PHILADELPHIA (AP)—Ryan Zimmerman’s(notes) pinch-hit single in the top of the 10th
inning lifted the Washington Nationals past the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3
Tuesday in the first game of a day-night-doubleheader.

Roger Bernadina(notes) smacked a three-run homer off Phillies reliever Michael
Schwimer(notes) into the seats in the second deck of right field in the seventh for a
3-0 lead. Raul Ibanez(notes) hit a three-run pinch-hit homer in the bottom of the
seventh to make it 3-3.

Tom Gorzelanny(notes) (4-6) threw a scoreless inning in the ninth for the victory.
Drew Storen(notes) picked up his 39th save. Ross Gload(notes) grounded out with runners on
first and second and two outs in the 10th.

The Nationals have won eight of their last 11 games. The Phillies, who have
clinched their fifth straight NL East title, used a lineup featuring only two
regulars—Shane Victorino(notes) in center and Hunter Pence(notes) in right. Both were pulled
by the seventh inning.

Washington’s Ross Detwiler(notes) (2-5) opposes Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee(notes)
(16-7) in the nightcap.

With the score 3-3, Washington brought in right-hander Tyler Clippard(notes) to
start the seventh and the Phillies called back pinch hitter Carlos Ruiz(notes) for
Ibanez, who hit his 20th homer. It was Ibanez’s second career pinch-hit homer,
the last one coming in 2001 for Seattle.

Michael Stutes(notes) (6-2) took the loss after allowing Zimmerman’s single to
center, scoring Michael Morse(notes) from second. Morse walked with two outs and
advanced on a passed ball.

Washington starter Tom Milone was effective in his longest career effort. It
was the rookie left-hander’s fourth major league start. He surrendered four
hits, and had no walks and two strikeouts.

Kyle Kendrick(notes) made another statement for a place on the Phillies’ postseason
roster with his second consecutive strong outing. He pitched six scoreless
innings, with no walks and four strikeouts. Kendrick has given up three or fewer
earned runs in each of his last nine starts.

Philadelphia placed runners at first and third with one out in the sixth
before Ben Francisco(notes) popped out and Erik Kratz(notes) struck out.

The Nationals loaded the bases in the third, but Kendrick got Rick Ankiel(notes) to
ground out to second, ending the threat. In the sixth, Kendrick wriggled out of
trouble again when he struck out Danny Espinosa(notes) looking with runners at first
and third.

NOTES: Wilson Valdez(notes) returned to the Phillies’ lineup at shortstop after
missing the previous 10 games with a left hamstring strain. The crowd of 44,263
marked the 201st consecutive regular season sellout at Citizens Bank Park. …
Washington second baseman Danny Espinosa doubled in the fourth, giving him an
eight-game hitting streak. … Nationals relief pitcher Ryan Mattheus(notes), who
missed the last 22 games with a right shoulder strain, was activated from the
15-day disabled list.

PHILADELPHIA (AP)—Ryan Zimmerman’s(notes) pinch-hit single in the top of the 10th
inning lifted the Washington Nationals past the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3
Tuesday in the first game of a day-night-doubleheader.

Roger Bernadina(notes) smacked a three-run homer off Phillies reliever Michael
Schwimer(notes) into the seats in the second deck of right field in the seventh for a
3-0 lead. Raul Ibanez(notes) hit a three-run pinch-hit homer in the bottom of the
seventh to make it 3-3.

Tom Gorzelanny(notes) (4-6) threw a scoreless inning in the ninth for the victory.
Drew Storen(notes) picked up his 39th save. Ross Gload(notes) grounded out with runners on
first and second and two outs in the 10th.

The Nationals have won eight of their last 11 games. The Phillies, who have
clinched their fifth straight NL East title, used a lineup featuring only two
regulars—Shane Victorino(notes) in center and Hunter Pence(notes) in right. Both were pulled
by the seventh inning.

Washington’s Ross Detwiler(notes) (2-5) opposes Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee(notes)
(16-7) in the nightcap.

With the score 3-3, Washington brought in right-hander Tyler Clippard(notes) to
start the seventh and the Phillies called back pinch hitter Carlos Ruiz(notes) for
Ibanez, who hit his 20th homer. It was Ibanez’s second career pinch-hit homer,
the last one coming in 2001 for Seattle.

Michael Stutes(notes) (6-2) took the loss after allowing Zimmerman’s single to
center, scoring Michael Morse(notes) from second. Morse walked with two outs and
advanced on a passed ball.

Washington starter Tom Milone was effective in his longest career effort. It
was the rookie left-hander’s fourth major league start. He surrendered four
hits, and had no walks and two strikeouts.

Kyle Kendrick(notes) made another statement for a place on the Phillies’ postseason
roster with his second consecutive strong outing. He pitched six scoreless
innings, with no walks and four strikeouts. Kendrick has given up three or fewer
earned runs in each of his last nine starts.

Philadelphia placed runners at first and third with one out in the sixth
before Ben Francisco(notes) popped out and Erik Kratz(notes) struck out.

The Nationals loaded the bases in the third, but Kendrick got Rick Ankiel(notes) to
ground out to second, ending the threat. In the sixth, Kendrick wriggled out of
trouble again when he struck out Danny Espinosa(notes) looking with runners at first
and third.

NOTES: Wilson Valdez(notes) returned to the Phillies’ lineup at shortstop after
missing the previous 10 games with a left hamstring strain. The crowd of 44,263
marked the 201st consecutive regular season sellout at Citizens Bank Park. …
Washington second baseman Danny Espinosa doubled in the fourth, giving him an
eight-game hitting streak. … Nationals relief pitcher Ryan Mattheus(notes), who
missed the last 22 games with a right shoulder strain, was activated from the
15-day disabled list.

Florida Marlins manager Jack McKeon was decidedly disappointed in his players’ inability to draw a walk.

After all, in the course of 22 innings over two games against the Washington Nationals, including Florida’s 4-3 loss Sunday, the Marlins drew exactly zero free passes.

“You don’t get paid to take a walk. Walks help you win. There’s a lot of cases where that’s the key to winning ballgames. Bases on balls. We walk them, what happens? We get beat. Our guys are allergic to taking walks,” McKeon said.

“They play by the players’ association rules: Thou must swing at 3-1 and 2-0,” he added.

His Marlins won in 13 innings Saturday night despite failing to draw a walk, but they weren’t able to overcome the lack of men on base Sunday against Chien-Ming Wang, who made the longest start of his comeback from shoulder surgery. Wang left with two outs in the seventh inning after allowing three runs, six hits and zero walks, helping Washington edge Florida.

The only thing truly at stake for either club is avoiding a last-place finish in the NL East, but some individual players are keen to make an impression with next year in mind, and Wang (3-3) looked good for much of the afternoon in earning his first win in more than a month.

The right-hander allowed runs on Gaby Sanchez’s 19th homer, a solo shot in the fifth inning, and Brett Hayes’ two-run homer in the seventh — both liners to left that barely cleared the wall.

