"They made things happen in the fifth. That's the way it went. That's the way the whole road trip went." -- John Lannan, Sept. 2, 2009.

BOX SCORE AND RECAP

THE RESULT: Six straight San Diego Padres reached against John Lannan in the fifth inning after two outs were recorded, and five of them scored. With the way the Washington Nationals hit on the road trip, that's all that was needed.

Kevin Correia did the rest, shutting down the Nats -- recording 19 straight outs at one point -- in a 7-0 win before 14,468 Wednesday at Petco Park.

Lannan was cruising himself until the fifth inning. He'd allowed just one hit and three walks entering the frame. But an infield single and soft liner put runners on base for Adrian Gonzalez, and he slammed a shot to the wall in left that Willie Harris couldn't track down. Two batters later, Chase Headley lined a double to right field, and it was all over but the crying.

Lannan (L, 8-10, 4.09) gave up five earned runs total, on six hits and four walks, striking out three.

It wouldn't matter, however, as the Nationals hitters were still lifeless. They managed just four hits and two walks on the day, and Correia was never in trouble until the eighth, when he loaded the bases. Edward Mujica relieved and retired Alberto Gonzalez with a popup to end the inning.

THE TAKEAWAY: Interim manager Jim Riggleman gave most of the regular starters the day off. Cristian Guzman missed his third straight game with bunion problems and Josh Willingham sat to try to clear his head after his four strikeout performance Tuesday. That left Gonzalez, Pete Orr, Jorge Padilla and Justin Maxwell all in the starting lineup.

It's no wonder they mustered only four hits.

THE GOOD: Ryan Zimmerman. One of the few regulars in the lineup, he went 2-for-4,

THE BAD: Jorge Padilla. He went 0-for-3, lowering his average to .063. He is 1-for-16 since his recall.

THE UGLY: Well, that's six in a row since Nyjer Morgan's injury. And 13 losses in their last 16 games. Welcome to September.

NEXT GAME: Mercifully, off today. The Nationals return home Friday night for a three-game series with the Florida Marlins. Garrett Mock (3-6, 5.01) faces Sean West (6-5, 4.22) at 7:05 pm.

NOTES: Craig Stammen, complaining of soreness in his pitching elbow, will be evaluated and get an MRI when the team returns home.

The Nationals acquired 24-year old lefty reliever Victor Garate off waivers from the Dodgers to complete the Ronnie Belliard trade. Garate was the Dodgers’ #24 ranked prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America.

Garate has pitched in 46 games in AA-ball this season and he is 0-1 with five saves, a 2.08 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. He has only allowed 36 hits while striking out 56 in 52 innings. He will be used out of the pen the remainder of the season.

"Something has to change you know. It's unacceptable and I just have to do something about it." -- John Lannan, on his start.

THE RESULT: Nationals rallied after being down 7-0, however, it wasn't enough to pull out a win. Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Washington Nationals 11-9 in a rain delayed game that started at 8:26pm. This game marked the five straight loss.

Nationals starter John Lannan gave up seven runs in only 1 2/3 innings and could not locate his command. "I have to get through it and get ready for my next start," Lannan said. "The ball is just up. A couple of inches down, those balls are not hits. Physically, I feel fine, so I guess it is a mental challenge to get past it. Lannan ended up with a no decision.

Saul Rivera came in for Lannan to finish off the second inning and ended up pitching 3.1 innings, gave up two hits and one run and stuckout three. He also recorded his first major league hit and scored his first run, twice!

THE GOOD: Ronnie Belliard. Player of the game. He went 3-4 with a Grand Slam and 4 RBIs.

THE BAD: Ryan Zimmerman. He went 0-for-4 with a walk and run, along with leaving five on base.

THE UGLY: Umpire calls and Riggleman getting tossed.

NEXT GAME: Milwaukee Brewers tonight at 1:35 pm at Nationals Park. Craig Stammen (3-6, 5.13) hosts Manny Parra (8-9, 6.33).

NOTES:

Jorge Padilla earned his first career start in left field.

It looks like Milkaukee did not send their running sausages so the Nats have created their own to compete with the Nats' Racing Presidents.

Photos 2009 © Cheryl Nichols. All Rights Reserved.

As first reported on MLB.com last night after the Washington Nationals 6-4 win over the Florida Marlins, the Nats placed RF Austin Kearns on the 15-day disabled list with a right thumb contusion, and he's reported to see a hand specialist in Baltimore as early as today.

Kearns has had a rough 2009 season, to say the least. He has batted .195/.336/.305 with six doubles, two triples, three home runs and 17 RBI in 80 games this season.

The 29-year old right fielder has started just five games since July 1, and with the recall of Elijah Dukes to play right field, his playing time would not have increased down the stretch.

Should this injury be more serious than a bone bruise, Kearns may have worn the Nationals uniform for the last time Tuesday night. The team holds an $10 million option for next season (with a $1 million buyout), an option they are surely not going to exercise.

To take Kearns' spot on the roster, the team recalled 12-year minor league veteran Jorge Padilla from Triple-A Syracuse. His first appearance with the Nats will mark his major league debut.

Padilla, 29, joins the club after batting .367 (114-for-311) with 18 doubles, three triples, four home runs, 21 RBI and 14 stolen bases in 95 games with Syracuse. An International League All-Star earlier this season, Padilla entered Tuesday's game leading the league in hitting (.367) and on-base percentage (.424).

Padilla’s 114 hits are tied for fourth most in the league and he is tied for sixth in the circuit with 58 runs.

Padilla is a lifetime .289/.356/.414 hitter in exactly 4700 minor league plate appearances. Drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the third round of the 1998 Amateur Entry Draft, Padilla has also spent time in the New York Mets and Kansas City Royals organizations.

Photo 2009 © Cheryl Nichols. All Rights Reserved.