This game had a little of everything: bad starting pitching, good starting pitching, good defense, not-so-good defense. Timely hitting… well, you get the point. But homers by Adam LaRoche (two on the night), Ryan Zimmerman and, ultimately, Chad Tracy, paced the Nats offense and led them to victory.

Gio Gonzalez got the start for the Nats (23-19), and it looked to start with like we were going to get “Bad Gio”, as he allowed two runs in the bottom of the first on a couple of walks, a steal, a single, and a throwing error by Bryce Harper. What made matters worse was that the Nats were doing their best to stay off the bases completely against Padres rookie starter Burch Smith, striking out whenever they had the chance.

After Gio righted the ship, the Nats finally broke through on Smith in the top of the fourth inning. Harper singled to right and too second on Ryan Zimmerman’s single to left. Adam LaRoche stepped up and continued his hot streak, homering for the third game in a row with a massive clout to center.

The Nats tacked on two more in the sixth, with Zimmerman (2) and LaRoche (7) going back-to-back, chasing Smith from the game, making it 5-2.

Jedd Gyorko homered in the bottom of the frame to cut the Nats lead to two.

It stayed that way until the bottom of the ninth. Rafael Soriano came on to close the game out, but was victimized by some poor defense and lucky hits. With one out, Chris Denorfia grounded one toward the hole. Zimmerman ranged to his left and make a clean pickup, but threw to the inside of the bag, drawing LaRoche off first. Soriano got Everth Cabrera to fly to center for the second out, but Chase Headley singled to right to plate Denorfia to make it 5-4. Yonder Alonso pinch-hit and singled to right to make it first-and-third, then Kyle Blanks hit a soft line drive to right to score Headley to tie the game.

Huston Street entered for the Padres (18-23), but with two outs he left a changeup in the middle of the plate and Chad Tracy delivered, with the first pinch-hit RBI of the season for the Nats, driving the change into the right-center bullpen to break the tie.

Despite some nervous moments in the bottom of the frame. Drew Storen hung on for his first save of the season, despite allowing two singles in the inning.

THE GOOD: Adam LaRoche. Welcome back.

THE BAD: Danny Espinosa. 0-for-4, 3 Ks. I might have to retire “The Bad” until Danny gets his shoulder fixed.

THE UGLY: 15 strikeouts. 15! I know that these days no one has a stigma about striking out, but seriously, 15 Ks?!?

THE STATS: 7 hits, 2 BBs, 15 Ks. 1-for-3 with RISP, 3 LOB. E: Harper (3, throw), Gonzalez (1, throw), Zimmerman (9, throw). No DPs.

NEXT GAME: Saturday at 8:40 pm ET against the Padres. Jordan Zimmermann (7-1, 1.69) faces Eric Stultz (3-3. 4.57).

Perhaps, the secret to returning Strasburg to true form was to allow him the opportunity to return home.

In front of 50 members of his family who attended the ballgame, Strasburg took command of his pitching arsenal in his native San Diego. He powered through 117 pitches, 68 of which were strikes, and allowed only one earned run and two walks to cap off his personal losing streak at five games.

Perhaps more importantly, the Nationals’ batting order finally provided Strasburg with run support.

Neither team had success at the plate in the first three innings of play, but in the top of the fourth, Ryan Zimmerman drew a one-out walk before Adam LaRoche lifted one deep to right center to make it 2-0 Nats.

In the top of the fifth, Kurt Suzuki and Denard Span sandwiched a Strasburg strikeout with two singles. Afterwards, Steve Lombardozzi brought home Suzuki on a single to left.

Bryce Harper hit a ground ball for out number two before Zimmerman singled home Span and Lombardozzi to expand Washington’s lead to five runs.

In the bottom of the inning, the Padres took one back after Jedd Gyorko doubled and Alexi Amarista walked. With one out, Kyle Blank loaded the bases after reaching first on a force attempt and throwing error by—a quite obvious guess—Zimmerman. Everth Cabrera grounded out to first in the next at-bat, which allowed Gyorko to come home with the unearned run, but Strasburg pitched out of the jam allowing nothing more.

