In the grand scheme of things, the Washington Nationals 9-3 loss to the Houston Astros Saturday night was just another loss -- No. 77 of the season -- in another losing season.  But the way they went about it was tough to watch.

Last night's game was one of the more demoralizing losses of the season. Not just for the runs against, or the poor fielding, or the lack of production (though all three were evident), but the fact that they were that lifeless against a team that hasn't won 50 games yet with less than 20 remaining to be played.  Make no mistake, the Astros are terrible.  But they reduced the Nats to an afterthought.

John Lannan failed to record nine outs for only the third time in his MLB career, giving up six runs -- four earned -- in the third inning to end the competitive portion of the game early, and the Nats fell to the Astros 9-3 before an announced crowd of 30,935 at Nats Park.

The Astros kept rapping single after single off Lannan in the third.  Then Michael Morse misplayed a double into a triple in the left field corner.  Two runs scored after Lannan himself threw a ball away trying to get the runner at the plate on a sacrifice bunt attempt.  A suicide squeeze attempt went for a clean single when no one could field the ball.  The comedy of errors seemed endless.

Yunesky Maya, the Cuban defector, was brought in to stop the bleeding and he managed to get out of that inning, but allowed two more runs in the fifth.

All the while, the futility on offense continued.  The Nationals were not without opportunity, collecting nine hits of their own -- though failing to draw a walk.  But as been the case all season long, they could not capitalize, going 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position.  Danny Espinosa, once considered for Rookie of the Year, continued his second half slide, going 0-for-4, striking out three more times and stranding five runners.

The Nationals are now just 26-39 since Davey Johnson took over as manager after Jim Riggleman quit in a huff over his expiring contract. Most rational folks would look at the discrepancy as coincidence, or perhaps regression to the mean after overachieving in the first half, fueled by a 13 out of 15 win streak. But there are going to be some that will claim it's causal, to illustrate their point that the game has passed Johnson by and use it as fuel for why the Nats should do a full search for a new manager next season.

Either way, one piece of evidence is incontrovertible: the Nats are crashing.

For the last three seasons, the Nats have made an annual September swoon, posting records for the month lower than their overall winning percentage.  At 3-5 so far, they are well on their way once again.  But over a longer period, it's even worse than that.  The Nationals have won just four of their last 17 games dating back to Aug. 22, when they were just two games below .500 and still having grandiose dreams of finishing strong.

The Nats second best record in their history since the move was their 73-win season in '07.  At one point in the not so distant past, it seemed a given the Nats would cruise past that number.  Now, they have but 18 games to win seven more to equal that mark, but only seven of those games are at home. 

Sunday afternoon we'll witness Stephen Strasburg's second start after his return from Tommy John surgery.  There are plenty of other bright prospects on the way.  Someday soon this team may have something to play for in September.  Right now, as the current players slog through the final games of this season, it's tough to remember that sometimes.

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THE GOOD:  Michael Morse hit his 27th home run of the season, a solo shot in the sixth inning.  He went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

THE BAD:  Yunesky Maya.  I just don't see it.

THE UGLY:  Espinosa.  He's now whiffed an astounding 148 times in 141 games, lowering his slash to .227/.316/.405 for the season.  Since the All-Star break he's hit .202/.284/.306 and struck out 64 times in 187 at bats.  He's swinging at everything hoping to make contact and not succeeding.

THE STATS:  Nine hits, no walks, 13 strikeouts.  1-for-9 w/RISP, eight LOB, no GIDP.  E: Morse (7), Lannan (2).

NEXT GAME:  Sunday at 1:05 pm against the Astros.  Stephen Strasburg (0-0, 0.00) faces Henry Sosa (2-3, 4.11).

"When you have a chance to get out of the inning, you gotta make the play."  Davey Johnson, on Ian Desmond's critical fourth inning error.

John Mayberry slides into second safely after Ian Desmond dropped relay throw. (C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

There are many ways one could describe the Washington Nationals 5-0 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies last night.  The focus from the Philly side will be on veteran starter Roy Oswalt, who dominated the Nats hitters for eight innings, allowing just eight hits (just one extra base hit) and one walk, striking out nine in the process.  Or you could look at this performance as the continuing themes of John Lannan simply not being able to beat the Phillies and the Nats hitters failing once again with runners in scoring position.

All of those things would be accurate.  But the biggest difference in the game last night was that the Phillies were able to take advantage of several key mistakes -- both physical and mental -- by the Nationals to carve out a win, in front of a Philly-partisan, record-setting crowd of 44,685 at Nats Park.

Lannan was fairly cruising in the top of the fourth -- with the game scoreless -- getting Ryan Howard to fly to left and Hunter Pence to ground to third for two quick outs.  John Mayberry got a ground ball through the left side for a single, but Lannan picked Mayberry off which should have ended the inning.  Unfortunately, Ian Desmond just flat-out dropped the relay throw from Michael Morse and Mayberry was safe.  Lannan (L, 8-9, 3.61) then lost his focus and walked Carlos Ruiz on four pitches.

"[Desmond] just took his eye off it," manager Davey Johnson said with exasperation in the post-game press conference describing the game-changing error.  "You know, sometimes it's not easy to do..." Johnson trailed off, but then continued, "You can't do that.  I mean, you just can't give this ball club -- or any good ball club -- you can't give them, when you have a chance to get out of the inning, you gotta make the play." 

Naturally, the error came back to haunt the Nats as the Phillies No. 8 hitter Wilson Valdez followed with a ball to the right field corner, which Jayson Werth allowed to get past him for a two-run triple.

Asked if Lannan was distracted by the error by his shortstop, Johnson was critical of Lannan, not Desmond.  "You gotta pick us up.  You have to come back and bury the next guy.  He didn't do it so we're down two."

In the bottom of the same inning, the Nats had a chance to get right back at Oswalt (W, 6-7, 3.51).  Ryan Zimmerman (3-for-4) singled and Michael Morse walked with no outs.  Laynce Nix popped out for the first out of the inning, and Werth followed with a single to left that died quickly in the grass.  Third base coach Bo Porter sent Zimmerman home, but John Mayberry threw a strike to the plate to nail the runner by a couple steps.  Danny Espinosa struck out to end the frame.