“He’s nasty — those 91 mph sinkers,” Hayes said.

After his homer pulled Florida to 4-3, Wang departed to a partial standing ovation. Tyler Clippard got the next four outs, and closer Drew Storen pitched the ninth for his 38th save in 43 chances.

For the Marlins, the loss ended an 11-game road trip, their first to take the team to four cities since 2005. They went 6-5.

“Feels like we’ve been on the road since July,” Hayes said. “It’s just that time of the year where you just got to grind through it.”

Florida rookie Brad Hand (1-8) lost his fifth consecutive start, allowing four runs — three earned — and five hits in four innings.

“I think my pitch count was up there, but I was feeling good. Felt strong. Would have liked to stay in the game,” Hand said. “Wang pitched good, so I knew I couldn’t give up many runs.”

It was Wang’s 10th appearance — one lasted 6 1-3 innings — since returning to the big leagues on July 29, exactly two years after an operation on his pitching shoulder. He hadn’t been on a mound in the majors since July 4, 2009, when he was with the New York Yankees.

Wang twice won 19 games in a season with the Yankees, and showed signs of that sort of stuff Sunday, getting groundball out after groundball out. Only four of the 20 outs he recorded were flyballs.

He hadn’t won a game since Aug. 16 against the Cincinnati Reds, going 0-1 in five starts since.

Some head’s-up baserunning by Jonny Gomes put Washington on the scoreboard in the second. Gomes led off with a double to straightaway center, then moved up a base on Espinosa’s groundout to third baseman Greg Dobbs, who left the bag to glove the ball in the hole.

Chris Marrero then sent a fly to shallow right, and Gomes slid in to score barely ahead of the tag from outfielder Mike Stanton’s one-bounce throw to the plate.

Washington scored three in the fourth, which Ryan Zimmerman led off with his second double of the game, a rope down the left-field line. After Michael Morse walked and Gomes struck out, Espinosa lined a single to center, and the ball hopped over the glove of hard-charging center fielder Bryan Petersen and kept bouncing and rolling for several feet.

By the time Petersen corralled it, two runs had scored and Espinosa was on third. Espinosa entered the game with 60 RBIs as a rookie, but none since Sept. 4.

Marrero followed with a ground-rule double that made it 4-0.

NOTES: Marlins RF Stanton made a sliding catch of a soft sinking bloop off Wang’s bat in the third. 2B Omar Infante also was tracking the ball and fell face-first in the grass after tripping over Stanton. … Entering Sunday, Florida had been 13-1 at Washington since the 2010 All-Star break. … On Monday, Florida opens a three-game series at home against the Atlanta Braves. The Marlins are only 4-11 against the Braves this season. Florida will start RHP Ricky Nolasco in the series opener, while Atlanta sends LHP Mike Minor to the mound.

“You don’t get paid to take a walk. Walks help you win. There’s a lot of cases where that’s the key to winning ballgames. Bases on balls. We walk them, what happens? We get beat. Our guys are allergic to taking walks,” McKeon said.

“They play by the players’ association rules: Thou must swing at 3-1 and 2-0,” he added.

His Marlins won in 13 innings Saturday night despite failing to draw a walk, but they weren’t able to overcome the lack of men on base Sunday against Chien-Ming Wang, who made the longest start of his comeback from shoulder surgery. Wang left with two outs in the seventh inning after allowing three runs, six hits and zero walks, helping Washington edge Florida.

The only thing truly at stake for either club is avoiding a last-place finish in the NL East, but some individual players are keen to make an impression with next year in mind, and Wang (3-3) looked good for much of the afternoon in earning his first win in more than a month.

The right-hander allowed runs on Gaby Sanchez’s 19th homer, a solo shot in the fifth inning, and Brett Hayes’ two-run homer in the seventh — both liners to left that barely cleared the wall.

“He’s nasty — those 91 mph sinkers,” Hayes said.

After his homer pulled Florida to 4-3, Wang departed to a partial standing ovation. Tyler Clippard got the next four outs, and closer Drew Storen pitched the ninth for his 38th save in 43 chances.

For the Marlins, the loss ended an 11-game road trip, their first to take the team to four cities since 2005. They went 6-5.

“Feels like we’ve been on the road since July,” Hayes said. “It’s just that time of the year where you just got to grind through it.”

Florida rookie Brad Hand (1-8) lost his fifth consecutive start, allowing four runs — three earned — and five hits in four innings.

“I think my pitch count was up there, but I was feeling good. Felt strong. Would have liked to stay in the game,” Hand said. “Wang pitched good, so I knew I couldn’t give up many runs.”

It was Wang’s 10th appearance — one lasted 6 1-3 innings — since returning to the big leagues on July 29, exactly two years after an operation on his pitching shoulder. He hadn’t been on a mound in the majors since July 4, 2009, when he was with the New York Yankees.

Wang twice won 19 games in a season with the Yankees, and showed signs of that sort of stuff Sunday, getting groundball out after groundball out. Only four of the 20 outs he recorded were flyballs.

He hadn’t won a game since Aug. 16 against the Cincinnati Reds, going 0-1 in five starts since.

Some head’s-up baserunning by Jonny Gomes put Washington on the scoreboard in the second. Gomes led off with a double to straightaway center, then moved up a base on Espinosa’s groundout to third baseman Greg Dobbs, who left the bag to glove the ball in the hole.

Chris Marrero then sent a fly to shallow right, and Gomes slid in to score barely ahead of the tag from outfielder Mike Stanton’s one-bounce throw to the plate.

Washington scored three in the fourth, which Ryan Zimmerman led off with his second double of the game, a rope down the left-field line. After Michael Morse walked and Gomes struck out, Espinosa lined a single to center, and the ball hopped over the glove of hard-charging center fielder Bryan Petersen and kept bouncing and rolling for several feet.

By the time Petersen corralled it, two runs had scored and Espinosa was on third. Espinosa entered the game with 60 RBIs as a rookie, but none since Sept. 4.

Marrero followed with a ground-rule double that made it 4-0.

NOTES: Marlins RF Stanton made a sliding catch of a soft sinking bloop off Wang’s bat in the third. 2B Omar Infante also was tracking the ball and fell face-first in the grass after tripping over Stanton. … Entering Sunday, Florida had been 13-1 at Washington since the 2010 All-Star break. … On Monday, Florida opens a three-game series at home against the Atlanta Braves. The Marlins are only 4-11 against the Braves this season. Florida will start RHP Ricky Nolasco in the series opener, while Atlanta sends LHP Mike Minor to the mound.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

WASHINGTON —

With their recent offensive woes, the Washington Nationals have needed strong starting pitching just to stay in ballgames. They didn’t get it on Friday night.

The New York Mets jumped on Washington starter Ross Detwiler for six runs over the first three innings and beat the Nationals 7-3.

