RESULT: Nats beat Orioles 3-2

GOOD: Ronnie Belliard. Two-run walk-off home run! Woo Hoo! Roger Bernadina. Base hit in his first major league at bat. And in the outfield, he already looks like a gold glover (all hype intended).

BAD: Kory Casto. 0-for-5, .188 for the year. One day after playing hero, Kory has some really ugly at bats.

UGLY: My tummy. Sorry for the lack of post yesterday and this morning. I've been battling a touch of food poisoning or something, but starting to feel better.

NEXT GAME: Monday versus Florida. Tim Redding (6-3, 4.05) faces Ryan Tucker (2-2, 6.75)

RESULT: Nats beat Orioles 4-2.

GOOD: Kory Casto. He's getting beat up a little bit for lack of production, but he came through last night with a big hit to break the tie in the seventh inning off the bench. Blastings was 2-for-4 again too. Looks like he's shaken his mini slump.

BAD: Wily Mo. 0-for-3, lowering the average to .215. with yet another outfield error leading to a run. Will Kearns' return spell his demise?

UGLY: Felipe Lopez. He failed to cover second base as a defensive substitute in the eighth inning, making Guzman go the long way to first to get the third out of the inning. That's not a physical error, it's a mental one, one that Lopez has been guilty of quite a few times this season. His name has been in the paper the last couple days, with rumors swirling that after this series with the Orioles he may be headed 45 minutes up the road on a more permanent basis.

Lopez has some interesting things to say in an article by Steve Yanda in the WaPo. Acta's reply at the end of the piece speaks loud volumes as to how frustrated the organization is with him right now. They'll only get pennies on the dollar for him in trade, but it appears they'll be happy to get a bag of balls--and send some salary--just to remove him from the equation.

NEXT GAME: Tonight in game two of the "Battle of the Beltways" at 7:10 pm from Nationals Park. The Nats' John Lannan (4-8, 3.34) hosts Garrett Olson (5-3, 5.01) for the Orioles, which means the Nats will manage to score only two runs tonight, as Lannan has the lowest run support in the Majors. Will that be enough to win?

P.S. Sorry this was late today. I was out at the Baseball 101 clinic for the Nats female fans. It was a well attended event and I'll have pictures and a round-up tomorrow. Big props to all the coaches that came out to give instruction this morning, and all the ladies in attendance that hung on every word.

Photo (c) C. Nichols 2008

Washington, DC--The game last night between the Washington Nationals and visiting Baltimore Orioles had a little bit of everything that makes baseball great. There were extra base hits, stolen bases, good pitching and even a little intrigue. On top of it all, it was a tied game heading into the late innings, where the Nationals were able to scrape two runs together in the seventh inning, then hold on to defeat the Orioles 4-2, before 35,830 bi-partisan fans, one of the largest crowds all season.

In that fateful seventh, with Orioles starter Daniel Cabrera still on the mound, Willie Harris led off the inning with a walk, Cabrera's third and last of the night. Kory Casto then pinch-hit for relief pitcher Joel Hanrahan, and drilled a double to left filed that scooted by outfielder Jay Payton, allowing the fleet Harris to score all the way from first base. "Coming off the bench, it's tough. It's something I've never really done," Casto said. "It's your one shot and you've got to make it count."

Elijah Dukes, looking more and more every day like the run-producing force the Nationals hoped he would be when they traded for the troubled slugger, promptly delivered Casto on a single to center field and the Nationals took a precarious two-run lead into the final frames.

The Orioles would get runners on in each of the last two innings, and things looked particularly dicey in the ninth against closer Jon Rauch. Brian Roberts led off for the O's with a double and Nick Markakis followed with a walk. But Rauch got Melvin Mora to ground into a 6-4-3 double play, then Kevin Millar to fly out to center, and Rauch had secured the victory and his 16th save of the season.

Washington starter Odalis Perez, fresh off the 15-day disabled list, was on a pitch count for his first start back and fought through four innings without his best stuff, but hung tough while he was in there. He allowed no runs on three hits and three walks, striking out three. Steven Shell, the man who directly replaced Perez on the mound was not as sharp, as he surrendered both Orioles runs.

In the fifth inning, Shell gave up a triple to the first batter he faced, Brian Roberts, who immediately scored on Markakis' ground out. In the sixth, Adam Jones led off with a single that left fielder Wily Mo Pena misplayed, giving Jones an extra base. Brandon Fahey then shot one past third base to score Jones easily. Joel Hanrahan came on for Shell and pitched one scoreless inning to get the win. He's now 4-2 on the year with a 4.38 ERA.

The Nats got their first runs off Cabrera in the bottom of the first inning. Cristian Guzman led off with a double to right center and scored on Lasting MiIlledge's single to center. The ball scooted underneath Adam Jones' glove on the still wet turf, and Jones went all the way to third. Newly appointed clean-up hitter Jesus Flores then dumped a single into right field which brought Milledge home safely.