Ryan Zimmerman was tagged out by Carlos Ruiz at home. (C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

Johnson defended Porter for sending Zimmerman, saying, "I like being aggressive. I'll never get on him for being overly aggressive."  But then pointed out that Morse and Werth didn't move up on the play at the plate.  "Morse should be more heads up on that,' Johnson said.  "That was the only thing that I was upset about on that play.  When there's a play at the plate you keep running."

Regardless, a more cautious approach would have had the bases loaded with one out and really had Oswalt on the ropes.

Lannan got in trouble again in the sixth inning, allowing a home run to Hunter Pence (15) and two straight singles, ending his night.  Collin Balester came on in relief, but things continued to unravel for the Nats.  Valdez hit a grounder to Zimmerman at third, and as Zim stepped on the bag for the first out he seemed to trip himself up a little and couldn't get set for the throw, instead lobbing a ball across the infield.

Oswalt was called on to sacrifice and Michael Morse made a clean pick-up, but he made a poor decision to try for the lead runner and all hands were safe, loading the bases.  Jimmy Rollins singled past a diving Desmond and a run scored, making it 5-0.  Rick Ankiel threw out Oswalt trying to reach third on the play, and after a couple more batters reached, Balester struck out Ryan Howard to end a long inning.

Ruiz beats Morse's throw on sacrifice attmept. (C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

Johnson was blunt in his assessment of the defensive miscue.  "We made a bad choice going to third on the play, Morse on the bunt play.  We should have taken the out, taken the second out [of the inning]. We're lucky we got out of that with as little trouble as we did."

Johnson might have thought the Nats got "lucky" there to only give up the one run, but by then the Phillies had scored plenty for Oswalt.  Washington managed to put single base runners on in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings against the veteran pitcher, but could not cash any of those runners in.

Unlike Friday night, there would be no remarkable comeback.  This time, it was the 30,000 Phillies fans turn, chanting, cheering and taunting as the evening went on, coming to a crescendo in the ninth when Werth was called out on strikes for the second out of the inning and then when Espinosa made the final out on a soft roller to Howard at first.

The Nationals have long said that they have to measure themselves against the Phillies and Braves, the cream of the division.  There are plenty of places where the inequities still exist.  But one of the simplest ways to make the playing field more level is to play good, smart fundamental baseball.  Last night, the Nats fell into a familiar trap of errors, gaffes, mental mistakes, and over-aggressiveness, leading to another loss to their measuring stick.

And Davey Johnson knew it too.  You could tell by his mannerisms and in his facial expressions in his post-game press conference last night.  You could hear the exasperation and frustration in his voice.  He knew his team had beaten itself.  They don't have enough talent on the field yet to compensate when they don't play smart baseball, especially on defense and on the bases.

The Nats have made huge strides in the last two seasons to reduce the talent imbalance between themselves and the Phillies.  But good teams don't beat themselves, and the Nats still do, far too often.  Like the old adage says, it's the little things that kill.

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THE GOOD:  Ryan Zimmerman.  He just continues to smoke the ball, going 3-for-4 and raising his average to .309 this season.  In his last 29 games he's hitting .381.

THE BAD:  Ian Desmond and Rick Ankiel, the Nats first two hitters in the order, combined to go 0-for-8 with three strikeouts.

THE UGLY:  Desmond's drop.  It was the pivotal play of the game.

THE STATS:  Eight hits, one walk, 10 strikeouts.  1-for-5 w/RISP, seven LOB, one GIDP.  E: Desmond (20).

NEXT GAME:  Sunday at 1:35 pm.  Chien-Ming Wang (2-2, 4.22) hosts Roy Halladay (15-5, 2.53)

Thousands of Phillies fans celebrated Hunter Pence's home run. (All photos C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

There's been a lot of attention paid to the Washington Nationals won-loss record, hovering around .500 the first few weeks at the start of the season.  If they can't find a way to beat teams like the Pittsburgh Pirates they certainly won't end up there.

When the Nats don't score five runs or more runs in a game, they don't win.  And they continued that trend last night in the Steel City, losing 4-2 in a rainy, sloppy affair along the banks of the Allegheny River.

The Nats actually broke out early on Pirates starter Paul Maholm (W, 1-3, 3.90).  Adam LaRoche singled in Ian Desmond and Jayson Werth with one out in the first and things were looking up.  But the offensively challenged squad only put four more runners on base all night long.

Pittsburgh got all the runs they needed in the two halves of the bottom of the fourth inning, a rain-delay bifurcating the Pirates at-bat.  John Lannan was on the hill for D.C. and got two ground ball outs with a walk to Jose Tabata sandwiched in before the rain.  Neil Walker followed with a single to right field, and for some reason Jayson Werth felt like he needed to send the throw home.

The resultant throw ended up missing the cut-off man and skipping away from catcher Wilson Ramos on the wet grass, allowing Tabata -- who had stopped at third -- to trot home with Pittsburgh's first run.  Werth was charged an error on the play.  A torrent came and halted play for 19 minutes and when play resumed, Lannan did not have his control, walking 1B Steve Pearce.  Newly acquired waiver wire pickup Brandon Wood then send a booming shot to the right center alley; both Walker and Pearce scored.

Catcher Chris Snyder followed by sneaking a ground ball past third baseman Brain Bixler to drive in Wood, and that's all she wrote.

Lannan (L, 2-2, 4.05) had his moments of sharpness in this game, but coming back out from the rain delay really seemed to mess with his command, as he had trouble getting the ball down after the rain subsided.  He finished 5 2/3 innings, continuing the Nats streak of being the only team in the league to have every starter complete at least five innings.

But the other side of that is performance, and Lannan ended up allowing four earned runs on five hits and -- the killer -- two walks, both of which scored in that fateful fourth inning.

The Nats actually had the tying runs on base in the top of the ninth against former teammate Joel Hanrahan, courtesy of a Werth walk and Ramos single, but pinch-hitter  Rick Ankiel struck out to strand both runners and end the game.  It was Hanrahan's sixth save of the season.

The Nationals record now stands one game below .500 at 10-11.  If they don't find some hitting soon, it might be the last time they are that close to that magic number for the season.

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THE GOOD:  Sean Burnett, Chad Gaudin and Todd Coffey combined for 2 1/3 scoreless relief.  Jayson Werth went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run.