David Wright hit a three-run homer, Angel Pagan drove in two runs and knuckleballer R.A. Dickey pitched into the seventh inning on three days’ rest for New York.

Wright’s shot off Detwiler (2-5) gave the Mets a 3-0 lead in the first. It was his 12th home run of the year. Pagan’s two-run single in the third gave New York a 6-1 lead.

“It’s definitely my worst outing,” Detwiler said. “Nothing worked and they hit everything I threw up there hard.”

Detwiler was hurt by his inability to keep his pitches down in the strike zone.

“I didn’t do it at all tonight,” he said. “I think there was one pitch I actually threw down in the zone and it got hit on the ground. When you do that one time in three innings you’re going to get hurt pretty bad.”

“I didn’t think he had real good command,” Nationals manager Davey Johnson said. “It was just one of those days you turn the page on.”

The Nationals have dropped nine of 10 and are 10 games under .500 for the first time this season. The Mets have won seven of eight.

In his three innings, Detwiler allowed six runs and seven hits.

Dickey (7-11) won his second game in four days. Pitching on short rest for the third time in his career, he recorded consecutive wins for the first time this season. He left after giving up a leadoff single in the seventh, allowing three runs on nine hits and striking out one.

“Obviously he has his knuckleball, but he throws his fastball and other pitches as well,” Washington third baseman Ryan Zimmerman said. “He’s one of those guys who always gives you a solid start. He’s tough. You don’t see guys like that too often.”

Dickey wasn’t happy with his knuckleball, and had to find another way to keep the Mets in the game.

“I was able to throw a larger number of conventional pitches because I felt fine,” Dickey said. “I needed to to survive. I’m glad I have enough arm strength to do that.”

The Nationals scored a run in the first on Michael Morse’s RBI single, and two in the fifth on Rick Ankiel’s eighth home run.

Washington had baserunners in all but two innings, but they left eight on. Despite their recent record, Johnson says he sees a lot to like with his team.

“I see a lot of good signs,” Johnson said. “I like the approach the guys are taking. I see the improvement in their play, in their mental approach, and I’m pleased with all that.”

After Dickey departed, Tim Byrdak, Ryota Igarashi, Josh Stinson and Daniel Herrera combined to shut out Washington for the final three innings.

Nick Evans and Lucas Duda also homered for New York. Both were long shots, with Duda reaching the second deck in right in the seventh.

NOTES: Washington recalled OF Roger Bernadina from Triple-A Syracuse. … 2B Danny Espinosa did not play. He was the only Washington player to appear in each of the team’s games. … Nationals OF Laynce Nix was out with a strained right groin. … New York C Josh Thole was out of the lineup with a bruised left wrist. … Mets IF Ruben Tejada was rested with a bruised middle finger on his left hand. … Stinson made his major league debut, pitching 1 2-3 innings, allowing two hits. Herrera was added to the roster before the game. He struck out Jonny Gomes for the final out. Herrera was acquired on Thursday from Milwaukee as one of the two players to be named later in the trade for Francisco Rodriguez. … LHP Tom Milone is scheduled to make his major league debut for Washington on Saturday. Milone struck out 155 batters for Syracuse and walked just 16 in 148 1-3 innings. RHP Dillon Gee (12-5), who has beaten the Nationals in each of his three starts against them, will start for the Mets. … New York LHP Johan Santana, who underwent shoulder surgery last September, will pitch two innings in a rehab game on Saturday for Class A St. Lucie.

David Wright hit a three-run homer, Angel Pagan drove in two runs and knuckleballer R.A. Dickey pitched into the seventh inning on three days’ rest for New York.

Wright’s shot off Detwiler (2-5) gave the Mets a 3-0 lead in the first. It was his 12th home run of the year. Pagan’s two-run single in the third gave New York a 6-1 lead.

“It’s definitely my worst outing,” Detwiler said. “Nothing worked and they hit everything I threw up there hard.”

Detwiler was hurt by his inability to keep his pitches down in the strike zone.

“I didn’t do it at all tonight,” he said. “I think there was one pitch I actually threw down in the zone and it got hit on the ground. When you do that one time in three innings you’re going to get hurt pretty bad.”

“I didn’t think he had real good command,” Nationals manager Davey Johnson said. “It was just one of those days you turn the page on.”

The Nationals have dropped nine of 10 and are 10 games under .500 for the first time this season. The Mets have won seven of eight.

In his three innings, Detwiler allowed six runs and seven hits.

Dickey (7-11) won his second game in four days. Pitching on short rest for the third time in his career, he recorded consecutive wins for the first time this season. He left after giving up a leadoff single in the seventh, allowing three runs on nine hits and striking out one.

“Obviously he has his knuckleball, but he throws his fastball and other pitches as well,” Washington third baseman Ryan Zimmerman said. “He’s one of those guys who always gives you a solid start. He’s tough. You don’t see guys like that too often.”

Dickey wasn’t happy with his knuckleball, and had to find another way to keep the Mets in the game.

“I was able to throw a larger number of conventional pitches because I felt fine,” Dickey said. “I needed to to survive. I’m glad I have enough arm strength to do that.”

The Nationals scored a run in the first on Michael Morse’s RBI single, and two in the fifth on Rick Ankiel’s eighth home run.

Washington had baserunners in all but two innings, but they left eight on. Despite their recent record, Johnson says he sees a lot to like with his team.

“I see a lot of good signs,” Johnson said. “I like the approach the guys are taking. I see the improvement in their play, in their mental approach, and I’m pleased with all that.”

After Dickey departed, Tim Byrdak, Ryota Igarashi, Josh Stinson and Daniel Herrera combined to shut out Washington for the final three innings.

Nick Evans and Lucas Duda also homered for New York. Both were long shots, with Duda reaching the second deck in right in the seventh.

NOTES: Washington recalled OF Roger Bernadina from Triple-A Syracuse. … 2B Danny Espinosa did not play. He was the only Washington player to appear in each of the team’s games. … Nationals OF Laynce Nix was out with a strained right groin. … New York C Josh Thole was out of the lineup with a bruised left wrist. … Mets IF Ruben Tejada was rested with a bruised middle finger on his left hand. … Stinson made his major league debut, pitching 1 2-3 innings, allowing two hits. Herrera was added to the roster before the game. He struck out Jonny Gomes for the final out. Herrera was acquired on Thursday from Milwaukee as one of the two players to be named later in the trade for Francisco Rodriguez. … LHP Tom Milone is scheduled to make his major league debut for Washington on Saturday. Milone struck out 155 batters for Syracuse and walked just 16 in 148 1-3 innings. RHP Dillon Gee (12-5), who has beaten the Nationals in each of his three starts against them, will start for the Mets. … New York LHP Johan Santana, who underwent shoulder surgery last September, will pitch two innings in a rehab game on Saturday for Class A St. Lucie.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

“It’s not hyperbole to say that my knuckleball was putrid. I had to find a way to eat up innings and keep us in it,” Dickey said.

