National Record

The Skinny:  Tim Redding was sharp once again and helped lead the Washington Nationals to a 5-3 win over the New York Mets on Wednesday night.  The win brings the Nationals record to 17-24.

The Pitching:  Redding started the ballgame and lasted six innings, picking up his fifth win of the season.  In his six innings, Redding gave up only one earned run struck out four.  Saul Rivera came on after Redding and promptly coughed up a couple of runs to make things interesting.  Washington brought in Jon Rauch to get the final four outs and did so without allowing any more runs to score.

The Batting: The Nationals sewed this game up with a four run seventh inning.  They again were very efficient with their hits as they scored their five runs on only six hits.  Felipe Lopez with the only player with two hits.  Cristian Guzman delivered the big blow for the Nationals with a two run single in that seventh inning.

What’s Next?:  The Nationals will finish off their series with the Mets tomorrow before heading back home to take on the Orioles in some inter-league baseball.  Game time is 1:10pm and Jason Bergmann will get the start for the Nationals.

The Skinny:  The Nationals got burned tonight by an old teammate.  Mets OF Ryan Church, who used to play in Washington, had four RBI to help lead the Mets to a 6-3 win over the Nationals.  The loss drops the Nationals to 16-24.

The Pitching:  John Lannan made the start on the mound for Washington tonight.  Lannan pitched into and out of trouble all night.  He lasted 6 innings and got knocked around for 12 hits and a walk.  He allowed only four runs on those 13 base runners, it could have been much worse.  Luis Ayala followed Lannan on the mound and gave up a couple more runs to help put the game out of reach for the Nationals.

The Batting:  The Nationals took an early 2-1 lead in the third inning on a Ryan Zimmerman two run homer.  The other Nationals run was driven in on a Rob Mackowiak ground out.  The Nationals collected only 4 hits in 33 at bats tonight and were very fortunate to put three runs on the board.

What’s Next:  The Nationals and Mets are tied at a game in a piece in their four game series this week.  Tomorrow’s game will start at 7:10 pm with Tim Redding scheduled to start for the Nationals.

The Skinny:  The Washington Nationals bats woke up in a big way on Monday.  The Nationals scored 10 on their way to a 10-4 win over the New York Mets at Shea Stadium.  The Nationals improved their record to 16-23.

The Pitching:  Odalis Perez finally picked up his first win of the year and he pitched into the seventh innings for the Nats.  Perez allowed all four Met runs.  Saul Rivera got the final four outs of the game to secure the victory.

The Batting:  The Nationals got their 10 runs on only 10 hits.  They were able to keep men on the bases thanks to a patient eye at the plate which led to seven walks.  Odalis Perez was actually their best hitter as he went 3-3 at the plate and drove in a pair of runs.  Nick Johnson had a hit and scored three times for Washington.

What’s Next:  Washington has three more games this week at Shea Stadium against the Mets.  John Lannan will get the start on Tuesday night.

The Skinny:  The Washington Nationals fell to the Florida Marlins today, 5-4.  The win for the Marlins gave them a sweep and left the Nationals looking for answers.  After a recent hot streak, the Nationals are now 15-23 on the season and in last place in the NL East.

The Pitching:  Shawn Hill started for the Nationals and threw a very good ball game.  Hill got through seven innings and gave up only two runs.  Sadly, Hill’s effort got him a no-decision.  Luis Ayala came on in relief and provided none for Washington.  Ayala got hit with the loss after he went one inning and gave up three runs and let the Marlins come from behind and get the win.  Ayala gave up two home runs.

The Hitting:   Aaron Boone led the Washington with three hits as he ended up a double short of hitting for the cycle.  Aside from Boone, the rest of the Nationals line up went 4-26 on the game and really struggled to get much of anything going offensively.  Ronnie Belliard hit a two run homer in the third inning to put the Nats up 3-1 early against Scott Olsen of the Marlins.

What’s Next?:  The Nationals will head to New York City to take on the New York Mets.  The four game series will start tomorrow night at Shea Stadium with Odalis Perez starting for Washington.  Game time is 7:10pm.

The Skinny:  The Washington Nationals dropped a pair of games this weekend to the Florida Marlins.  They lost on Friday, 7-3 and fell on Saturday by a score of, 11-0.  The offense and pitching really struggled this weekend as the Nationals saw their mini hot streak come to an end.  The Nationals are now 15-22 on the season.

The Pitching:  Tim Redding got the start on Friday and got hit around a bit.  Redding, who has been the most consistent Nationals starter this season, really struggled.  He threw 5.1 innings, giving up 5 ER on 4 hits and 4 walks.  He picked up the loss.  The bullpen went 3.2 innings, giving up on 1 ER, helping keep the game within reach.  Mike O’Connor started for Washington on Saturday and things went from bad to awful in a hurry.  O’Connor lasted only 3.1 innings and allowed 9 ER as he allowed 6 hits, 6 walks, and 2 HR.  It was O’Connor’s first start of the year after pitching out of the bullpen.

The Hitting:   On Friday, the Nationals got two hits each from Nick Johnson, Cristian Guzman, and Lastings Milledge.  The Nationals left nine men on base however, as they failed to cash in runs when they had the chances.  Austin Kearns was 0-3 with two strike outs.  On Saturday they obviously didn’t have much of anything going against Andrew Miller of the Marlins.  They got a pair of hits from Felipe Lopez and one from Cristian Guzman, that was it.  They were able to get only two walks so they really didn’t have many scoring opportunities.

What’s Next?:  The Marlins and the Nationals will finish their series as the Nats try to pick up at least one win in the series.  Shawn Hill will start for Washington.  Game time is 1:35.