THE BAD:  Michael Morse.  After looking like he might break out over the weekend -- upping his average over .250 -- he went right back to struggling, going 0-for-4 and stranding four runners.  He did have a nice catch to rob Chris Snyder of a home run at the six foot wall in left field though.

THE UGLY:  Nats pinch-hitters went 0-for-2. For the season, Nats pinch-hitters are now a pathetic 1-for-22. They are the only team in the N.L. that does not have an RBI by a pinch-hitter.

THE STATS:  Five hits, three walks, 10 Ks.  1-for-3 with RISP, 5 LOB, 1 GIDP.  E:  Werth (2), Desmond (7).

NEXT GAME:  Tuesday at 7:05 pm against the New York Mets at Nats Park.  Jordan Zimmermann (1-3, 3.70) v. Chris Young (1-0, 1.46).

The Washington Nationals committed two errors in both of their last two games, both losses to division boss Philadelphia Phillies.  For the season, the Nats have 11 errors in 12 games, second to last in the majors.  The team fielding percentage is third to last.  They are also third to last in number of double plays turned.  Add it all up, and you get a pretty good idea of just how mediocre this team has been in the field so far in 2011, despite all the emphasis and quotes directed at the defense this past off-season.

After last night's loss, manager Jim Riggleman addressed the fielding issues, specifically talking about Jerry Hairston's throwing error on a ball Hairston admitted he should have put in his pocket and Danny Espinosa's fumbling of a grounder when the defense was put in motion on an expected bunt play and pitcher Cliff Lee swung away instead.  He believes it's just a matter of time before these problems are ironed out.

"Every miscue we have is a miscue of aggression and effort," Riggleman said after the 4-0 loss to Lee and the Phillies.  "Jerry [Hairston] made a very nice backhanded play -- he's trying to get us out of the inning and he's make a tough play and it was a great effort.  They were bunting and they pulled back and swang and Danny [Espinosa] was in position to catch the ball but, you know, whatever, he rushed a little bit but who knows?"

"It's a great effort.  Everybody's trying to do the best they can and the plays weren't made but as long as we get that kind of effort, this ability that we have defensively that I keep talking about hasn't hit it's stride yet.  We haven't played as cleanly as we're gonna play.  But the effort is there and it's gonna show up in wins here before you know it."

If all of that sounds vaguely familiar, it should.  Riggleman said essentially the same thing after Jayson Werth dropped a pop-up to short right field against Florida last week.  "He really came in hard and took charge on the play," Riggleman said. "It's an error of aggression, and we can live with that."

In fact, in his introductory press conference upon being named manager of the team in July 2009, Riggleman used the very same words. 

"When you are in last place [bad defense] sticks out. When you are in first place and they won the game anyway—it’s forgotten and not written about. So we are going to make mistakes. But again, they have got to be mistakes of aggression and not be passive. We just have got to continue to work and I don’t think there is a—what if we don’t. I just know that we will.”

That was almost two years ago now, and the Nationals haven't gotten any better.  Does it matter that the mistakes and errors are those of aggression, passivity or omission?  Does it matter if the errors are physical or mental?  They all lead to losses.

Although this may sound like it's a column bashing Riggleman, that's not my bigger point, really.  It's more that these are the same things we've heard around NatsTown forever with regards to the defense.  That all they need to do is practice more, work harder, be aggressive and everything will work itself out.  Well, it hasn't.  Not to this point in 2011 anyway.

This Nats team may eventually get better defensively in some spots.  Ian Desmond is capable of spectacular play at shortstop, but he still needs to work on his throwing to first.  But so did Ryan Zimmerman his first couple years at third.  Danny Espinosa makes plays at second no one second basemen in the Nats history have been capable of, but he's also showing some rookie bobbles of balls that maybe if he was a little more patient he'd have made plays on.

Improvement can come there as both players are still young Major Leaguers.  But they are the only two "young" players the Nats put on the field these days.  The rest are veterans and they are what they are.  Hairston and Alex Cora have the hardest job, replacing Gold Glove Ryan Zimmerman at third.  Neither are third basemen by trade, and Cora described playing third as being "in a cage" the other day.

Maybe Riggleman is right.  Maybe this team will "hit it's stride" soon and play better overall defense.  I thought there was an old baseball axiom that said "Defense doesn't slump."  I could be the one that's wrong though.

Strange things seem to happen when the Washington Nationals play the Florida Marlins, usually with the Nats on the wrong end of things.  You can add another chapter to that story, as a dropped routine pop-up in the bottom of the tenth inning came around to score, handing the Nats their third loss in four games to start the season.

Drew Storen cruised through a scoreless ninth inning, pumping 95 MPH fastball past Marlins hitters.  Manager Jim Riggleman asked Storen to come back out for the tenth, and that's where things got untracked.

Leadoff hitter Omar Infante took a defensive swing at another heater in on his hands after a great sequence of pitches by Storen, and lofted a harmless pop fly to very short right field.  Second baseman Danny Espinosa floated back and camped underneath of it to make the catch.  For some reason, Jayson Werth felt like he needed to make the catch and called the rookie off.

But in doing so, Werth broke his own concentration and tried to make a running, basket catch.  The ball kicked off the heel of his glove and fell safely to the grass.

If you've been a Nats fan for any length of time, you know what comes next.

Storen, clearly shaken, started Hanley Ramirez off with a ball, then threw an outside fastball that catcher Wilson Ramos couldn't handle and Infante went down to second.  The Nats then took the bat out of Ramirez' hands to face 1B Gaby Sanchez.  Storen got to 1-2 quickly on Sanchez, but the Marlin fought off a tough couple of pitches to get to 3-2 before singling to left, loading the bases.

At that point Riggleman summoned Sean Burnett, who got lefty Logan Morrison to fly out to short center with the Nats deploying five infielders, then struck out catcher John Buck.  But Burnett's luck didn't hold out, as backup infielder Donnie Murphy lined a single to left on an 0-1 count to end the game.

Storen deserved better.  He had his best fastball going, combined with a slider that broke late and hard.  He made his pitch on the 2-2 count to Infante and his defense let him down.

Nats starter Jason Marquis deserved better too.  He was sharp in his 6 1/3 innings, allowing just two earned runs on six hits and no walks, striking out two.  He threw 78 pitches, 54 for strikes.  He was relieved by Tyler Clippard in the seventh and Clippard could not strand Marquis' last baserunner, which tied the game at two at that point.

