WASHINGTON _ For two hours Wednesday night, Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly lived through a nightmare straight out of 2016.
His club scored early, but barely after that. His starting pitcher cruised early, but ran into trouble in the middle innings. His bullpen was solid, but not so good that it could take away runs the other team already scored.
It ended in a 6-4 loss, the team's second in as many games to open the season, for the Marlins against the Washington Nationals.
Mattingly would have been around for all three hours of the Marlins' 2016 redux, but he was ejected by home-plate umpire Ron Kulpa in the seventh inning.
Third baseman Derek Dietrich got hit by a pitch for the second time in the game moments prior. As he walked toward first base, Dietrich stared down and jawed at hard-throwing Nationals reliever Enny Romero. Mattingly then left the dugout for a heated conversation with Kulpa, during which Mattingly got booted.
The frequency with which the Marlins failed to score after the first few innings in particular perturbed Mattingly late last season and through this spring, but he had to watch much of the same Wednesday.
The Marlins scored two of their runs in the first inning, when four of six batters reached. Marcell Ozuna's single to center plated J.T. Realmuto (walk) and Christian Yelich (single), but Justin Bour got thrown out trying to advance to third on the play to end the inning.
Miami's other runs came on Realmuto's homer _ a line drive to left field _ in the eighth and single in the ninth.
The Marlins left eight men on base and went 2 for 10 with runners in score position.
Right-hander Dan Straily made his Marlins debut, allowing five runs in 3 1/3 innings. He had little issues in the first three, but in the fourth allowed six of seven batters to reach base before Mattingly turned to reliever Dustin McGowan. McGowan evaded further trouble.
Nick Wittgren (two innings, one run), Kyle Barraclough (one scoreless) and A.J. Ramos (one scoreless) also saw action.
But the offense couldn't come back, as was the case on Opening Day. After scoring two runs in the fourth inning Monday, Miami didn't plate another in a two-run loss.