The only earned run the Padres would record off Strasburg came in the sixth inning after Chase Headley doubled and advanced on a ground out by Yonder Alonso. Chris Denorfia batted in Headley on a sacrifice fly to right but Strasburg jammed up Gyorko in the next at-bat to kill the inning.

The last run tallied in Thursday night’s matchup came off the bat of none other than Harper, who enjoyed his first start since colliding face-first with the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium Monday night.

With two outs in the seventh inning, Harper socked a first-pitch slider over the center field wall to make it the would-be final score, 6-2 Nationals. The monster shot marked Harper’s 11th homer of the season.

Rafael Soriano took the mound in the ninth in what was obviously not an “untuck” situation. Nevertheless, he gave up just one hit—a single by Gyorko—before closing out the ballgame for the Nats.

Edinson Volquez (L, 3-4) pitched 5.0 innings, allowing five hits, five runs and four walks. He struck out seven and gave up a home run, throwing just 49 of 84 pitches for strikes for the loss.

THE GOOD: Welcome back, Stephen Strasburg. If this is the secret to success—to have members of his family in attendance—the Nationals should look into flying them out to Washington, D.C. After tallying five straight losses (with a few no-decisions in between) Strasburg suddenly looked more like Strasburg again. His fastball topped out around the 97 MPH mark at the start of the game, which is impressive—even for him—this year. It certainly helps matters that the Nationals remembered how to hit again.

THE BAD: There wasn’t a whole lot of “bad” coming out of this game, fortunately. All but Ian Desmond, Roger Bernadina and Stephen Strasburg came away with a hit Thursday night. Aside from that, the key to measuring whether or not Thursday’s performance was a fluke or a turnaround moment for Strasburg won’t be revealed until his next start.

THE UGLY: Ryan Zimmerman’s throwing error. That marks his eighth error of the season. Botched catches might produce more “head-slapper” moments, botched throws, however, are more concerning.

THE STATS: 6 R, 7 H, 5 BB, 9 K, 4 LOB, 3-for-8 with RISP, 1 SB (Suzuki), 1 CS (Tracy), 1 E (Zimmerman – throw)

NEXT GAME: Friday, 10:10 p.m. ET at Petco Park. LHP Gio Gonzalez (3-2, 4.20 ERA) vs. RHP Burch Smith (0-0, 54.00 ERA) – No, that is not a typo.

The matchup marked Greinke’s first start since he fractured his left clavicle in a brawl with San Diego Padres outfielder Carlos Quentin. Greinke showed no signs of a struggle as he allowed just five hits and one run over 5.1 innings pitched. He struck out four batters and tossed 50 of 83 pitches for strikes.

The Nats, on the other hand, suffered from more than simply Quiet Bat Syndrome. Both Ross Detwiler (L, 2-4) and Wilson Ramos left the game early with injuries. On the brighter side of things, Bryce Harper returned to the Nats as a pinch-hitter in the ninth. Harper received 11 stitches under his chin and hurt his shoulder Monday night after colliding with the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium Monday night.

Unfortunately for Washington, things never even began on solid footing for Detwiler. After he sent the Dodgers’ first two batters straight back to the dugout, he gave up a ground-rule double to Matt Kemp. Adrian Gonzalez followed up with a single up the middle to plate Kemp and give Los Angeles and early 1-0 lead.

The Dodgers tacked on another run in the second—off Greinke’s bat, nonetheless. Andre Ethier led off with a single before Scott Van Slyke drew a walk. Juan Uribe grounded into a double play to make it seem as though Detwiler would work out of the jam unscathed, but Greinke took matters into his own hands with a single to right to score Ethier and make it 2-0.

In the top of the third, Detwiler showed signs of discomfort while running to first on a sacrifice bunt to advance Roger Bernadina to second.

Detwiler returned to the mound in the bottom of the inning, despite giving up a leadoff single to Nick Punto and, later, a single to A.J. Ellis. He walked Ethier before Van Slyke lined out to end the inning and he didn’t return to the mound again.

In the top of the fourth, the Nats finally put a run on the board by way of an Adam LaRoche solo home run. The celebration was cut short, however, when Ramos later ran slowly to first on a single to left. Once he was deemed safe, he tossed his helmet to the ground in an apparent combination of pain and frustration and Kurt Suzuki quickly entered in his relief.