New York won for the seventh time in eight games, and Washington has dropped nine of 10, falling 10 games under .500 for the first time this season.

The 36-year-old Dickey has had a long and erratic career, never pitching an entire season in the major leagues. Last year, he went 11-9 with the Mets, and his knuckler was the reason why. If it fails him, Dickey has to tinker.

“They didn’t have any bite to them. I don’t have an explanation to why. I had to use some other stuff in the arsenal tonight,” Dickey said.

His teammates staked him to a 6-1 lead in the third inning. David Wright hit a three-run home run in the first inning. It was Wright’s 12th home run of the season and his first in 32 career games at Nationals Park. Angel Pagan hit a two-run single. Nick Evans hit a long home run in the second, and in the seventh, Lucas Duda slammed another long shot.

Dickey allowed a leadoff single in the seventh and was lifted, and four relievers shut out the Nationals the rest of the way.

“He got us through six. I thought that was plenty,” New York manager Terry Collins said. “He worked hard to get through that game.”

Dickey gave up three runs and nine hits, striking out one, and said pitching on three days’ rest for just the third time in his career wasn’t the reason the knuckler was substandard.

“I was able to throw a larger number of conventional pitches because I felt fine. I needed to survive. I’m glad I have enough arm strength to do that.”

Wright also had a double. In his last eight games, he is 13 for 26.

“When you get on a little hot streak, you have to ride out as long as you can because you know right around the corner, there’s an 0 for 10, 0 for 15 waiting for you,” Wright said.

The Mets pounded Ross Detwiler (2-5), who gave up six runs in just three innings.

“All I can remember is one pitch that was actually good, so there’s not much to take from this one,” Detwiler said.

After Dickey departed, Tim Byrdak, Ryota Igarashi, Josh Stinson and Daniel Herrera combined to shut out Washington for the final three innings.

The Nationals scored a run in the first on Michael Morse’s RBI single, and two in the fifth on Rick Ankiel’s eighth home run.

NOTES: Washington recalled OF Roger Bernadina from Triple-A Syracuse. … 2B Danny Espinosa did not play. He was the only Washington player to appear in each of the team’s games. … Nationals OF Laynce Nix was out with a strained right groin. … New York C Josh Thole was out of the lineup with a bruised left wrist. … Mets IF Ruben Tejada was rested with a bruised middle finger on his left hand. … Stinson made his major league debut, pitching 1 2-3 innings, allowing two hits. Herrera was added to the roster before the game. He struck out Jonny Gomes for the final out. Herrera was acquired on Thursday from Milwaukee as one of the two players to be named later in the trade for RHP Francisco Rodriguez. … LHP Tom Milone is scheduled to make his major league debut for Washington on Saturday. Milone struck out 155 batters for Syracuse and walked just 16 in 148 1-3 innings. RHP Dillon Gee (12-5), who has beaten the Nationals in each of his three starts against them, will start for the Mets. … New York LHP Johan Santana, who underwent shoulder surgery last September, will pitch two innings in a rehab game on Saturday for Class-A St. Lucie.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

It was a frustrating night for R.A. Dickey. His knuckleball wasn’t working, and he had to resort to his fastball. Somehow, he survived, pitching into the seventh inning, winning his second game in four days as the New York Mets beat the Washington Nationals 7-3 on Friday night.

Dickey (7-11) won a second consecutive game for the first time this season, but that didn’t satisfy him.

“It’s not hyperbole to say that my knuckleball was putrid. I had to find a way to eat up innings and keep us in it,” Dickey said.

New York won for the seventh time in eight games, and Washington has dropped nine of 10, falling 10 games under .500 for the first time this season.

The 36-year-old Dickey has had a long and erratic career, never pitching an entire season in the major leagues. Last year, he went 11-9 with the Mets, and his knuckler was the reason why. If it fails him, Dickey has to tinker.

“They didn’t have any bite to them. I don’t have an explanation to why. I had to use some other stuff in the arsenal tonight,” Dickey said.

His teammates staked him to a 6-1 lead in the third inning. David Wright hit a three-run home run in the first inning. It was Wright’s 12th home run of the season and his first in 32 career games at Nationals Park. Angel Pagan hit a two-run single. Nick Evans hit a long home run in the second, and in the seventh, Lucas Duda slammed another long shot.

Dickey allowed a leadoff single in the seventh and was lifted, and four relievers shut out the Nationals the rest of the way.

“He got us through six. I thought that was plenty,” New York manager Terry Collins said. “He worked hard to get through that game.”

Dickey gave up three runs and nine hits, striking out one, and said pitching on three days’ rest for just the third time in his career wasn’t the reason the knuckler was substandard.

“I was able to throw a larger number of conventional pitches because I felt fine. I needed to survive. I’m glad I have enough arm strength to do that.”

Wright also had a double. In his last eight games, he is 13 for 26.

“When you get on a little hot streak, you have to ride out as long as you can because you know right around the corner, there’s an 0 for 10, 0 for 15 waiting for you,” Wright said.

The Mets pounded Ross Detwiler (2-5), who gave up six runs in just three innings.

“All I can remember is one pitch that was actually good, so there’s not much to take from this one,” Detwiler said.

After Dickey departed, Tim Byrdak, Ryota Igarashi, Josh Stinson and Daniel Herrera combined to shut out Washington for the final three innings.

The Nationals scored a run in the first on Michael Morse’s RBI single, and two in the fifth on Rick Ankiel’s eighth home run.

NOTES: Washington recalled OF Roger Bernadina from Triple-A Syracuse. … 2B Danny Espinosa did not play. He was the only Washington player to appear in each of the team’s games. … Nationals OF Laynce Nix was out with a strained right groin. … New York C Josh Thole was out of the lineup with a bruised left wrist. … Mets IF Ruben Tejada was rested with a bruised middle finger on his left hand. … Stinson made his major league debut, pitching 1 2-3 innings, allowing two hits. Herrera was added to the roster before the game. He struck out Jonny Gomes for the final out. Herrera was acquired on Thursday from Milwaukee as one of the two players to be named later in the trade for RHP Francisco Rodriguez. … LHP Tom Milone is scheduled to make his major league debut for Washington on Saturday. Milone struck out 155 batters for Syracuse and walked just 16 in 148 1-3 innings. RHP Dillon Gee (12-5), who has beaten the Nationals in each of his three starts against them, will start for the Mets. … New York LHP Johan Santana, who underwent shoulder surgery last September, will pitch two innings in a rehab game on Saturday for Class-A St. Lucie.

Miguel Cairo was determined not to fail a second time.

Cairo struck out with two runners aboard and the score tied in the seventh inning Friday night, a big letdown in a weird game. He came through the next time up, hitting a running-scoring single with one out in the ninth inning that gave the Cincinnati Reds a 4-3 victory over the Washington Nationals.

