Paul DeJong makes Nationals pay for intentionally walking Dylan Carlson with grand slam (Video)

St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong made the Washington Nationals pay for intentionally walking Dylan Carson during Monday’s game.

The St. Louis Cardinals entered Monday night looking to get back in the win column following their loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday. So, they decided to take it out on the Washington Nationals in their first game of their three-game series.

In the top of the fifth inning, the Cardinals had two men on base with one out against them, all while carrying a 6-2 lead . Outfielder Dylan Carlson stepped up to the plate, but the Nationals opted to intentionally walk him to load the bases so they could face shortstop Paul DeJong instead. DeJong instantly made the Nationals pay by hitting a grand slam off pitcher Joe Ross to extend the Cardinals’ lead to 10-2.

Paul DeJong makes Nationals pay for intentional walk with a grand slam

The decision to walk Carlson to face DeJong instead was puzzling. Sure, Carlson entered the game with three home runs,10 RBI and a .511 slugging percentage to his credit, but DeJong hit a solo homer in the top of the second inning! As we all saw, DeJong made the Nationals instantly regret their decision.

That was not the only homer to occur in the top of the fifth inning, either. Outfielder Justin Williams hit a solo homer off pitcher Kyle Finnegan to further extend their lead to 11-2.

We can virtually guarantee that the Nationals will instead choose to intentionally walk DeJong in pivotal situations from here on out in this three-game set.