In the bottom of the inning, Craig Stammen took the mound in place of Detwiler to retire the side in order. He went on to provide 3.0 innings of relief, allowing just two hits and striking out three.

Tyler Clippard pitched a perfect seventh inning to allow the Nats to create a comeback opportunity in the eighth.

With Kenley Jansen on the mound for the Dodgers, Steve Lombardozzi and Ryan Zimmerman hit back-to-back singles to lead off the inning. But that was all the Nats’ order would conjure up as LaRoche, Ian Desmond and Suzuki went down in order to cut short any chances of giving the Dodgers’ bullpen a run for their money.

Drew Storen took the mound in the bottom of the eighth, allowing for Kemp to start things off with a single. Gonzalez walked and the runners advanced on Ellis’s sacrifice bunt before Storen intentionally walked Ethier to get to Carl Crawford. The game-plan fell short of successful as Crawford brought home Kemp on a sacrifice, but Storen worked out of the inning with just the one run allowed to make it 3-1 Dodgers.

Espinosa singled to lead off the Nats’ efforts in the ninth, but reliever Brandon League retired Bernadina, pinch-hitting Harper and Span in order to write another win in the books.

THE GOOD: Bryce Harper returned in the ninth, which should help alleviate any and all seemingly irrational fears that circulated about the severity of his injury Monday night.

Craig Stammen and Tyler Clippard combined for a solid four innings of relief.

THE BAD: The injury bug has bitten the Washington Nationals yet again – twice. While there hasn’t been word yet about whether or not Ross Detwiler will make his next start, Davey Johnson said after the game that he believes Wilson Ramos will go on the DL. Recognizing that the hamstring Ramos injured Wednesday night is the same that sent him to the DL just a month ago, the outlook doesn’t look so promising right now.

THE UGLY: Injury-ridden or not, the Nats’ bats need to come to life. Only Wilson Ramos recorded two hits Wednesday night. Had it not been for Adam LaRoche’s home run, Wilson Ramos would have also held the only extra-base hit for the Nationals all night.

THE STATS: 1 R, 9 H, 2 BB, 8 K, 9 LOB, 0-for-9 RISP

Kershaw reached the 1,000-inning mark, making it official that he now boasts the best ERA (2.70) among starters with 1,000 or more innings pitched in the Live Ball Era. Kershaw struck out 11 batters and reached a career-high 132 pitches against a Nats lineup that featured a very different outfield from the norm.

Washington was without Bryce Harper, who sat out Tuesday’s game after colliding face-first with the outfield scoreboard Monday night. Davey Johnson also opted to sit Denard Span to allow Eury Perez to make his first career start.

At first, it seemed unlikely Kershaw would pen an impressive outing into the books, even against a mix-and-matched Nats batting order. After lead-off man Danny Espinosa struck out in the first and Steve Lombardozzi popped to short, Ryan Zimmerman and Ian Desmond hit back-to-back singles to spark an early two-out opportunity for the Nats.

Adam LaRoche worked Kershaw from a 1-2 count to a total of seven pitches before he finally drew a walk. By the time Tyler Moore struck out with the bases loaded, the Nats had an ever-so-small reason to view the glass as half full – Kershaw had already thrown 29 pitches in the first.

But, it never seemed to matter.

In the second inning, Kershaw struck out the side and he started the third with two more Ks to Espinosa and Lombardozzi.

In the bottom of the third, things went south for Haren rather quickly. On Haren’s fourth pitch to Kershaw, who holds a career .146 batting average, he drilled the southpaw on an 87 MPH cutter. Haren forced Carl Crawford to fly to center without advancing the runner, but Matt Kemp’s one-out single gave the Dodgers runners at first and second.

Haren regained control of his cutter in time to strike out Adrian Gonzalez for out number two, but Andre Ethier followed up with a single to center to plate both Kershaw and Kemp and give the Dodgers a 2-0 lead.

In the end, it was all they needed. The Nats didn’t reach base again until Ryan Zimmerman singled once more in the top of the sixth with one out. He advanced to second on a Desmond groundout, but nothing more.

Haren stayed sharp for the remainder of his outing, despite getting a bit of a scare in the fifth. While running to first on a groundout off the bat of Crawford, Haren’s spike got caught on the mound, which appeared to cause him a bit of discomfort. He remained in the game, unharmed, and achieved a final line of 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 4 K, throwing 71 of 101 pitches for strikes.