“I had a chance two innings before, but I didn’t swing at strikes,” said Cairo, who got into the game as a pinch hitter. “I said I’m only going to swing at strikes because when I swing at strikes, I’ve got a chance. He got it over the plate, and I hit it good.”

Cairo’s single to the gap in left-center was the third straight hit off Colin Balester (1-2), sending the Nationals to their fourth straight loss. Cairo is batting .333 off the bench.

“He’s unbelievable,” manager Dusty Baker said. “We try to get him at-bats so he’s ready for situations like that. He’s been lights out.”

Actually, the lights started going out in the top of the seventh, when a bank of them failed behind first base. The umpires talked to both managers and decided to continue.

The game was halted when another light bank went dark in the eighth as hard-throwing left-hander Aroldis Chapman warmed up, prompting a 17-minute delay until they could be restored.

“I’ve seen lights-out problems before,” Nationals manager Davey Johnson said. “That was kind of weird tonight.”

Washington’s Wilson Ramos hit a three-run homer off left-hander Dontrelle Willis, who remained winless despite matching his career high with three hits. Francisco Cordero (5-3) escaped a scoring threat in the ninth.

Brandon Phillips had a pair of run-scoring singles on a night when the postgame fireworks were dedicated to his musical tastes. Todd Frazier tied it with a run-scoring single in the seventh off reliever Tom Gorzelanny.

Willis threw 123 pitches and had the 15th multihit game of his career, but couldn’t get a win. The left-hander has become the Reds’ hard-luck pitcher. The bullpen has blown a save in three of his starts. Plus, he gets the worst run support on the staff.

“That’s all you can ask for,” said Willis, who is 0-2 with a 4.10 ERA. “I’m not really concerned about victories. They come in spurts. I like the way I’m throwing the ball and competing.”

Left fielder Jonny Gomes returned for the first time since the Reds traded him for two minor leaguers on July 26, the only deal that the defending NL Central champions made before the non-waiver deadline. He singled, walked, struck out and ground out.

The Reds dedicated their Friday night fireworks to Phillips, using his favorite summer tunes as the soundtrack. The second baseman got the 35,089 fans cheering with an RBI single in the second, when shortstop Ian Desmond’s fielding error set up the unearned run. Phillips also singled home a run in the sixth.

Willis walked a season-high five batters, giving the Nationals plenty of chances. It was familiar for the Nationals, who arrived in a hitting slump — a total of three runs while dropping their last three games. They were 1 for 16 with runners in scoring position during an 8-1 loss to Arizona on Thursday night.

They had only one hit in 14 at-bats with runners in scoring position on Friday night — Wilson Ramos’ homer in the fourth inning for a 3-1 lead. His 11 homers are the most in one season by a Nationals catcher.

NOTES: The Nationals placed RH reliever Ryan Mattheus on the 15-day DL with a strained pitching shoulder. A corresponding move is expected on Saturday. … The Reds activated RH reliever Logan Ondrusek off the 15-day DL and optioned LHP Travis Wood to the minors. … RH Mike Leake was the last Reds pitcher to get three hits in a game. He did it July 9, 2010 at Philadelphia. … After their weekend series in Cincinnati, the Nationals go to Atlanta for three more games, avoiding Hurricane Irene. … LHP Ross Detwiler starts Saturday for the Nationals. He ended a three-game losing streak on Monday by beating Arizona 4-1. … Leake tries to become the Reds’ first 11-game winner on Saturday. He’s 2-1 in three career starts against the Nationals.

Nationals starter John Lannan made one mistake when he had no room for error.

Lannan was Washington’s latest hard-luck loser as the Nationals’ offense continued to struggle. He gave up two runs in six innings, and once he gave way to the bullpen the similarly moribund Arizona Diamondbacks got an overdue burst of offense in an 8-1 win Thursday night.

It was the third straight loss for Washington. In the three games they have gone 1 for 29 with runners in scoring position and scored a total of three runs.

“You throw a little bit more pressure on you individually, which also gets contagious,” Nationals outfielder Johnny Gomes said. “You find yourself wanting to hit a three-run homer with one guy on.”

Washington’s lone tally in the finale of the four-game series came on Michael Morse’s RBI single off Bryan Shaw in the seventh.

“We just seem like we’re really flat,” manager Davey Johnson said. “We didn’t look like we wanted it the last two or three days.”

The miscue from Lannan (8-10) was a fastball that Chris Young deposited about a half-dozen rows into the left field bleachers with one out in the sixth to break a scoreless tie. Lannan allowed seven hits in dropping his third straight decision.

“You can only control what you can control, and that’s throwing strikes,” Lannan said. “Right now I’m not thinking too much about what’s going on offensively, I know these guys are going to come through.”

Wade Miley (1-1) threw six scoreless innings to get his first major league victory. Miley allowed five hits, struck out four and walked four in his second game in the majors. The 24-year-old left-hander repeatedly worked out of trouble — allowing two men to reach base in four of the first five innings — but he mixed his low 90s fastball with a generous dose of offspeed pitches to keep the Nationals in check.

“We got some runners on, and he beared down and started pitching different with runners in scoring position,” Gomes said.

Brad Ziegler relived Shaw in the seventh and worked out of a first-and-second, one-out jam, getting Jayson Werth on a popout to third and Danny Espinosa on a long foul out to left. David Hernandez pitched the eighth, and Micah Owings the ninth.

The Diamondbacks scored three runs in the eighth off Tyler Clippard, the most the Nationals’ only All-Star has allowed in an outing this year. The first came when Justin Upton made a perfect, wide, hand-first slide to avoid the tag on Miguel Montero’s double to right. Paul Goldschmidt followed with a two-run homer to left.

“Tonight it was a combination of bad pitch selection and bad execution on my part,” Clippard said. “You’re not going to succeed when that happens.”

Arizona added three more in the ninth, all of them unearned after an error by second baseman Espinosa. The paltry crowd gave the Nationals a mock cheer when Henry Rodriguez struck out Lyle Overbay to end the inning.

The Diamondbacks relied heavily on their pitching to win the last three of the four-game series, salvaging a stretch in which their offense was mostly traveling elsewhere. Their eight-spot Thursday — with all the runs coming in the final four innings — was exactly half of the 16 they had scored combined in the previous nine games of their 4-6 road trip.

The Nationals were perfect fodder — because they haven’t scored much, either.

“When the bats are silent, the pitchers think they’ve got to be finer than normal, and that’s not good,” Johnson said.

Notes: Nationals RHP Ryan Mattheus was removed from the game after pitching to two batters in the eighth. He said it was a precautionary move because he didn’t have his usual velocity. … As a longtime member of the Baltimore Orioles family, Johnson was stunned by the news that former Cy Young winner Mike Flanagan had committed suicide. “I was pretty shaken. … I wished I had a chance to talk to him, and cheer him up like he’s done me in the past,” Johnson said. A moment of silence was held in memory of Flanagan before the game. … Nationals C Ivan Rodriguez (right oblique strain) will catch five innings for Single A Potomac at Frederick on Saturday, his first rehab game since going on the DL on July 7. … Johnson dropped a very old-school movie reference after the game. “I thought if we could stay close we could pull it out. It was a ‘Bad Day at Black Rock,’” he said, referencing the 1955 thriller starring Spencer Tracy.

