This story was excerpted from Jessica Camerato’s Nationals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

You have your saxophone, so you’re ready to start, right? Unfortunately, that’s not the case. You’ll need a variety of materials before you can jump into playing the alto saxophone.

On a night when there was plenty for the Nationals to feel good about, the first three-hit game of Josh Bell’s season stood ...