Tonight's Top 5:
5. Stammen's Back: Sent to Triple-A Syracuse after a June 6th start to make room for Stephen Strasburg, Craig Stammen went (2-0) in three starts and 20.0 IP over which he gave up 18 hits, 3 walks and 5 runs while recording 10 K's with the Chiefs to earn the call back up to the Majors to take John Lannan's spot in the rotation while the Nationals' lefty fine tunes his mechanics at Double-A Harrisburg. The 26-year-old Stammen retired the first seven batters he faced before a one-out single by Gregor Blanco, sac bunt by Derek Lowe and RBI triple by Martin Prado got the Braves on the board...1-0 Braves through four...
4. Zim Brings The Two-Out Runs!!! - 1-0 Braves after four. Braves' right-hander Derek Lowe walks Cristian Guzman and gives up a single to center by Alberto Gonzalez to start the Nats' fifth. After Craig Stammen K's swinging, Nyjer Morgan drives Guzman in with an RBI line drive to left, 1-1, and a Roger-Bernadina-Check-Swing-K later Ryan Zimmerman takes a reluctant/defensive swing on a 2-1 sinker outside and sends it out to the warning track in the right field corner and over the wall on a hop for a two-run-ground-rule double, 3-1 Nats.
3. Roger "Two-Spot" Bernadina Brings The Singles: Nats' Skipper Jim Riggleman decided to try Roger "Line Drive Single" Bernadina in the Two-Spot tonight for the 3rd time this season, and the 25-year-old outfielder with the deceptively strong arm, who's hitting for a silly .347/.424/.507 slash line over 24 games in June during which he's collected 26 hits, 20 singles, 3 doubles, 3 HR's, 11 RBI's, 4 stolen bases and 9 walks in 86 plate appearances, while playing a solid right field and occasionally showing off an arm he's surprising folks around the league with...for now...Keep him in the Two-Spot!!!
2. Mad Grounders!!!: Back-to-back doubles in the eighth make it 7-2 Nats, and a call to the pen ends Stammen's night. The Nats' right-hander follows up on a 7.0 inning one-run outing on June 6th in which Stammen received no decision, with 7.1 innings pitched tonight against Atlanta in which he walks 2, K's 4 and gives up 5 hits and 2 ER while inducing 14 ground ball outs and 3 flyouts from the 29 batters he faces. Stammen throws 99 pitches, 57 strikes, and earns one curly-W!!!
1. STOP! HAMMER TIME!!! For the first time since Ryan Zimmerman took Peter Moylan deep on Opening Day 2008, the Braves' reliever gives up a HR that leaves the yard...in case no one explained elswhere, which I know everyone did, Moylan gave up an inside the park HR earlier this season to the D-Backs' OF Gerardo Parra...but no one since Zim has hit one out of the park off Moylan until Josh Willingham launches a meatball of a two-seamer inside to deeeeeeep center and gone! Two-run blast, 6-1 Nats. 7-2 final. 5-game losing streak snapped.
• Miss The Game? The DC Faithful Kept The Faith...
| Num | Name - Comments: |
|---|---|
| 1 | souldrummer - 138 |
| 2 | Doghouse - 87 |
| 3 | MissB - 87 |
| 4 | grizzy - 75 |
| 5 | RobBobS - 66 |
| 6 | wxguy - 58 |
| 7 | martins - 27 |
| 8 | Nationalpastime9 - 20 |
| 9 | RoscoeNats - 13 |
| 10 | BloggerVance - 11 |
• Final Score: Nationals 7, Braves 2.
What? You think I forgot the General? Alberto Gonzalez goes 4 for 4 with an RBI and plays a solid short, giving Federal Baseball.com's favorite SS Ian Desmond a chance to collect himself...
Nationals now 33-44.
FULL GAME REPORT:
1 - Nats' leadoff man Nyjer Morgan singles to center on a 2-1 pitch from Braves' right-hander Derek Lowe. Roger Bernadina flies out to Gregor Blanco in center. One down. Morgan is at second already so there's no double play when Ryan Zimmerman grounds to Yunel Escobar at short. Adam Dunn grounds to Escobar at second in the shift...Martin Prado grounds out to Alberto Gonzalez. Nats' right-hander Craig Stammen saws off Melky Cabrera and gets a groundout to second. Chipper Jones reaches out for a sinker and grounds it to second, 0-0 after one.