Game Two in the "Battle of the Beltways" is Saturday night at 7:10 pm. The Nats' John Lannan (4-8, 3.34) hosts Garrett Olson (5-3, 5.01) for the Orioles.

NATS NOTES: The win raises the Nats record to 32-49, last in the NL East, eleven games behind slumping Philadelphia.

The Nats have won back-to-back games at home for the first time since May 4.

Nats Take Game One of "Battle of the Beltways" 4-2 also posted at DC Sports Box.

Photo (c) C.Nichols 2008

RESULT: Nats beat Angels 5-4.

GOOD: Lastings Milledge. 2-for-4, home run (7), two RBIs. Dukes was 2-for-3 with two walks. Flores has the game-winning hit after going 0-for-4 with 3 Ks. Redding gave up two earned in six innings. There was a lot to like last night.

BAD: Luis Ayala. One-third of an inning, two runs on two hits. He's just not getting it done right now. He's given up more runs than innings pitched three of his last six appearances. Yuck.

UGLY: Pete Orr. Another defensive replacement assignment. Yet another error. Sorry, he's just not a major league player.

NEWS: Shawn Hill placed on the 15-day DL today. After meeting with the doctors, the prescription was rest and therapy. I guess it's wait and see with Hill.

NEXT GAME: Friday at Nationals Park against the Baltimore Orioles, in for a three game set to FINALLY wrap up interleague play. Odalis Perez (2-5, 4.09) will come of the disabled list to face Daniel Cabrera (5-3, 4.46).

Photo courtesy of MLBAM.

Baltimore, MD--The Washington Nationals, finding themselves in a 6-2 hole entering the eighth inning, clawed their way back to within one run but could not get the final hit to push them over the hump as the Baltimore Orioles held on to defeat the Nats 6-5, in front of 32,622 at Baltimore's Camden Yards. With the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth, O's reliever Jim Johnson struck out the season-long slumping Austin Kearns, who finished the at-bat by slamming his bat into the dirt around home plate in disgust. There would be no further comeback in the ninth inning.

As has been the story much of the first quarter of the season, the Nats offense couldn't get much going early, as Orioles starter Brian Burres threw six and two-third innings, allowing two earned runs on four hits and two walks. The Orioles struck early in the bottom of the first against Nats starter Odalis Perez. With one out, Melvin Mora doubled to left center and Nick Markakis singled through the box to drive Mora in. The Nats would tie it up in the second, as Dmitri Young singled, went to third on Aaron Boone's double, and scored on a ground out by Jesus Flores.

In the third, the Orioles would rally for three runs on five consecutive hits before an out could be recorded. Second baseman Brian Roberts started the hit parade, as he doubled to left just past Wily Mo Pena--a ball many outfielders would have caught. Roberts promptly stole third and scored on a Melvin Mora single. The next batter, Nick Markakis, delivered a no-doubt-about-it shot to deep center field that gave the Orioles a 4-1 lead. The Nats would halve the lead in the next inning, as Ryan Zimmerman hit his eighth home run of the season to left field.

The Orioles would close their scoring in the fifth, as Jay Payton hit a two-out, two-run home run to make the score 6-2. With the Nats struggling against Burres, it looked like that's all the scoring the Orioles would need. As it turned out, it was just enough.

The middle innings were pretty quiet for both teams, but the Nats would get into the Baltimore bullpen a little bit in the eighth. Chad Bradford relieved Burres, and he did not have his finest outing of the season. Wily Mo Pena singled to start the inning, but Felipe Lopez grounded to second, forcing Pena. Cristian Guzman followed with a single and Zimmerman grounded out, putting runners at second and third. At that point, Orioles Manager Dave Trembley summoned Dennis Sarfate, who immediately walked Dmitri Young to load the bases.

Aaron Boone delivered the first pitch he saw from Sarfate into left center, scoring Guzman and Zimmerman, cutting the lead to 6-4. Jim Johnson was called on to face catcher Wil Nieves, and Nieves fought two fouls balls off and finally coaxed a walk, loading the bases once again. Lastings Milledge was the next batter, and on a 1-1 pitch Johnson lost control and drilled Milledge in the left shoulder area, which forced in a run to make it 6-5. That is as close as the Nats would get though, as Kearns worked the count to 3-2 before striking out swinging and taking frustration out on his bat. Kearns went 0-for-4 on the night, lowering his batting average to .187 for the season.

In the ninth, Orioles closer George Sherrill easily sat down the Nats in order to register his league leading 17th save of the season.

Odalis Perez threw five innings, allowing six earned runs on ten hits and two walks, striking out two along the way. Joel Hanrahan pitched two scoreless innings, and Saul Rivera one inning, surrendering two hits but no runs.