The Skinny:  The Washington Nationals avoided a sweep in Houston by winning 8-3 on Thursday night.  After losing the first two games in Houston by one run in each game, the Nationals game out swinging to improve their record to 15-20.

The Pitching:  John Lannan was sharp once again in a start for the Nationals.  Lannan went six innings and gave up only one run on seven hits to get his third win of the season.  Lannan also struck out three Astros while walking only one.  Luis Ayala made it interesting by allowing two runs, but Jon Rauch threw a scoreless ninth inning to close out the win.

The Hitting:  Ryan Zimmerman continued his hot streak with three hits, scoring twice.  Zimmerman now has eight hits in his last fourteen at bats and has his average all the way up above .250.  Cristian Guzman also had two hits for the Nationals.  One low light for that Nationals was that they did strike out eleven times in the game.

What’s Next?:  The Nationals will leave Houston to head back home to take on the Florida Marlins for a weekend series.  The three game series will kick off on Friday at 7:35pm.

The Skinny: After a recent hot streak, the Washington Nationals dropped a pair of one run games in Houston to the Astros.  They dropped the game on Tuesday, 6-5 and lost on Wednesday by the score of 4-3.  The Nationals are now 14-20 on the year.

The Pitching:  Shawn Hill started for the Nats on Tuesday and lasted only 5.1 innings.  In his five innings of work he gave up three runs but was in constant trouble as he walked four batters and allowed eight hits, it could have been worse for him.  However, the Nats offense kept them in the game until Luis Ayala coughed up two runs in the 8th inning.  The Nationals started Odalis Perez on Wednesday as he was still looking for his first win of 2008.  Perez threw five innings and gave up three runs before getting pulled and receiving a no-decision.  Joel Hannrahan would get the loss as he threw 2.1 innings of no-hit relief.  The problem is, he gave up five walks and the Astros would score on a walk off single in the bottom of the ninth.

The Hitting:  Ryan Zimmerman and Austin Kearns each had two hits on Tuesday night.  Nick Johnson hit a solo home run in this one and then was walked in all three of his other plate appearances.  Kearns hit a solo shot in the 8th inning to give the Nationals a 5-4 lead, however, the bullpen could not hold the lead.  On Wednesday, Zimmerman provided all of the Nationals offense as he went 3-4 with two HR and three RBI.  Zimmerman was given a day off last weekend and it really has appeared to have helped him get his stroke back.

What’s Next?:  The Nationals will try to salvage one game in this series on Thursday night.  John Lannan will get the start for Washington.  Game time is 8:05pm.

The Skinny:    The Washington Nationals stayed hot as they won for the sixth time in seven games against the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Washington won today behind the pitching of Tim Redding by a score of 5-2.  They upped their record to 14-18 on the season.

The Pitching:  Redding started for the Rays and continued to be one of the biggest surprises of the spring.  Redding pitching into the seventh inning, going 6.1 innings and giving up only one run and struck out five.  With the win, Redding is now 4-2 on the season.  Saul Rivera, Jesus Colome, and Luis Ayala picked up where Redding left off and closed out the game for the Nats.

The Hitting:  The Nats offense was terrific today, racking up 13 hits while putting five runs on the board.  Ten different Nationals players had hits today, excluding Ryan Zimmerman who was given the day off.  Willie Harris and Wily Mo Pena doubled, while Aaron Boone hit a solo home run off of Pirates starter Ian Snell.

What’s Next?:   The Nationals will have tomorrow off as they travel to Houston.  On Tuesday they will start a three game series against the Houston Astros.  Shawn Hill will start on Tuesday in the series opener.  Game time is 8:05pm.

The Skinny:  Following a loss on Friday, the Washington Nationals got back on track on Saturday with a win.  The Nationals topped the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-8 on Saturday in a bit of a slug fest.  The Nationals win improves their record on the season to 13-18

The Pitching:  Matt Chico started for the Nationals, looking for his first win of the season.  While the Nats did score plenty of runs, they were not able to get Chico his first win.  Chico lasted only 4.1 innings, give up up 4 ER on 8 hits.  He had a tough time keeping runners off base.  Jesus Colome got the win has he threw 1.2 innings of scoreless relief taking over for Chico.  Jon Rauch threw a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his seventh save of the season.

The Hitting:  After the second inning the Nationals had already built a 5-1 lead.  The pitching couldn’t hold many leads so the hitters had to keep putting runs up on the board.  Cristian Guzman was a one man wrecking crew for the Nationals as he went 4-5 with six RBI.  Guzman had a double and a home run to go with a pair of singles.  Austin Kearns continued to swing the bat  little bit better as he got a pair of singles himself.  Ryan Zimmerman went 0-5.

What’s Next?:  Tim Redding will take the hill for Washington on Sunday afternoon as they continue their series with the Pirates.

The Skinny:  John Lannan, after a few terrific starts got hit hard as they Nationals saw their winning streak come to an end.  Washington lost on Friday night to the Pittsburgh Pirates by the score of 11-4.  The Nationals fell to 12-18 on the season.

The Pitching:  After several great starts, Lannan did not have his A-game on Friday.  He lasted only three innings giving up six runs and taking the loss.  The bullpen didn’t provide much relief as they gave up 5 more runs over the remaining six innings.  Lannan fell to 2-3 on the season, his ERA remains below 4.00.

The Hitting:  Since the Nationals fell down so early, the runs they scored were of little consequence.  Felipe Lopez was the only National with more than one hit as he had two hits and an RBI.  Catcher Wil Nieves continued to swing a hot bat as he slugged a double and had two RBI.  Nick Johnson went 0-4 and his batting average dropped to .202.

What’s Next?:  Matt Chico will start for the Nationals against the Pirates on Saturday afternoon.  Chico is 0-5 on the season with an ERA of 6.68.  The Nationals need him to get on track.