behind him.Instead, coming off a career-high 19 wins, he exited with a 1-2 record and a 6.26 ERA in six postseason starts.“Of course, I’m disappointed,” Severino said.