It was the third straight loss for Washington. In the three games they have gone 1 for 29 with runners in scoring position and scored a total of three runs.

“You throw a little bit more pressure on you individually, which also gets contagious,” Nationals outfielder Johnny Gomes said. “You find yourself wanting to hit a three-run homer with one guy on.”

Washington’s lone tally in the finale of the four-game series came on Michael Morse’s RBI single off Bryan Shaw in the seventh.

“We just seem like we’re really flat,” manager Davey Johnson said. “We didn’t look like we wanted it the last two or three days.”

The miscue from Lannan (8-10) was a fastball that Chris Young deposited about a half-dozen rows into the left field bleachers with one out in the sixth to break a scoreless tie. Lannan allowed seven hits in dropping his third straight decision.

“You can only control what you can control, and that’s throwing strikes,” Lannan said. “Right now I’m not thinking too much about what’s going on offensively, I know these guys are going to come through.”

Wade Miley (1-1) threw six scoreless innings to get his first major league victory. Miley allowed five hits, struck out four and walked four in his second game in the majors. The 24-year-old left-hander repeatedly worked out of trouble — allowing two men to reach base in four of the first five innings — but he mixed his low 90s fastball with a generous dose of offspeed pitches to keep the Nationals in check.

“We got some runners on, and he beared down and started pitching different with runners in scoring position,” Gomes said.

Brad Ziegler relived Shaw in the seventh and worked out of a first-and-second, one-out jam, getting Jayson Werth on a popout to third and Danny Espinosa on a long foul out to left. David Hernandez pitched the eighth, and Micah Owings the ninth.

The Diamondbacks scored three runs in the eighth off Tyler Clippard, the most the Nationals’ only All-Star has allowed in an outing this year. The first came when Justin Upton made a perfect, wide, hand-first slide to avoid the tag on Miguel Montero’s double to right. Paul Goldschmidt followed with a two-run homer to left.

“Tonight it was a combination of bad pitch selection and bad execution on my part,” Clippard said. “You’re not going to succeed when that happens.”

Arizona added three more in the ninth, all of them unearned after an error by second baseman Espinosa. The paltry crowd gave the Nationals a mock cheer when Henry Rodriguez struck out Lyle Overbay to end the inning.

The Diamondbacks relied heavily on their pitching to win the last three of the four-game series, salvaging a stretch in which their offense was mostly traveling elsewhere. Their eight-spot Thursday — with all the runs coming in the final four innings — was exactly half of the 16 they had scored combined in the previous nine games of their 4-6 road trip.

The Nationals were perfect fodder — because they haven’t scored much, either.

“When the bats are silent, the pitchers think they’ve got to be finer than normal, and that’s not good,” Johnson said.

Notes: Nationals RHP Ryan Mattheus was removed from the game after pitching to two batters in the eighth. He said it was a precautionary move because he didn’t have his usual velocity. … As a longtime member of the Baltimore Orioles family, Johnson was stunned by the news that former Cy Young winner Mike Flanagan had committed suicide. “I was pretty shaken. … I wished I had a chance to talk to him, and cheer him up like he’s done me in the past,” Johnson said. A moment of silence was held in memory of Flanagan before the game. … Nationals C Ivan Rodriguez (right oblique strain) will catch five innings for Single A Potomac at Frederick on Saturday, his first rehab game since going on the DL on July 7. … Johnson dropped a very old-school movie reference after the game. “I thought if we could stay close we could pull it out. It was a ‘Bad Day at Black Rock,’” he said, referencing the 1955 thriller starring Spencer Tracy.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Nearly five months into his first season with the Washington Nationals, Jayson Werth thinks he’s finally getting into a groove at the plate.

Given the lofty expectations that came with his $126 million contract, the upswing is quite overdue.

Werth hit a three-run homer, Ross Detwiler took a four-hitter into the seventh inning and the Nationals beat Arizona 4-1 last night to extend the Diamondbacks’ losing streak to a season-high six games.

Henry Blanco homered for the Diamondbacks, who have scored only seven runs in their last six games. Mired in its longest skid since a seven-game run in July 2010, Arizona now leads second-place San Francisco by just one game in the NL West.

Werth has had few shining moments this season after signing a much-publicized, oft-criticized seven-year deal in December. But he carried the Nationals in this one, scoring a second-inning run before delivering the decisive blow in the fourth against Joe Saunders (8-11).

“Being here long enough, I’ve settled in and I’m getting comfortable and finding my zone,” said Werth, whose 2-for-4 performance upped his batting average to .229. “Unfortunately, it’s taken this long.”

Washington manager Davey Johnson suspected earlier this month that Werth would soon begin showing the power and consistency that he displayed as a star with the Philadelphia Phillies.

“I said maybe three weeks ago that he was coming along. Every day, I see more of Jayson Werth,” Johnson said. “It’s about time to come out.”

Werth has only 15 homers and 48 RBIs, but his opposite-field shot to right off Saunders, a left-hander, served as notice that perhaps Werth is ready to get on a roll at the plate. He came into the game batting .169 against lefties.

“For me, if my swing’s good, I should be able to hit lefties good and righties good,” he said. “If it’s not good, I could pitch and probably get me out sometimes.”

On this night, his swing was very good.

“I think the last week, 10 days, I’ve been locked in. It’s been a long time coming,” he said. “I knew where it was, but I didn’t know how to get there. I finally feel like I got there.”

Detwiler, meanwhile, was dominant against the punchless Diamondbacks. The left-hander came in with a career record of 3-12, but allowed only one runner past second base until Blanco hit a drive into the left-field seats with two outs in the seventh.

Blanco’s homer, on a 3-2 pitch, was his only glaring mistake and was Arizona’s only extra-base hit of the night.

“It’s more of the same offensively. We just really struggled,” Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said.

“We hit a lot of balls hard tonight. I think we’re all right,” leadoff hitter Ryan Roberts said. “I’m not thinking that we’re in a drought. It’s just not falling in right now. It will turn back around.”

Detwiler (2-3) gave up one run and six hits in 62/3 innings. He walked one and struck out three to break a three-game losing streak.

“Give the kid credit. He threw a good game and we were unable to put anything together,” Gibson said.

Drew Storen, the third Washington reliever, worked the ninth to secure his 34th save and seal the Nationals’ fifth win in seven games.

Washington went up 1-0 in the second inning when Werth doubled and scored on a single by Jonny Gomes.

In the fourth, Ryan Zimmerman led off with an infield hit and Michael Morse walked before Werth connected for the first time since Aug. 10. The drive barely cleared the wall to the left of the bullpen area.

