2014 NLDS Game 5 vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

Lore & Background

For the Nationals, 2014 was supposed to be the year everything clicked. Bryce Harper was in his second season, Ryan Zimmerman was in his prime, and the rotation featured a pair of future Hall of Fame-caliber arms in Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer. The regular-season run was historic, but the postseason proved a different beast. The Pirates, led by a pitching core that included Gerrit Cole, A.J. Burnett, and Francisco Liriano, matched Washington's talent with a grit and defensive intensity that proved difficult to overcome in a short series. Game 5 at PNC Park carried the weight of a 98-win season on its shoulders. The atmosphere in Pittsburgh was electric, the crowd a wall of black-and-gold noise. The Nationals, who had split the first two games at home and then taken Games 3 and 4 in Pittsburgh, found themselves one run away from elimination. The Pirates' ability to execute in the clutch—stealing bases, taking extra-base hits, and shutting down the Nationals' lineup in key at-bats—defined the game and the series. In the broader canon of Nationals history, this loss became a touchstone. It underscored the gap between regular-season dominance and postseason success, a theme that would echo through subsequent years. For fans, the image of the team walking off the field at PNC Park with the season over became a defining, aching moment of the franchise's modern identity.

In Their Own Story

The October air in Pittsburgh sat heavy over PNC Park, the kind of crisp cold that made the breath of the crowd visible in the upper decks. The black-and-gold sea churned with every pitch, a living thing. Down in the batter's box, the Nationals' slugger stared at the mound, the diamond a perfect geometry of dirt and grass under the stadium lights. The catcher's mitt snapped shut on the next pitch—strike three. The crowd erupted, a sound like a wave breaking over the stands. He set the bat down, the wood still warm from his grip, and walked back toward the dugout where the silence was louder than the noise. Ninety-eight wins. A season that should have meant more. And now, just the long drive back to Washington with the windows fogged and the radio playing something about the Pirates' next opponent.

Reader's Guide

The occasion: The 2014 National League Division Series, a best-of-five matchup between the Washington Nationals (NL East champions, 98 regular-season wins) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (NL Wild Card). The series split the first two games at Nationals Park, then moved to PNC Park for Games 3 through 5. What happened: The Pirates took the first two games at Washington, then the Nationals stormed back to win Games 3 and 4 in Pittsburgh, forcing a decisive Game 5. In the finale, the Pirates' pitching held the Nationals' high-powered lineup to just two runs, while timely hitting—including a key RBI double by Starling Marte and a solo homer by Jordy Mercer—built a 3–2 lead that the bullpen, led by closer Mark Melancon, locked down. The final out: a swinging strikeout by Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos, sealing a 3–2 Pirates victory and ending Washington's championship hopes in a cold, crushing silence.

Did You Know?

• The Nationals entered the 2014 postseason holding the best record in all of Major League Baseball with 98 wins, yet still fell to the Pirates in five games.
• The Pirates' 2014 pitching staff, featuring Gerrit Cole and A.J. Burnett among its starters, anchored a team that had been rebuilt around the philosophy of winning with pitching and defense.
• The Pirates' advancement through the NLDS set up their 2014 NLCS matchup against the San Francisco Giants, where Pittsburgh ultimately fell in seven games.
• Bryce Harper, in his second professional season, was the face of the Nationals' offense in 2014 and had already established himself as one of the league's most dynamic young players.