Washington Nationals snap four-game slide with 6-0 win over Los Angeles Dodgers...

Howie Kendrick hit a three-run home run in the first and Patrick Corbin tossed seven innings of shutout ball before Kendrick drove in the fourth of six runs the Washington Nationals put up in a 6-0 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Chavez Ravine.

LA’s ten-game home win streak and the Nationals’ four-game losing streak on the road both came to an end in the series opener in Dodger Stadium.

Corbin vs LA: Patrick Corbin threw a career-high 118 pitches in six innings last time out before tonight, in a 10-8 win over the Phillies in which he received no decision. Talking about the outing after the game, the left-hander said Philadelphia’s hitters battled him throughout the early innings, pushing his pitch count up.

“Early on they just made me work a little bit,” Corbin explained. “I was just maybe a tick off on some pitches early in at bats, fell behind, and that’s a good team there, so didn’t want to make mistakes, threw a lot more pitches than I really wanted to, and I felt as the game went on I was able to work ahead. I thought my stuff was good all night and just was attacking them in those later innings, and I felt really strong still at the end there and was happy with that.”

How would he bounce back after throwing all those pitches last time out?

Tonight in LA, the left-hander started strong, taking the mound with a 3-0 lead and tossing three scoreless and hitless on 45 pitches, striking out six of the first 11 batters he faced.

Corbin gave up his first hit of the night in the fourth, on a hard-hit grounder to third that ate up Anthony Rendon, and the Dodgers loaded the bases with one out, before a 5-4-3 DP off of Chris Taylor’s bat ended the threat.

A quick, 13-pitch fifth, in which he worked around a hit-by-pitch, left Corbin at 77 pitches on the night, and a 15-pitch sixth pushed him up to 92.

Corbin gave up a one-out single by Russell Martin in the bottom of the seventh, but another 5-4-3 DP got him out of the inning at 107 pitches overall.

Patrick Corbin’s Line: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 8 Ks, 107 P, 65 S, 5/5 GO/FO.

Hill vs D.C.: Recently-turned 39-year-old veteran Rich Hill made his 2019 debut on April 28th, after missing time with a strained MCL suffered in Spring Training.

In two starts in what is the southpaw’s 15th big league campaign, Hill gave up 12 hits (4 HRs) and eight runs total, four of them earned, walking one and striking out nine over 10 innings before he took on the Nationals tonight in the series opener in Dodger Stadium.

Howie Kendrick hit the fifth home run of the season off Hill in the top of the first, on a 2-2 curve that the lefty left up after he gave up a leadoff double by Adam Eaton and hit Nats’ third baseman Anthony Rendon. Kendrick’s 6th. 3-0 Nationals.

Hill held the Nationals there through five, but he was up to 96 pitches after the fifth, and he was lifted for a pinch hitter in the bottom of the inning.

Rich Hill’s Line: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 Ks, 1 HR, 96 P, 59 S, 4/3 GO/FO.

#StopHittingRendon!: It happened again. Anthony Rendon took a fastball off the knee in his first trip to the plate tonight, with Rich Hill hitting him this time, making it HBPs in four of his last five games, including the April 20th outing in Miami that eventually led to a stint on the Injured List with a bruised elbow.

Howie. Kendrick.: Howie Kendrick had hits in nine of 12 games heading into tonight’s series opener in LA, going 12 for 40 (.300 AVG) with two home runs, three walks, and a total of five runs scored over that stretch, and he made it hits in 10 of 13 with a three-run blast in the top of the first. His second hit of the night, in the eighth, drove in the fourth run for the visiting team, making it 4-0.

BULLPEN ACTION: Yimi García took over for LA in the top of the sixth and worked around a hit-by-pitch for a scoreless frame.

García returned to the mound in the seventh and retired the Nationals in order.

Dylan Floro got the top of the eighth for the Dodgers. Victor Robles reached base on an error by David Freese at first, and took third on a double by Anthony Rendon before the second hit of the night by Howie Kendrick drove in the Nationals’ fourth run, 4-0.

The fifth run of the game scored on a grounder to second off Yan Gomes’ bat, when he beat the throw to first to avoid a double play, 5-0 after eight.

Kyle Barraclough got the eighth for the Nationals and gave up back-to-back, one-out hits by Justin Turner and Cody Bellinger. He was lifted after getting out No. 2.

Sean Doolittle came on with runners on second and third and two out against Max Muncy, and struck the Dodgers’ slugger out, leaving Muncy 0 for 4 with 4 Ks on the night.

Michael A. Taylor singled, Adrían Sanchez reached on an error, and Adam Eaton walked to load the bases with no one out in the ninth.

Dodgers’ righty Joe Kelly got a force at home for the first out of the frame, but the sixth run of the game scored when Justin Turner bobbled a grounder to third off Anthony Rendon’s bat, allowing one to come in when the relayed throw to first arrived late, 6-0.

Doolittle came back out for the bottom of the ninth and worked around a two-out single to end it. Ballgame. 6-0 Nats.

Nationals now 15-22