The Nats scored a run in the top of the first on a two-out single fly by Michael Morse and another in the third on Ryan Zimmerman's first home run of the season.

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THE GOOD:  Jason Marquis.  His first start of the season could not be described as scintillating, but he did his job, keeping the ball down in the zone and generating ground ball outs (11 GO-5 FO).

THE BAD:  Werth's error.  That play has to be made.  HAS TO.  It was a routine pop-up when the pitcher made his pitch in extra innings.  These are the things we were told weren't going to happen again.

THE UGLY:  We're already seeing Ryan Zimmerman being pitched around, and it's only the fourth game of the season.  He was walked three times sandwiched around his solo home run and in the three walks combined he saw one strike total.  That's being pitched around, my friends.  The only times the Marlins came after him were when he led off innings twice.

THE STATS:  Eight hits, seven walks.  1-for-8 with RISP; 12 LOB.  Two errors (Zimmerman-1, Werth-1).

NEXT GAME:  Wednesday v. Florida Marlins at 7:10 pm.  Livan Hernandez (0-1, 2.84) v. Chris Volstad (0-0, 0.00)

NATS NOTES:  Jerry Hairston played second base and led off for the Nats.  He went 0-for-4, extending the hitless streak at the No. 1 spot in the order to four games and 16 at bats.

Rick Ankiel went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts, but did walk twice.  He's now 1-for-12 on the season with five strikeouts; his only hit was home run in the Nats win last Saturday.

The Nats had a potential run wiped out when Jerry Hairston and third base coach Bo Porter crossed signals when Hairston rounded third trying to score on Werth's double to the left field corner in the eighth inning.  Hairston tried to apply the brakes when he saw Porter's stop sign, but it was much too late and Hariston was a sitting duck.

It was a long day for all involved.

The Washington Nationals played a pair of spring training games yesterday, defeating the New York Mets 6-5 at home and falling to the Houston Astros 6-5 in Kissimmee, FL in the nightcap. 

And although the Houston game was listed as a "split squad" game, several players that appeared in the home game also played in the night game, and skipper Jim Riggleman was at the helm for both.

General Manager Mike Rizzo also attended both, watching from just behind the Nats on deck circle all day.

In the day game, the Nats jumped out to a big lead on the Mets, then held on in the late innings for the win.  Jayson Werth and Adam LaRoche both drove in a pair of runs on doubles, and Ian Desmond had two hits and scored twice.

Jayson Werth drove in his first run of the spring with a two-run double in the 6-5 win over the Mets. (C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

Starter Chad Gaudin certainly helped his cause to make this team, pitching five strong innings, allowing just four hits and one walk, striking out six.  Drew Storen pitched himself into a jam, putting runners on the corners with one out, but after a visit from pitching coach Steve McCatty, struck out the next two batters with wicked breaking balls.

Chad Gaudin delivers in Nats 6-5 win over Mets. (C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

Tyler Clippard struggled in his appearance, surrendering four runs (three earned) on three hits, striking out two, in the ninth inning.  But he held on to put the Curly W in the book.

The night game saw the Nats score four times in the seventh inning to tie the game, only to have the Astros win in the bottom of the ninth, as phenom right fielder Bryce Harper missed the cut-off man on a hard double to the corner, sending his throw across the infield and up the third base line, allowing the runner to score from third with the winning run.

The play detracts from an otherwise encouraging performance from the 18-year old.  He doubled in his only at bat, hustling all the way on a blooped single to short left center to just beat the throw for the extra base.

Bryce Harper uncorks a bad throw, leading to winning run in 6-5 loss to Houston. (C. Nichols/Nats News Network)

Jerry Hairston went 3-for-3 in the nightcap, Roger Bernadina drove in two with a triple in the Nats four-run seventh, and Brian Bixler tripled and scored earlier in the game.

Tom Gorzelanny started and got roughed up in his first grapefruit appearance.  He went two and one-third innings and allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks, striking out just one.  He wasn't sharp at all, going to a three-ball count to just about every batter. 

Tom Gorzelanny walked three in his first appearance. (C.Nichols/Nats News Network)

Garrett Mock came on and didn't fare much better, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits and a walk in two and two-thirds innings.

Collin Balester and Cole Kimball both threw an inning of scoreless relief, while Atahualpa Severino took the loss.

The big takeaway from today's games, other than Gaudin's strong performance, was the poor defense in both games.  The Nationals committed three errors in both games and the sharpness that the Nats have carried on defense in the early part of spring training seems to have dissipated. 

In the first game, first baseman Michael Aubrey kicked a routine ground ball, Ian Desmond air-mailed one from short and prospect Destin Hood flat dropped a ball in left field after taking a circuitous route on the deep fly ball in a swirling wind.

Against Houston, Jeff Frazier overran a ball in right that led to a run, Jerry Hairston threw a ball away from third, and Harper's error from right ended the game.

The scored errors are one thing, but doesn't take into account plays that could -- or should -- have been made that don't get counted as errors.  In his last two games, Adam LaRoche had balls go under his glove that might have been playable.

For an organization that has preached all winter about becoming more athletic and better defensively, they still have a ways to go.  Granted that some of these errors were committed by players that are slated for the minor leagues, it's still sticks out that for all the emphasis Rizzo put on the defensive aspect of the game this off-season, his team is still kicking the ball around as much as they are.

NATS NOTES:  Prospects Destin Hood, Eury Perez, Steve Lombardozzi, Stephen King and Matt Antonelli all appeared in both games.  Derek Norris was the DH in the second game.

The Nats were 4-for-18 with runners in scoring position on the day.

Danny Espinosa went 1-for-5 with an RBI in the night game, and played two innings at shortstop late in the game after a bunch of defensive substiutions.

'We just didn't make some plays." -- Manager Jim Riggleman, on the fifth inning debacle.

THE RESULT:  One of the best things about baseball is that every night there's a different game, a chance to see something you've never seen, or at least haven't seen in a long time.

When was the last time you went to a baseball game and saw three errors by the same team in one inning?

Monday night, in front of the smallest home crowd in Washington Nationals history, the Nats committed three errors in a disasterous seven-run fifth inning, managed only six hits against a rookie starter that brought a 4.95 ERA into the game, and lost to another sub-.500 team, the Houston Astros, 8-2, before an announced 10,999.