Ryan Mattheus provided an inning of perfect relief, but the Nationals never created another opportunity for themselves on offense. With the loss, they are now 9-9 on the road.

THE GOOD: Dan Haren pitched a solid outing, despite coming away with another loss. Aside for the third inning, he maintained good movement on his pitches and avoided pitching into any major jams.

The Nats can also celebrate the fact that, on a night when many of the familiar faces sat on the bench, Ryan Zimmerman held true to his own, going 3-for-4 against a stellar Clayton Kershaw.

THE BAD: Whether or not the Nats were without their outfield trifecta, they still managed just five hits Tuesday night and went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position.

THE UGLY: Danny Espinosa went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

THE STATS: 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 12 K, 6 LOB, 0-for-4 with RISP

NEXT GAME: Wednesday, May 15 at 10:10 p.m. ET, LHP Ross Detwiler (2-3, 2.53 ERA) vs. RHP Zack Greinke (1-0, 1.59 ERA)

]]> http://districtsportspage.com/washington-nationals-game-39-review-clayton-kershaw-tosses-132-pitches-to-shut-down-nats/17873/feed 7 http://districtsportspage.com/washington-nationals-game-38-review-zimmermann-wins-7th-harper-injured-in-collision-with-outfield-wall/17837 http://districtsportspage.com/washington-nationals-game-38-review-zimmermann-wins-7th-harper-injured-in-collision-with-outfield-wall/17837#comments Tue, 14 May 2013 05:50:01 +0000 Dave Nichols http://districtsportspage.com/?p=17837 Jordan Zimmermann became the National League’s first seven game winner, tossing 7 2/3 strong innings, leading the Washington Nationals to a 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chavez Ravine.

But all anyone wants to talk about in this one was the way Bryce Harper slammed into the out-of-town scoreboard in right field in the fifth inning, crashing into the chain link protected wall, lacerating his neck guillotine-style either on something in the fence or on the gold chain he wore around his neck.

Harper was chasing A.J. Ellis’ slicing line drive when he turned and ran full bore into the wall. His head jerked back violently and he tumbled to the warning track, dazed. When the play completed, Denard Span was the first to get to Harper and immediately signaled for the training staff. After an examination, Harper made his way to his feet and walked off under his own power, the laceration on his neck evident with a thin streak of bright red blood.

After the game, the team announced Harper needed 11 stitches to close up the gash, and had jammed his shoulder, but that he apparently was cleared of any concussion symptoms for the time being.

The Nats (21-17) got out quickly against Dodgers starter Josh Beckett (0-5, 5.19). Denard Span led the game off with a single to right and went to third on Harper’s single to right. Ryan Zimmerman ground out to second, but Span scampered home with the game’s first run.

Washington went back to work in the third. Jordan Zimmermann led off the frame with a base on balls, then with one out went to second on first baseman Adrian Gonzalez’ fielding error, with Steve Lombardozzi safe at first. Harper walked to load the bases, then Ryan Zimmerman doubled to deep right to bring home Jordan and Lombardozzi. An Adam LaRoche grounder to first brought home Harper to make the score 4-0, chasing Beckett after just three innings.

In the top of the fifth, Lombardozzi got the rally going with a one-out single and Harper followed with a walk. Ryan Zimmerman hit a comebacker, but reliever Javy Guerra threw the ball away, allowing Lombardozzi to score, with Harper and Zimmerman moving up a base. LaRoche singled to right on a 2-0 count, plating both Harper and Zimmerman.

The Dodgers got their first run in the bottom half of the inning. Ellis was safe at third with a triple after Harper slammed into the wall. When play picked back up, Ellis scored on Skip Schumaker’s ground out to second. L.A. got another run in the eighth, when Zimmermann allowed three singles to Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez and Matt Kemp, the last of which signaled the end of the evening for Zimmermann.

Zimmermann’s final line was as typically strong as we’ve become accustomed to: 7 2/3 innings, two earned runs on nine hits and no walks, striking out five.

Tyler Clippard came in to clean up the rest of the eighth inning without incident, and Drew Storen pitched a perfect ninth to finish the win.