Sunday is the finale of the three-game set. The Nats will send John Lannan (3-4, 3.74) to the hill against the O's Jeremy Guthrie (2-3, 4.18).

NATS NOTES: The loss sends the Nats' record to 18-26, seven games behind division-leading Florida. The Orioles are 23-19, just one and one-half games behind Tampa and Boston in the AL East.

Jesus Flores, the Nationals' starting catcher this evening, was ejected for arguing balls and strikes in the top of the sixth by home plate umpire Tim McClelland.

Nationals RHP Shawn Hill, Friday night's loser, had a cortisone shot in his right elbow on Saturday and hopes to make his next scheduled start against Philadelphia on Wednesday.

Nats Can't Quite Catch O's; Lose 6-5 also posted at DC Sports Box

Photo (c) D. Nichols 2008

RESULT: Nats lose 5-3.

GOOD: Ryan Zimmerman: Zimmy went 3-for-5 with two RBIs. Hit the ball solid each time up.

BAD: Wily Mo Pena. 0-for-4, six left on base. BRUTAL defense. Three balls fell around him that any AVERAGE outfileder could have gotten to, including a ball that led to a run in the fifth. He's killing this team.

UGLY: Lastings Milledge's defense. As bad a butcher as Pena is, this team needs a take-charge excellent defender in center. Milledge ain't it. Every ball is an adventure out there. He makes some spectacular catches out there because he gets a lousy jump.

Honorable Mention: At some point, Jim Bowden HAS TO be held accountable for the roster he put together. If you're trying to build young pitching (Hill and Lannan qualify) you gotta have guys that can go get it and pick it up. Shoddy outfield D and a throwing error by Lopez led to three Orioles runs tonight.

NEXT GAME: Saturday evening Odalis Perez (1-3) faces Brian Burres (3-4).

Photo (c) C. Nichols 2008

The Nats officially activated Dmitri Young from the DL today. The line-ups haven't been posted yet, but I expect he'll be at DH with Boone at first for the interleague series over the weekend.

Here's a fun picture from a media event at a Safeway in Southeast last year. Funny story, when Cheryl and I got to the Safeway for the event, we were a little early, and naturally the first ones there. I was on the phone at the time, so Cheryl went up to the manager's desk to find out where the signing was going to be.

Well, the manager started asking Cheryl's opinion on where to set up, how to arrange the line, did we bring a tablecloth and pens, etc., all sorts of funny questions. Turns out, the manager thought Cheryl was the Nats rep and I was Dmitri Young! She had NO IDEA!!!

Not really relevant information, but an amusing little story for a dreary Friday afternoon. If you're going to Baltimore over the weekend, eschew the BBQ and get the crabcake sandwich. Use a fork and leave the stale bun alone, but the crabcake is surprisingly good.

Photo (c) C. Nichols 2007

RESULT: Nats Win 1-0.

GOOD: Jason Bergmann. With seven inning of two hit-no run goodness. He even struck out nine! Ok, so Pelfrey counted for three of them. Still!

BAD: Should we re-name bad "Kearns"? 0-for-3, another dropped fly ball. How long do they let him bleed out there? Oh right, what option is there at this point?

UGLY: Nick Johnson out "4 to 6 weeks". With his history, write him off until the all-star break at least. Not good news to a team with very few selective hitters.

NEXT GAME: Friday night in Baltimore for the renewal of the "Battle of the Beltways"! Can you feel the artificially created excitement?!? I wish interleague play would go away. Shawn Hill (0-0) looks for his first DECISION in six starts against Garrett Olson (2-0).

See, I mentioned the Orioles on the blog. Thanks to several of you for noticing :-)

Here's something to either fire you up or piss you off!

The O's just completed a 6-4 victory over the young but still hapless D-Rays. Bedard got touched for 4 earned in 5.2, but the New and Improved (c) bullpen shut em down the rest of the way. Bradford got one out, followed by John Parrish, Danys Baez and Chris Ray.

Parrish is a particularly excellent story thus far. Left for dead after elbow reconstruction, he's come all the way back and throwing harder now that before the injury. And he has really seemed to harness both the control he lacked earlier in his career and the maturity on the mound needed to succeed at this level. Parrish has always been a hyper guy on the mound, bouncing around and fidgeting between pitches. He's still a bit manic, but seems to have found a way to "slow the game down" enough to throw strikes. His K/BB rate is 14/2 at this point, in 8.2 innings, which by anyone's measurements is getting it done.

And nice to see Jon Knott get called up and immediately produce. He homered in the loss the other night, and had two hits and a ribbie today. He went .280/.353/.572 last year in Portland with 32 homers and 113 rbis. With the O's lack of production against lefties, they gotta find a way to keep him on the team.