In reality, there might have been two-thirds of that in attendance to witness a depressing, uninspired Nats squad slog their way to their fourth consecutive loss -- their tenth in 12 games -- and 88th loss of the season.

The fifth inning was a half-hour long nightmare for the Nats and their few fans that came out on a gorgeous almost-fall evening.  Willie Harris dropped a fly ball.  Adam Dunn fielded a grounder and led Livan Hernandez too much -- who was late getting over to cover the bag anyway.  Roger Bernadina kicked a ball in center allowing another run to cross the plate.

Yeah, it was that bad.

In addition to the miscues, Livan Hernandez didn't do himself any favors in the frame, first failing to get over on the play at first, then allowing home runs to Geoff Blum (his second of the season) and backup catcher Humberto Quintero (his sixth).

Livo's had better nights. (Photo by C. Nichols/Nats News Network).

"It was just a bad inning, a terrible inning," Washington manager Jim Riggleman said.

Yup.

The Nats best chance to get back in the game came in the seventh.  They loaded the bases with two out for clean-up hitter Adam Dunn.  Dunn struck out on three pitches.

The Nats did jump out on top quickly against Astros starter Bud Norris (W, 9-8, 4.85), scoring twice in the first.  Adam Kenendy walked and Ryan Zimmerman singled to right ahead of Dunn's double to the right field corner.

But that's where the offense ended.

THE GOOD:  Zimmerman went 2-for-4, and is scorching in September, hitting over .350 and OBPing over .425, though he does not have a homer in 17 games.

The bullpen threw another four shut out innings.  Tonight it was Craig Stammen, Collin Balester and Joe Bisenius.

THE BAD:  Danny Espinosa went 0-for-5 in the leadoff spot, with three strikeouts.  His average is down to .226 in 62 at bats.

THE UGLY:  Livo.  Granted, four of the seven runs in the fifth were unearned due to the errors.  But he was the pitcher who served up meatballs to two guys with a combined six homers on the season.  And it's hard to tell if Livo was crossed up when Dunn looked at the runner at third instead of first base the whole way, but he was late getting to the bag on the play.

THE STATS:  10 Ks, 4 BBs, 2-for-5 with RISP, 8 LOB, 0 GIDP.

NEXT GAME:  Tuesday at 7:05 pm v. Houston.  John Lannan (8-7, 4.61) against J.A. Happ (5-2, 3.63)

THE RESULT:  When a team is struggling to hit, as the Washington Nationals have been for the last two days, the result of a game can hinge on one play.  In today's 3-2 loss to the New York Mets, that play was a broken bat ground ball that turned into a run-scoring double.

In the top of the seventh, with the game tied at two, Livan Hernandez issued his second walk of the game -- to Mets catcher Josh Thole -- who took second on a sacrifice by shortstop Ruben Tejada.

Livan Hernandez (Photo by Cheryl Nichols/Nats News Network)

Playing match-up baseball, Manager Jim Riggleman called upon lefty Sean Burnett to face the announced pinch-hitter, lefty Lucas Duda.  But Mets Manager Jerry Manuel pulled Duda back after the pitching change and went to right-handed hitting Nick Evans.

With the count 2-2, Evans fouled off three pitches. He then took an inside-out swing at a fastball that sawed him off, and the ball bounced at a medium pace to first base.  Adam Dunn took two steps to his left and reached for it, but could not come up with the slow roller, and it got by him and into the shallow right field corner.

Thole scored without a throw.

Whether Dunn should have had the ball is not the story.  Dunn hasn't made a play on a ball like that all season long.  He doesn't have the experience or foot quickness to get into position to field that ball.  The larger question is:  would an average fielder at first had have the ball -- or at least done what was needed to knock the ball down and keep it in the infield.

After reviewing the replay several times, it's hard to imagine an average fielder not making some sort of play on the ball.

Riggleman deflected the question when asked in the post-game press conference, instead focusing on saying that Burnett had done his job, and the fluky nature of a right-handed hitter hitting a grounder to first base against a left-handed pitcher.

"It's a game of inches.  When you're winning games, those things go your way and when you're not winning games they don't seem to go your way.  You know, a right-handed hitter hitting a ball against a left-handed pitcher down the first base line, you might see that two or three times a year.  That's about it."

The play spoiled yet another quality outing from Livan Hernandez, who took the loss.  He gave up three earned runs on six hits and two walks, striking out four in 6 1/3 innings.

Wilson Ramos hits his first MLB home run [a 2-run homer to CF in 5th]

(Photo by Cheryl Nichols/Nats News Network)

THE GOOD:  Wilson Ramos.  He went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run to the batter's eye in center.  More glimpses of the future of the Washington Nationals.

THE BAD:  Again, no offense.  Only six hits against knuckleballer R.A. Dickey (W, 10-6, 2.91) which is bad enough.  But also:  no walks. 

THE UGLY:  Nothing particularly ugly today.  The only error was a tough-luck ruling for Zimmerman at third.  Commenters noted two plays that qualify:  Morgan's bobble of a single to center that allowed the Mets first run to cross the plate, ruled a "double" but really should have been a single and an error allowing the run, and the Nats failure to score with the bases loaded and one out in the sixth.  Bernadina fouled out and Morse grounded out to end the inning.

THE STATS:  3 Ks, 0 BBs, 1-for-6 with RISP, 5 LOB, 0 GIDP.

NEXT GAME:  Friday, the Nats open a three game cage match with the Florida Marlins.  Of course, the main combatant has his hearing Friday morning, so at least Morgan will miss the entirety of the series, and potentially several-to-many more games.  John Lannan (7-6, 4.73) hosts Josh Johnson (11-6, 2.30) Friday at 7:05 pm.

THE RESULT:  Before the 2:40 rain delay last night, this looked like just another loss for the Washington Nationals.  The starting pitching left lots to be desired.  The reliever provided no relief.  Hitters continued to slump.  Fielding was sloppy.  The Nats trailed the Cincinnati Reds by seven runs after five innings.

Then the rains came, and seemed to wash some of that away. 

An offensive explosion -- a six run sixth inning -- brought the Nats back to within one run.  Unfortunately it wasn't enough, as Adam Dunn was called out on strikes for the last out of the game on a pitch he thought was inside, dashing the Nats hopes of pulling off the upset and sealing the 8-7 loss to the Reds.