THE GOOD: Jordan Zimmermann. I mean, c’mon, who else?

THE BAD: Danny Espinosa. 0-for-5. 2 Ks. 4 LOB. Nope, that shoulder isn’t affecting his swing. .189/.222/.351. He has three walks in 114 plate appearances.

THE UGLY: Harper. You can see the video here. It was as scary as you could imagine.

THE STATS: 10 hits, 5 BBs, 10 Ks. 3-for-13 with RISP, 11 LOB. E: Suzuki (3, throw). One DP.

NEXT GAME: Tuesday night at 10:10 pm against the Dodgers.

With the Chicago Cubs (15-22) and Nats tied 1-1 in the ninth, Alfonso Soriano led off against Rafael Soriano with a single to left before pinch-hitter Julio Borbon followed up with a single of his own. With one out, the Cubs successfully ran the double steal with Wellington Castillo batting. Much to the Nats’ misfortune, however, Kurt Suzuki threw so far left of third base on the play that he bounced the ball into foul territory, allowing Alfonso Soriano to score the only go-ahead run the Cubs would need.

Once more, the win-loss column didn’t do justice for the Nats’ pitching performances.

Gio Gonzalez (ND, 3-2) retired the first 15 batters he faced before finally giving up a single to Dioner Navarro in the sixth. In seven innings pitched, he allowed only two hits—both singles—and one walk, and struck out six, throwing 55 of 86 pitches for strikes.

In fact, the sixth inning turned out to be the only inning in which Gonzalez wasn’t perfect. And yet, Nationals manager Davey Johnson opted to pull him for the eighth.

The only run support the Nats’ batting order provided came in the very first inning. Denard Span doubled to center to lead off before Steve Lombardozzi—who started in left field—popped out to first. Bryce Harper walked to send Ryan Zimmerman to the batter’s box with one out.

On a 1-1 count, Zimmerman socked a 92 MPH sinker to right to plate Span and give the Nats a 1-0 lead that went untouched under Gonzalez’s watch. The Nats had a golden opportunity to expand their lead once Ian Desmond drew a two-out walk, but Danny Espinosa flied out to left to dash all hopes of an early rout.

The Cubs’ tying run arrived in the eighth off Drew Storen. Navarro singled once more to lead off before pinch-runner Travis Wood advanced on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Darwin Barney. Pinch-hitter David DeJesus popped to first to push Wood to third before Starlin Castro brought him home on a single up the middle.

Cody  Ransom singled as well in the inning, but Storen forced Anthony Rizzo to ground out to end the inning.

The Nats failed to threaten in their final two innings of play and, regardless of the fact that he didn’t allow an earned run to score, Rafael Soriano emerged the loser of Sunday’s matchup. With the loss, the Nats dropped their series against the Cubs 2-1 ahead of a 10-game road stretch.

Cubs’ left-hander James Russell (1-0) emerged the winner after tossing one inning of hit-less relief for Chicago.

Starter Scott Feldman earned a final line of 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 3 BB and 6 K for the no decision.

THE GOOD: There’s no need for embellishment—Gio Gonzalez came up just shy of perfect against the Cubs. Regardless of how much confidence Davey Johnson has in the Nationals’ bullpen, one has to wonder the thought process behind pulling Gonzalez after he tossed yet another perfect inning and reached a total of just 86 pitches.

THE BAD:  The Nats left a total of eight runners on base Sunday afternoon and went just 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position.

THE UGLY:  Errors can be game-changers and, for the second time in a row, an error swung the ballgame into the Cubs’ favor.

In the bottom of the ninth, home plate umpire John Tumpane called out Kurt Suzuki on a third strike that appeared, by all but Tumpane’s account, to fall outside the strike zone. Suzuki’s frustrations (presumably from his throwing error) bubbled over as the Nats catcher began shouting at the ump, who wasted little time ejecting Suzuki from the game. It marked Suzuki’s first career ejection.

THE STATS: 1 R, 5 H, 4 BB, 9 K, 1 GIDP, 1-for-9 RISP, 8 LOB

NEXT GAME: Monday, 10:10 p.m. ET at Dodger Stadium: RHP Josh Beckett (0-4) vs. RHP Jordan Zimmermann (6-1)

Stephen Strasburg (L, 1-5) looked the best he’s been all season to start the game, retiring the first 11 batters he faced in a row before giving up a single to Anthony Rizzo in the fourth.