“It’s just one of those things,” Werth said. “My power is to right field when I’m right.”

Saunders allowed four runs and six hits in six innings. He’s 0-3 in four starts in August. Strasburg Rehab: Stephen Strasburg struck out six and allowed one earned run over three innings LAST night in his latest minor league rehabilitation start.

The Washington Nationals right-hander also gave up two hits and walked one for the Single A Hagerstown Suns against the Hickory Crawdads.

It was Strasburg’s fourth minor league start since undergoing Tommy John surgery last year. The No. 1 overall draft pick in the 2009 draft has pitched 9 1-3 innings, allowing 11 hits, eight runs (seven earned), with three walks and 18 strikeouts combined for Hagerstown and Single A Potomac.

Strasburg is expected to make two more starts before returning to the majors next month.

NOTES: Zimmerman has reached base safely in 28 straight games, batting .407 during that span. … RHP Jordan Zimmermann (8-10) will pitch for Washington tonight. Arizona has scheduled RHP Ian Kennedy (15-4), who had a seven-game winning streak snapped in his last start – a 4-1 loss to Philadelphia on Aug. 18. Zimmermann, two years removed from Tommy John surgery, is scheduled for one more start after this one before being shut down.

Read More: Ryan Zimmerman (3B – WAS), Chien-Ming Wang (P – WAS), Michael Morse (1B – WAS), Ian Desmond (SS – WAS), Washington Nationals, Cincinnati Reds

The Washington Nationals have a 6-4 lead over the Cincinnati Reds in the seventh inning thanks to a power surge by the Nationals offense and a settling starting pitcher in Chien-Ming Wang.

Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman and first baseman Michael Morse have both hit home runs while shortstop Ian Desmond hit a crucial first inning two-run single. Morse now has 21 homers on the year and has also hit a RBI double in the game.

This all comes after a shaky first inning from Wang who gave up two runs in the first inning while trying to find his sinker. He then settled and at one point retired 12 straight batters. The Reds touched Wang again for a RBI single in the sixth inning and a RBI double in the seventh.

The Nationals took advantage of a fielding error to score a run, but the Nationals have committed two fielding errors of their own. One came from Zimmerman and another from Desmond.

The Chicago Cubs keep hitting home runs.

Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena went back to back on Thursday to help the Cubs rally past the Washington Nationals 4-3 Thursday.

Ramirez’s two-run shot in the seventh was his 21st of the season, and gave him 16 homers since June 25, the most in the major leagues since then.

“However we can score,” Cubs manager Mike Quade said. “The guys are hitting the ball out of the ballpark and that’s a good thing.”

Pena followed Ramirez with a clout that curled around the pole in right field and landed on Sheffield Avenue and put the cubs up 4-1.

“You like to be able to create any way you can, but the longball is still a part of it,” Quade said.

Ryan Dempster (10-8) limited Washington to a first-inning home run by Ryan Zimmerman and went seven innings, allowing three hits, walking two and striking out six.

Washington loaded the bases and scored a run in the ninth against Carlos Marmol, but he recovered to get his 26th save.

Wilson Ramos hit a high chopper off Marmol that he beat out for an infield single, scoring Jonny Gomes. But Marmol struck out Brian Bixler and got Rick Ankiel on a fly ball to the wall in center to end the game.

“Marm gutted it out,” Quade said. “That was something. I’m out of breath.”

Marmol has converted seven straight saves since returning to the closer’s role on July 31. He was pitching for the third straight day, too.

“When you ask a guy to come out for a third day, you’re always worried,” Quade said. “He’s done it before. He just wasn’t as sharp command-wise.

“He could have collapsed at any time there and didn’t. Got back in the strike zone when he needed to. Just a gutsy performance on a day when he didn’t have his (best) stuff.”

Washington also scored a run in the eighth, when pinch-hitter Bixler hit an infield single. Ankiel followed with a single, but Cubs reliever Kerry Wood struck out Danny Espinosa and Zimmerman.

Wood has struck out the last eight batters he’s faced, tying the Cubs’ record for all pitchers since the mounds were lowered in 1969.

Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann (7-10) allowed four runs and nine hits in 6 2-3 innings. He walked two and struck out seven.

The Cubs have won nine of their last 11 games and got their third straight series win at home, something they hadn’t done since 2009.

“It was a fun day for us,” Dempster said. “It was a good way to end a homestand.”

Zimmermann held the Cubs to one run on six hits through six innings but ran into trouble after striking out the first two batters of the seventh. Johnson laced his third single of the game into left field.

Ramirez followed with a shot into the left-field bleachers, putting the Cubs up 3-1 before Pena’s homer chased Zimmermann.

“Threw a halfway decent slider to Ramirez but he was sitting on it and it doesn’t take much to hit it out of here,” Zimmermann said. “He got the bat on it, got it up and it was a home run.

“And then the pitch to Pena was the first changeup of the day and probably the worst choice I made all day. I don’t really know why I threw it.”

Dempster won his third straight start and reached 10 wins for fourth straight season. He’s won 10 or more seven times in career. Only Fergie Jenkins (15) and Reggie Cleveland (8) have more 10-win seasons among Canadian-born pitchers.

Alfonso Soriano hit an RBI triple and Reed Johnson added three singles for Chicago. Johnson went 7 for 8 at the plate over the last two games of the series.

Zimmerman opened the scoring in the first when he homered onto Waveland Avenue beyond the left-field bleachers to extend his hitting streak to 19 games, the second-longest active streak in the big leagues behind the 31-game streak of Atlanta’s Dan Uggla.

Chicago tied it in the fourth on Soriano’s RBI triple. Right fielder Jayson Werth dove for the ball but it clipped the end of this glove and rolled to the wall. Byrd scored and Soriano wound up at third with his first triple since Aug. 23 of last season.

Zimmermann reached 145 innings for the season, leaving him two or three starts left before he reaches his limit of 160 for the season. He had Tommy John surgery nearly two years ago.

NOTES: Washington’s Michael Morse had to leave the game after being hit on the elbow by a pitch. He went to the hospital and manager Davey Johnson said he wasn’t sure if Morse would be able to make the team’s flight to Philadelphia, where the Nationals begin a three-game series on Friday. “We’ve got to keep our fingers crossed,” Johnson said. “Yeah, I’m worried because he’s got huge arms and that’ll protect it, but he’s in bad shape.”… After the game, the Cubs’ ground crew began resodding sections of the Wrigley Field turf that were damaged during a pair of recent concerts given at the ballpark by former Beatle Paul McCartney. Byrd recently complained about the surface after a game in which he lost his footing… Cubs starter Andrew Cashner completed a bullpen session before Thursday’s game with no problems, the latest step in his recovery from a strained right rotator cuff. The Cubs travel to Atlanta for a three-game weekend series against the Braves, the first leg of a six-game road trip that will also stop in Houston. Carlos Zambrano is set to face Atlanta’s Mike Minor on Friday. Zambrano has hit 23 career HRs. He tied Walter Johnson for ninth among pitchers with his homer off Johnny Cueto on Aug. 6. Zambrano is 0-4 with a 6.24 ERA in last 10 starts against Atlanta since July 13, 2003. . The Nationals’ Livan Hernandez will start the opener for Washington against Philadelphia’s Cole Hamels.