Attendance was listed at 22,876, but it appeared less than 2,000 remained to see Dunn get punched out, then watch Nats Manager Jim Riggleman exchange some very heated words with home plate umpire Marty Foster.

The six runs outburst equaled the team's total runs scored in the four previous games.

Starter Luis Atilano (L, 6-7), summoned before the game from Triple-A, was pushed around again.  He gave up five earned runs on five hits and three walks in just four innings, and his ERA for the season sits at 5.15 after the outing.  He only threw 41 of his 72 pitches for strikes.

You knew things would be bad for Atilano when he walked the first two batters of the game, then surrendered a three-run home run to All-Star first baseman Joey Votto.  Later, Atilano gave up an RBI-single to pitcher Mike Leake (W, 7-1, 3.45).

What turned out to be the winning runs came on a throwing error by Ryan Zimmerman.  He made a tremendous diving stop to his right to rob catcher Corky Miller of extra bases, then slung a sidearm throw to first.  The ball came in low and seemed to confuse Adam Dunn, who failed in his attempt to block the throw.

Zimmerman tried to atone for the error with a two-run opposite field homer (17) to start the comeback.  Pinch-hitter Michael Morse later hit a three-run triple and Ian Desmond doubled to score Morse from third.  Desmond went to third on a throwing error, but died there as Dunn flied out to end the inning.

THE GOOD:  Michael Morse.  All the guy does is produce when called upon.  He's hitting .324/.375/.554 in just 74 at bats this season with four homers and 12 RBIs.

THE BAD:  Atilano.  I think this experiment is just about over.  Doug Slaten also gave up three runs in his inning of work. 

THE UGLY:  Ivan Rodriguez went 0-for-4, and since peaking on April 22 at .449, over his last 52 games he's hitting .235/.260/.306.

THE STATS:   The Nats went 3-for-5 with runners in scoring positionand left five men on base total.  They struck out six times and walked four times.

NEXT GAME:  Today at 7:05 pm against the Cincinnati Reds.  Stephen Strasburg (4-2, 2.03) faces Bronson Arroyo (10-4, 3.96).

NATS NOTES:  Before the game, Manager Jim Riggleman told reporters that Ian Desmond will see the bulk of his at bats from the two-spot the rest of the season.  He told MLB.com's Bill Ladson:  "I just know we have struggled to score runs during the four games after the All-Star break.  I just decided to move the lineup a little bit, get some guys in some different spots and see if we could create a little offense.

The Nats have also made something of a splash in the international market.  Though it's still unofficial, several reports have said the Nats will sign Cuban defector Yuniesky Maya, a 28-year old right-handed pitcher.  Maya was the Cuban National team's No. 1 starter and compiled a 48-29 record and 2.51 ERA in six Cuban National Series seasons.

Maya participated in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classics as well.

Stephen Strasburg was excellent again for six innings.  In the seventh, when he ran into some trouble, his defense -- specifically shortstop Ian Desmond -- let him down.

And the entire evening, the offense was completely stymied by Tim Hudson and Jonny Venters, shutting out the Nats on just five hits.  They did manage five walks though, but even when they did get base runners, there was no one to drive them in.

The Nats went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, and left eight men on base.

Strasburg appeared to get better as the game went on, striking out six out of eight in the fourth through sixth innings.  But in the seventh, Strasburg walked leadoff hitter Chipper Jones, and Brian McCann followed with a bouncing ball up the box that Strasburg couldn't get to, going for a single.

Troy Glaus then hit a tailor-made double play ball right at Desmond at short.  Whether it was Jones running in front of him, or the rookie shortstop just hurried, but he booted the easy grounder, and all hands were safe.

The flood gates then opened, with Eric Hinske hitting a sacrifice fly to center to score the first run, followed by a hard single from Yunel Escobar.

That would be more than enough for the Braves with the way the Nats offense has been struggling.

Strasburg's final line:  6.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 7 K.  His record goes to 2-2, with an ERA of 2.27.

by Anthony Amobi, Staff Writer and Dave Nichols

"The way we're playing in general, defensively, is just not good enough.  We do a lot of talking about it, and we're out there working on it. I really can't explain it. I know we put the work in. I feel bad for them. I really feel bad for the players, because I know it's an issue for them. They see the number of errors. They see the game get away from us because we're not making plays." -- Manager Jim Riggleman, after the four error fiasco in a 7-6 loss to Baltimore.

The starter was pulled too quickly.  The reliever wasn't pulled quickly enough.  And the middle infielders made two errors apiece.

It all added up to one of them most demoralizing losses of the season, as the Washington Nationals fell to their regional rival Baltimore Orioles, 7-6, before 43,484 at scenic Oriole Park at Camden Yards in a 3-hour, 53 minute marathon.

It was another go-around in the annual ‘Battle of the Beltways’ interleague series, and it looked early on like it would be a laugher for the Nationals as they built a 6-0 lead.  But things turned in the fifth inning, ensuring that the game would be remembered by both fan bases for diametrically opposite reasons.

The poor defense of the Nationals ultimately undid a thrilling game, and the O's -- entering the game with the major's worst record -- came back from six runs down and earned the victory in the bottom of the ninth inning.

(Photo by Anthony Amobi/Nats News Network)

The final of four errors by the Nationals was the fatal one, and capped Baltimore's comeback.

With the game tied at six with one out in the ninth inning, Baltimore had runners at first and second base. Orioles' second baseman Julio Lugo bounced a tailor-made double-play ball to shortstop Ian Desmond, who flipped the ball to Cristian Guzman at second to force Scott Moore (2-for-2, 2 RBIs).

Moore made a good, hard slide, and sadly, Guzman’s turn and throw ended up short of first base and the ball sneaked under first baseman Adam Dunn’s glove for a devastating error. That allowed Jake Fox, the original runner at second, to score and send Baltimore to just their 21st win in 73 games.

The loss for Washington (33-41) was a tough one to swallow in more ways than one. Both Desmond and Guzman had two errors – and also manager Jim Riggleman’s decision to allow Tyler Clippard to pitch the eighth and part of the ninth inning after allowing Baltimore to tie the game played a big role as well.

The use of Clippard in Friday’s game by Riggleman will ruminate in the minds of Nats fans.