Washington bats remained quiet, however, against former National Edwin Jackson (W, 1-5), who has struggled since signing a $52 million, four-year contract with the Cubs. He retired the side in the bottom of the first and pitched out of the second without giving up a run despite a one-out double by Ian Desmond. The Nats failed to get a runner on base in both the third and fourth innings and, in the fifth, the Cubs ran away with the opportunity.

Nate Schierholtz lined out to center to lead off before Luis Valbuena attempted to stretch a double to the right-field corner into a triple, unsuccessfully.

With the Nats sitting pretty, Welington Castillo chopped one to third baseman Ryan Zimmerman for would-be out three, but Zimmerman threw off balance to first for his sixth error of the season.

And, boy, did the inning continue.

Darwin Barney drew a six-pitch walk and Jackson himself caused Strasburg’s first headache of the day with a two-run double to center.

David DeJesus walked and Starlin Castro singled to set up Rizzo for a two-run single to make it 4-0 Cubs before out three. Wilson Ramos’s throw to second beat Rizzo on the steal attempt to end the top of the fifth at last.

When all was said and done, Strasburg had earned a final line of: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K.

Desmond continued his hot streak with a lead-off homer to start the bottom of the inning and put Washington on the board at last. Then, Zach Duke took the mound in the sixth to relieve Strasburg—and did quite the opposite.

Former National Alfonso Soriano led off with a hard-hit double off Duke’s 73 MPH curveball to start things off. Schierholtz followed up with a single and, with Cody Ransom batting, Duke hurled a wild pitch, allowing Soriano to come home safely.

Ransom himself doubled in Schierholtz and Duke drilled Castillo with a misplaced four-seam fastball before the first out of the inning was even made.

With two outs, DeJesus singled, bringing home Ransom and Castillo to make it 8-1 Cubs in the sixth before Ryan Mattheus took the mound to stop the bleeding.

The Nats earned one more run in the bottom of the inning after Roger Bernadina and Zimmerman earned back-to-back walks and Adam LaRoche singled to load the bases. Desmond, of course, took matters into his own hands once more—this time with a single—to bring home Bernadina and make it 8-2 Cubs.

The Cubs failed to score again in the remainder of the game, but that didn’t spell the end of Zimmerman’s fielding woes. In the top of the seventh, after Rizzo singled, Soriano reached on a force attempt and a botched fielding play by Zimmerman. Mattheus retired Schierholtz on a fly ball to left before forcing Ransom to ground into a double play to prevent any additional runs.

Steve Lombardozzi earned the triple that Desmond was looking for to complete the cycle in the bottom of the seventh, but he remained the Nats’ last base runner for the rest of the game.

THE GOOD: Ian Desmond, for the second night in a row, got within a triple of hitting for the cycle against the Chicago Cubs.

THE BAD: To date, Stephen Strasburg’s only win this season remains his victory against the now 11-25 Miami Marlins… on Opening Day.

Zach Duke had an even worse day – he lasted just 0.2 innings and gave up four hits and four earned runs.

THE UGLY: Ryan Zimmerman’s fielding woes. Because of his botched throw in the fifth inning, the Cubs tallied four runs against Strasburg—all of which were unearned. One has to assume he’ll find his groove and make fewer botched throws to first, but twice the Cubs had opportunities handed to them… literally.

THE STATS: 2 R, 6 H, 2 BB, 7 K, 1 HR, 2-for-10 RISP, 6 LOB, 2 errors (Zimmerman, throw, fielding)

NEXT GAME: RHP Scott Feldman (3-3, 2.70 ERA) vs. LHP Gio Gonzalez (3-2, 4.97 ERA), Sunday, 1:35 p.m. at Nationals Park.

The win is the Nats fourth in a row and sixth in their last seven games and it leaves them 1 1/2 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the N.L. East entering play in the evening games.