2 - Josh Willingham grounds out to third, Chipper Jones fields and throws. Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez hits a line drive single to center off Lowe. One on, one out. Cristian Guzman lines out to short, Escobar fires to first but too late to get Pudge. Alberto Gonzalez grounds sharply through short. Lowe gets Craig Stammen swinging and it's two scoreless for the Brave...Guzman waits behind second for Brian McCann's pop to drop into his glove. Zimmerman backhands and throws out Troy Glaus on a grounder to third. Stammen gets Eric Hinske swinging for a scoreless second.
3 - Nyjer Morgan grounds back to Lowe on the mound. One down. Bernadina flies out to Eric Hinske in left, two down. Ryan Zimmerman grounds out to short, Yunel Escobar makes the play...Escobar starts the Braves' third with a groundout to his counterpart at short. The General makes the play. Gregor Blanco has the Braves' first hit on a line drive to center. Derek Lowe bunts Blanco over to second. Martin Prado lines to center, Nyjer Morgan charges and misses the bounce, Blanco scores, Prado in safe at third. 1-0 Braves. Melky Cabrera grounds back to the mound.
4 - Dunn grounds into the shift. Josh Willingham flies out to right where Melky Cabrera makes the catch. Ivan Rodriguez goes down swinging...Chipper Jones lines to left and Josh Willingham almost rolls his wrist diving forward to make a catch. Brian McCann launches a line drive to center, Morgan makes the grab. Stammen gets Glaus swinging to end the fourth.
5 - The Guzzzzzz takes a leadoff walk and takes third on Alberto Gonzalez's single to center. Guzman takes third and has Gregor Blanco's throw hit him as he slides in safely. Second and third. Craig Stammen strikes out trying. Nyjer Morgan sends an RBI line drive to left to score Guzman from third, 1-1 game. Gonzalez to third. Roger Bernadina's called out on a check swing strike three as Morgan steals second. Ryan Zimmerman lines to right, down the line and fair, ground rule double, two runs score. 3-1 Nats. Dunn K's swinging to end the Nats' fifth...Hinske lines to Dunn, who misses it but recovers to toss to Stammen covering. Gregor Blanco battles and grounds to third, Zimmerman misses a tough backhand, infield hit. Derek Lowe gets the bunt down, but Stammen's on it and he throws to third to cut down Blanco. Two down. Martin Prado walks with two down, but Stammen gets a groundout to second to end the Braves' fifth.
6 - Josh Willingham singles to center to start the sixth and gets the Braves warming arms up in the bullpen. Pudge Rodriguez chops one over the mound, Yunel Escobar makes a barehand play. One out. The Guz gets an intentional walk. Alberto Gonzalez singles through short to score the Hammer. 4-1 Nats. Stammen tries to bunt both runners over, but McCann throws to third to get Guzman. Nyjer Morgan vs Eric O'Flaherty. Ground ball to third, Chipper fields and throws. 4-1 Nats in the sixth...Chipper Jones grounds to second, one out in the Braves' sixth. Big Brian McCann flies out to right-center where Nyjer Morgan makes the grab. Troy Glaus grounds to Zim at third, still 4-1 Nats.
7 - Roger Bernadina sends one to center to start the Nats' seventh with yet another line drive single. Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Dunn both K swinging. Eric O'Flaherty's out for right-hander Peter Moylan. Josh Willingham takes a fastball inside that finds the center of his bat and goes out to deep center. Two-run HR, 6-1 Nats. Moylan gets a grounder to third from Pudge to end the top of the seventh...Eric Hinske rips a grounder to first that Dunn stabs!!! Stammen gets Yunel Escobar swinging. Groundout to second from Gregor Blanco. 6-1 Nats after seven.
8 - Cristian Guzman gets hit with a pitch by Jesse Chavez. Alberto Gonzalez lines to center for his fourth hit of the game. Guzman to third, and he scores when Stammen hits a sac fly to center. 7-1 Nats. Morgan K's swinging at junk inside. Roger Bernadina works a two-out walk. Ryan Zimmerman grounds into a force at second to end the top of the frame...Matt Diaz goes down swinging. Craig Stammen with his 4th K. Martin Prado lines to the right-center gap and not even Bernadina can throw him out. Melky Cabrera rips a line drive to center, Morgan can't get there, RBI double. 7-2 Nats. Stammen's done. Sean Burnett turns Chipper Jones around and strikes him out. Two down. McCann grounds out to second, 7-2 Nats after eight.
9 - Adam Dunn K's swinging to start the ninth. Josh Willingham K's swinging. Christhian Martinez has two quick outs. Pudge flies out to right, 1-2-3 ninth for Martinez...Tyler Clippard vs Troy Glaus. Ground ball to third, Zim fields and throws. One down. Eric Hinske flies out to Bernadina in right. Two down. Yunel Escobar works the count full, and goes down looking!!! Nats win!!!