He came into the game to start off the eighth inning and immediately walked catcher Matt Wieters on five pitches. It was obvious Clippard did not have his good stuff, and every pitch to Wieters was up and out over the plate, including his ususally impressive change-up.

Moments later, pinch-hitter Scott Moore absolutely crushed a Clippard offering and sent it over the wall in right field and on to the flag court, bringing Baltimore within one of the lead, 6-5.

Instead of yanking Clippard and bringing in another reliever, Riggleman decided to stay with him and things only got worse. The reliever would give up a one-out double to light-hitting shortstop Cesar Izturis and then allowed the Orioles to tie the game off a Corey Patterson RBI-single.

Clippard ended the frame by getting the final two outs, but he inexplicably was allowed to come back out for the ninth inning, despite having just completed one of his worst outing of the season.

He walked Wieters again with one out and allowed the recently-recalled Moore to do more damage, as the first baseman singled cleanly. Mercifully, Riggleman would pull Clippard at that point, but the Nats fate had already been sealed.

(Photo by Anthony Amobi/Nats News Network)

"Just couldn't get the ball down," said Clippard. "I just didn't establish the strike zone early, so I was a little tentative after that, and it cost me."


Matt Capps entered and immediately got Lugo to hit the grounder to short that should have ended the frame.

Not on this night.

Clippard (8-4), who pitched 1 1/3 innings, took the loss.

J.D. Martin – who started the game on the mound for the Nationals – gave up three runs, all unearned, in 4 1/3 innings of work. He didn’t factor in the decision and gave up three hits, while striking out two and walking one.

He had thrown just 80 pitches when lifted by Riggleman, and the manager chewed up three pitchers to record the next four outs.

Despite the deflating loss, there were some positives in the game. The Nationals offense came alive as they took an early 6-0 lead off Baltimore rookie pitcher Jake Arrieta in the first four innings and they got amazing performances from Adam Dunn – who drove in four runs – and Nyjer Morgan, who had four hits and became a human highlight reel.

The center fielder made one of the most spectacular catches you'll ever see during the third inning, scaling the seven foot wall in right center field to rob Corey Patterson of a home run.  Morgan's left hip was even with the top of the wall and he even fought off a fan to make the catch.

(Photo by Anthony Amobi/Nats News Network)

Even Patterson gave Morgan his props by giving him a tip of his cap. Meanwhile, the 43,000 plus who saw it live at Oriole Park at Camden Yards were stunned at the sure-fire ‘web-gem’.

As good as the play was, it went for naught in the sting of one of the most disappointing losses in Nationals history.

We'll have a full recap in a little while, including photos, but here are the directions to follow if you want to blow a six-run lead to a team that started play at 20-52:

1. Stop hitting after you have accumulated six runs.
2. Yank your starter after 4 1/3 innings and 80 pitches when all he's doing is his job.
3. Have your middle infielders commit two errors apiece.
4. Have three different relievers face just one batter apiece.
5. Allow your most effective reliever, on a night when he walked his first batter on five pitches, to throw 35 pitches in the eighth to tie the game, then come back out and put two more runners on in the ninth.
6. Again, make sure your middle infielders commit two errors apiece.
7. For good measure, make sure you let the opposing No. 9 hitter, hitting less than .230 to start the day, to go 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

Yep, that ought to let you surrender a six-run lead to the worst team in baseball.

"They whipped us three games, and we didn't play real good." Jim Riggleman's post-game comments on the sweep to the Tigers.

THE RESULT:  The Detroit Tigers pounded out 19 hits against five pitchers en route to a second consecutive 8-3 victory over the Washington Nationals, before 33,630 at Comerica Park.

The loss drops the Nats to 31-36, five games below .500, a low point for the Nationals this season.  They were swept in a three-game series for the first time this season, and fall to 13-24 on the road.

Luis Atilano bore the brunt of it for DC, allowing five earned runs on nine hits and a walk in 4 1/3 innings, making the second game in a row the Nats starter could not make it through five innings.  He threw 83 pitches, 53 for strikes.

In the second, Atilano gave up three straight hits which resulted in two runs.  Four hits and an intentional walk turned into three more runs in the fifth.  The big blow was a Miguel Cabrera double with two men on.

Drew Storen came on for Atilano, but gave up an RBI single to Carlos Guillen.  It was the first inherited runner Storen has allowed all season.

Cabrera (2-for-5, 3 RBI) added an RBI single in a two-run sixth off Doug Slaten.

Washington had a chance to make it a game in the eighth.  Dunn's RBI single cut the lead to 7-3, but Josh Willingham popped up to the catcher with runners at second and third to end the inning.

Tigers starter Jeremy Bonderman (W, 3-4) kept the Nats down most of the day, giving up just two runs on five hits, striking out seven.  He retired the first 11 Nats hitters, despite some well-hit balls, setting the tone for a long day for the Nats.

"Sounds strange to say it, but I think we hit the ball better than they did today," Riggleman told the MASN audience after the game.  "We hit five or six balls that if we're in our ballpark those balls would have gone out of the stadium and it's a different ball game.  But that's neither here nor there."

Adam Dunn did hit his team-leading 16th home run of the season and added an RBI single, and Cristian Guzman went 2-for-4 with an RBI.  But the rest of the team scattered just four more hits and did not walk once.

The Nationals completed the six-game road trip 1-5, the lone victory coming from Stephen Strasburg last Sunday against Cleveland.  The Nats will ask Strasburg to be the stopper once again Friday, as they come home to host the Chicago White Sox for a three-game series over the weekend.

THE GOOD:  Dunn.  He is on an impressive run right now with homers in six of his last nine games.  Unfortunately, his last three homers have come with the bases empty.  His average up to .288 with 16 homers.  Even his outs were loud today.

THE BAD:  Adam Kennedy went 0-for-4.  Roger Bernadina went 0-for-4.  The team stuck out eight times and did not walk once.

THE UGLY:  Two more errors brings the Nationals' season total to 61, worst in the majors.

NEXT GAME:  Friday at 7:05 at Nats Park against the Chicago White Sox.  Stephen Strasburg (2-0), making his third start since his recall, will try to stop the bleeding.  The White Sox rotation is in a bit of flux right now with Jake Peavy getting scratched today, but we'll probably see Gavin Floyd (2-7).

