You wouldn’t know it from the score (5-1), but the game could have been much closer. The team capitalized on a key error by JJ Hardy in the 6th inning by scoring 4 unearned runs on 2 hits to make the win certain. But, on three hits, it’s hard to say ”the bats came alive.“ We did get quality at-bats, timely hitting and smart baseball. And we’ll take it.
It was great to see Wily Mo Pena finally belt one out of the park. It came in the 2nd inning and put the Nats up by one. Now, let’s see more of that power WMP.
Perez pitched well through 5 innings of work. He gave up one run on 5 hits. Three of those hits came in the 5th inning, but he escaped giving up only a run. Reports indicate that Perez had cut his finger, but pitched through it. Perez was relieved by newcomer Brian Sanches, who struck out three in his Washington debut to pick up the win.
The 6th inning magic got underway with Suppan’s walk to Felipe Lopez. Guzman hit into a double play, but Hardy couldn’t field the ball and both runners were safe. Zimmerman doubled to drive in Lopez. Suppan hit Dmitri Young to load the bases with 1 out and Aaron Boone entered the game to run for Young. Milledge hit a grounder right to Prince Fielder for the 2nd out, while Guzman scored another run. With 2 outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd, Jesus Flores drove a double down the left field line scoring both Zimmerman and Boone. It was another brilliant at-bat for the young catcher and a hit that made a win near-certain.
The late-inning team of Saul Rivera, Luis Ayala and Jon Rauch closed the win with three scoreless innings. Fireworks lit up the sky in southeast. The team, with all its new parts, celebrated win #21 in front of some 28,000.
As far as the park goes, the good news is that the lines really seem to be getting better. The process, almost two months in, has smoothed itself out and there seem to be less problems all around. You’ll note that unlike the fan thrown out for tossing a home run ball back onto the field, a stupid girl who intentionally threw a ball into right field during play early in the game faced a different fate. Elijah Dukes had to jog out to toss the ball back into the stands, but surprisingly noone showed up to question, warn or eject the fan. How about some consistency?
The Nats Express continues to be an effective way to get to the game, if you don’t mind the long wait in line after the game. Remember - today the Express operates out of Lot 7 due to the DC United game.
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