The Nats (19-15) jumped on Tigers starter Doug Fister early. Denard Span led off the bottom of the first with a double over the first base bag. He went to third on Roger Bernadina’s bunt base hit and scored on Bryce Harper’s fielder’s choice that erased Bernadina at second. Ryan Zimmerman followed with a single, and Adam LaRoche did the same, plating Harper. Ian Desmond then single to center to bring home Zimmerman and give the Nats a 3-0 lead after one inning.

The Tigers got one back in the top of the second off Haren (W, 4-3, 5.17), when Fister muscled an 0-1 pitch to center for his third Major League hit of his career, scoring Jhonny Peralta from third.

The hit parade for the Nationals continued in the bottom half of the inning. With one out, Span reached when Fister clipped Span’s pant leg with an errant fastball. Bernadina fell behind 0-2 but worked the at bat for a walk. Harper struck out looking, but consecutive singles by Zimmerman and LaRoche again plated two more runs to stretch the Nats lead to 5-1 after two full.

Detroit used some small ball, then a blast to cut into the Nats lead in the sixth. With one out, Peralta drew a four-pitch walk. Haren got Alex Avila to line out to center, but on the next pitch, Omar infant reached on a perfectly placed bunt single. Matt Tuiasosopo pinch-hit for the pitcher’s spot and drilled a three-run shot over the Tigers bullpen in left center to make it 5-4.

Haren’s final line (6.0 IP, 4 ER, 9 H, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 HR) ended up kinda messy after the homer, but he threw a good game up until that point.

The rest was up to the bullpen, and they got the job done, with Ryan Mattheus, Drew Storen and Rafael Soriano all pitching scoreless innings to keep the one-run lead intact. Soriano earned his 12th save of the season in 13 tries, getting Prince Fielder to fly to the track in center for the final out of the game.

THE GOOD: Ryan Zimmerman. 3-for-4, RBI, run scored. He’s starting to heat up. Adam LaRoche went 2-for-4 with an RBI.

THE BAD: Danny Espinosa. 0-for-4, K.

THE UGLY: Tyler Moore. Pinch-hit for Bernadina against a lefty reliever and struck out on three pitches, all breaking balls.

THE STATS: 9 hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks. 5-for-12 with RISP, 7 LOB. No errors, no DPs.

NEXT GAME: Friday starts a three-game series with the Chicago Cubs, 7:05 pm from Nats Park. Ross Detwiler (1-3, 2.50) hosts Jeff Samardzija (1-4, 3.09).

Zimmermann (6-1, 1.59) was masterful yet again. The stoic right-hander went seven innings, allowing just one run on seven hits and two walks, striking out seven in the process. Only a couple of high-pitch count innings against a good offensive ballclub early kept him from completing more than the seven innings he did finish.

The Tigers (19-12) broke Zimmermann’s scoreless innings streak at 20, when they scratched out a run against the Nats righty in the third inning. Torii Hunter doubled to left with two outs, and MLB’s RBI leader Miguel Cabrera dumped a single to left to bring Hunter in.

The Nats (18-15) answered back in the bottom of the inning. Denard Span tripled to right field. After Ian Desmond lined out to first, Bryce Harper lofted a fly ball to left that brought Span home safely.

An error by Hunter helped the Nats to their second run. Adam LaRoche (2-for-3, run) led off the fourth with a single to right. After Tyler Moore K’d, Danny Espinosa singled to center, moving LaRoche up one base. Kurt Suzuki flied out to Hunter in right field, but Hunter’s throwing error allowed LaRoche to chug home all the way from second on the play.

Harper clobbered a homer to right, his 10th of the season, in the fifth to extend the Nats lead to 3-1.

Tyler Clippard pitched a scoreless eighth inning, despite walking two, and Rafael Soriano threw a perfect ninth for his 11th save of the campaign.

THE GOOD: Jordan Zimmermann. Early nomination for N.L. All-Star team.

THE BAD: Tyler Moore. 0-for-3 with two more strikeouts.

THE UGLY: Ryan Zimmerman. 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Doesn’t quite have his timing back yet.

THE STATS: 8 hits, no walks, 10 Ks. 1-for-5 with RISP, 4 LOB. E: LaRoche (2, fielding). DP: 2.

NEXT GAME: Thursday at 4:05 pm against the Tigers. (Dan Haren (3-3, 5.01) hosts Doug Fister (4-0, 2.48).