"I just couldn't get into any kind of rhythm, and that's twice in a row now.  I feel fine. I don't know what's going on."  John Lannan, June 15, 2010

THE RESULT:  John Lannan has been the best starter the Washington Nationals had have the last two seasons.  This year, however, has been a different story for the left-hander.  He's been less effective, spent time on the disabled list, and now, at a loss to explain his troubles.

Monday night, the mystery continued, as he allowed seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits and four walks, lasting just 4 1/3 innings, and the Nats fell to the Detroit Tigers, 7-4, before 24,821 at Comerica Park.

Lannan's opposite number, Max Scherzer, has had a bit of a schizophrenic year as well.  Brought over in a big trade with Arizona, he was thought to be a centerpiece of a dominant Detroit pitching staff, and is the owner of a 14-strikeout game this season.  But he also was so ineffective early this season that he was banished to Triple-A and spent two weeks in the minors tweaking his delivery.

As the Nationals (31-34) can now start to really envison several pitchers returning from the disabled list, Lannan (L, 2-4, 5.45) hopes to avoid that particular scenario.

Scherzer (W, 3-6, 6.14) was effective enough Monday to limit the Nats to four run--three earned--on seven hits and two walks, striking out nine.

And his bullpen was perfect, as three relievers no-hitting the Nats for three innings.

Once again, Lannan's defense let him down.  The big blow in the game was Ryan Raburn's three-run home run in the fifth inning, immediately after Cristian Guzman botched a potential double-play ball.  Raburn, who entered the game hitting .165, went 3-for-4 with four RBIs.

THE TAKEAWAY:  Lannan is a "pitch-to-contact" guy, and since he doesn't miss many bats relies on the ground balls that he generates ending up in fielder's mitts.  That hasn't happened this year with as much regularity as in past seasons. 

He only gave up three extra base hits out of the 10 total, so it's not like he was getting pounded.  But if you aren't going to strike anyone out, you have to depend on luck that the batter balls are hit somewhere they can be caught. 

Take for instance the Tigers' third run of the game:  Leadoff double and two ground outs leads to a run.  Lannan is pitching to contact there, presumably doing his job.  But it's tough to succeed when you can't miss bats.

It certainly doens't help when you defense lets you down, as it has in Lannan's last three starts.

THE GOOD:  Nyjer Morgan (2-for-5, 2 R, 2 SB).  That's the Morgan folks want to see.  Generated a run in the first inning all by himself with a bunt single, stolen base, extra base on bad throw, and score on a sacrifice fly.

Josh Willingham went 2-for-3 with another walk and Michael Morse homered.

Tyler Walker and Sean Burnett combined for 3 2/3 scoreless relief.

THE BAD:  Guzman went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts from the leadoff spot in addition to his big error.  Ian Desmond went 0-for-4 and Adam Dunn 0-for-3 with 3 Ks as well.

THE UGLY:  The Nationals lead major league baseball in errors, and it's not even close.  Guzman's kick was the team's 58th this season.  The next closest is Florida with 52 and Detroit with 48.

NEXT GAME:  Today at Detroit.  Livan Hernandez (5-3, 2.28) faces Justin Verlander (7-4, 3.56) at 7:05 pm from Comerica Park.

(All photos Cheryl Nichols/Nats News Network)

It was not the prettiest game of the season, but on a muggy, overcast night in the nation's capital, the home team found a way to pull one out.

Despite a rough appearance from their starter, two scored errors and several other defensive gaffes, the Washington Nationals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-5, before 18,876, less than half that witnessed the debut of Stephen Strasburg just 24 hours earlier.

The hangover effect from Tuesday's spectacular was pronounced, from the fans in the stands to the players on the field.  The debut was exhausting, and it took its toll on everyone.

It was a sloppy game from the start, and miscues contributed to much of the scoring, including two badly played balls by Nats ceter fielder Nyjer Morgan, who twice missed the cut-off man, allowing runners to move up a base and eventually score on singles.

Wil Nieves also had a throwing error on a stolen base attempt, and the Pirates swiped four bases off Nieves and starter John Lannan.

The Nationals broke a five-all tie in the bottom of the seventh, when Ryan Zimmerman bashed a single off the shin of Pirates relief pitcher D.J. Carrasco (L, 1-2) to plate Cristian Guzman.  The second baseman had reached on a single to center and was moved up on a sacrifice by Morgan.

Washington added an insurance run in the eighth.  Josh Willingham coaxed a walk off releiver Brendan Donnelly, went to third on a Roger Bernadina through the vacated shortstop hole on a hit-and-run, and scored on a Nieves sacrifice fly to center field.

Lannan, who looked like he might have turned the corner recently from his lousy start of teh season, reverted last night.  He was not sharp with his fastball, causing him to leave too many hittable pitches in the strike zone.  He gave up ten hits in and three walks (one intentional) in 4 2/3 innings, leading to five runs, four of which were earned.  He struck out two in the effort. 

Indicitive of his performance, Lannan gave up nine fly ball outs, comared to just two ground ball outs.  He would prefer those numbers switched.

Once Lannan was lifted one out from qualifying for the win, things turned around for the Nats.  Four relievers combined for 4 1/3 shutout innings of relief.

Tyler Walker struck out two in his 1 1/3 and Drew Storen (W, 2-0, 1.74) allowed a single in an otherwise clean frame.  Tyler Clippard continued his mastery with a perfect inning, and Matt Capps gave up a base hit, but closed things down for his 20th save of the season.

Livan Hernandez (4-3) will try to secure the sweep tonight at Nats Park against Zack Duke (3-6) at 7:05 pm.

NATS NOTES:  Pirates starter Brad Lincoln, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2006 draft,  made his major league debut.  He went six innings, allowing five earned runs on sevenhits and two walks, striking out three.  He also went 2-for-3 with an RBI.

Bucs' left fielder Jose Tabata also made his MLB debut, leading off and going 2-for-4 with a walk and run scored.

Washington LHP Scott Olsen has experienced a setback in his recovery from left shoulder tightness that landed him on the 15-day disabled list on May 22. Olsen will be shut down and then restart his rehabilitation program when his shoulder feels better.

Adam Dunn hit a two-run home run--his second in two days--off Lincoln in the first inning.

Bernadina went 3-for-4 with a run, RBI and stolen base.

Washington had 10 hits, walked four times, struck out three times and left six men on base.  They were 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position.