CHICAGO (AP)—The Chicago Cubs keep hitting home runs.

Aramis Ramirez(notes) and Carlos Pena went back to back on Thursday to help the
Cubs rally past the Washington Nationals 4-3 Thursday.

Ramirez’s two-run shot in the seventh was his 21st of the season, and gave
him 16 homers since June 25, the most in the major leagues since then.

“However we can score,” Cubs manager Mike Quade said. “The guys are
hitting the ball out of the ballpark and that’s a good thing.”

Pena followed Ramirez with a clout that curled around the pole in right
field and landed on Sheffield Avenue and put the cubs up 4-1.

“You like to be able to create any way you can, but the longball is still a
part of it,” Quade said.

Ryan Dempster(notes) (10-8) limited Washington to a first-inning home run by Ryan
Zimmerman(notes) and went seven innings, allowing three hits, walking two and striking
out six.

Washington loaded the bases and scored a run in the ninth against Carlos
Marmol(notes), but he recovered to get his 26th save.

Wilson Ramos(notes) hit a high chopper off Marmol that he beat out for an infield
single, scoring Jonny Gomes(notes). But Marmol struck out Brian Bixler(notes) and got Rick
Ankiel(notes) on a fly ball to the wall in center to end the game.

“Marm gutted it out,” Quade said. “That was something. I’m out of
breath.”

Marmol has converted seven straight saves since returning to the closer’s
role on July 31. He was pitching for the third straight day, too.

“When you ask a guy to come out for a third day, you’re always worried,”
Quade said. “He’s done it before. He just wasn’t as sharp command-wise.

“He could have collapsed at any time there and didn’t. Got back in the
strike zone when he needed to. Just a gutsy performance on a day when he didn’t
have his (best) stuff.”

Washington also scored a run in the eighth, when pinch-hitter Bixler hit an
infield single. Ankiel followed with a single, but Cubs reliever Kerry Wood(notes)
struck out Danny Espinosa(notes) and Zimmerman.

Wood has struck out the last eight batters he’s faced, tying the Cubs’
record for all pitchers since the mounds were lowered in 1969.

Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann(notes) (7-10) allowed four runs and nine hits
in 6 2-3 innings. He walked two and struck out seven.

The Cubs have won nine of their last 11 games and got their third straight
series win at home, something they hadn’t done since 2009.

“It was a fun day for us,” Dempster said. “It was a good way to end a
homestand.”

Zimmermann held the Cubs to one run on six hits through six innings but ran
into trouble after striking out the first two batters of the seventh. Johnson
laced his third single of the game into left field. Ramirez followed with a shot
into the left-field bleachers, putting the Cubs up 3-1 before Pena’s homer
chased Zimmermann.

“Threw a halfway decent slider to Ramirez but he was sitting on it and it
doesn’t take much to hit it out of here,” Zimmermann said. “He got the bat on
it, got it up and it was a home run.

“And then the pitch to Pena was the first changeup of the day and probably
the worst choice I made all day. I don’t really know why I threw it.”

Dempster won his third straight start and reached 10 wins for fourth
straight season. He’s won 10 or more seven times in career. Only Fergie Jenkins
(15) and Reggie Cleveland (8) have more 10-win seasons among Canadian-born
pitchers.

Alfonso Soriano(notes) hit an RBI triple and Reed Johnson(notes) added three singles for
Chicago. Johnson went 7 for 8 at the plate over the last two games of the
series.

Zimmerman opened the scoring in the first when he homered onto Waveland
Avenue beyond the left-field bleachers to extend his hitting streak to 19 games,
the second-longest active streak in the big leagues behind the 31-game streak of
Atlanta’s Dan Uggla(notes).

Chicago tied it in the fourth on Soriano’s RBI triple. Right fielder Jayson
Werth(notes) dove for the ball but it clipped the end of this glove and rolled to the
wall. Byrd scored and Soriano wound up at third with his first triple since Aug.
23 of last season.

Zimmermann reached 145 innings for the season, leaving him two or three
starts left before he reaches his limit of 160 for the season. He had Tommy John
surgery nearly two years ago.

NOTES: Washington’s Michael Morse(notes) had to leave the game after being hit on
the elbow by a pitch. He went to the hospital and manager Davey Johnson said he
wasn’t sure if Morse would be able to make the team’s flight to Philadelphia,
where the Nationals begin a three-game series on Friday. “We’ve got to keep our
fingers crossed,” Johnson said. “Yeah, I’m worried because he’s got huge arms
and that’ll protect it, but he’s in bad shape.”… After the game, the Cubs’
ground crew began resodding sections of the Wrigley Field turf that were damaged
during a pair of recent concerts given at the ballpark by former Beatle Paul
McCartney. Byrd recently complained about the surface after a game in which he
lost his footing… Cubs starter Andrew Cashner(notes) completed a bullpen session
before Thursday’s game with no problems, the latest step in his recovery from a
strained right rotator cuff. The Cubs travel to Atlanta for a three-game weekend
series against the Braves, the first leg of a six-game road trip that will also
stop in Houston. Carlos Zambrano(notes) is set to face Atlanta’s Mike Minor(notes) on Friday.
Zambrano has hit 23 career HRs. He tied Walter Johnson for ninth among pitchers
with his homer off Johnny Cueto(notes) on Aug. 6. Zambrano is 0-4 with a 6.24 ERA in
last 10 starts against Atlanta since July 13, 2003. . The Nationals’ Livan
Hernandez(notes) will start the opener for Washington against Philadelphia’s Cole
Hamels(notes).

CHICAGO (AP) — Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena hit back-to-back homers and the Chicago Cubs beat the Washington Nationals 4-3 Thursday.

Ramirez’s two-run shot in the seventh was his 21st of the season, and gave him 16 homers since June 25, the most in the major leagues since then.

Pena followed Ramirez with a clout that curled around the pole in right field and landed on Sheffield Avenue and put the cubs up 4-1.

Ryan Dempster (10-8) limited Washington to a first-inning home run by Ryan Zimmerman and went seven innings, allowing three hits, walking two and striking out six.

Washington loaded the bases and scored a run in the ninth against Carlos Marmol, but he recovered to get his 26th save.

Wilson Ramos hit a high chopper off Marmol that he beat out for an infield single, scoring Jonny Gomes. But Marmol struck out Brian Bixler and got Rick Ankiel on a fly ball to the wall in center to end the game.

Marmol has converted seven straight saves since returning to closer’s role on July 31.

Washington also scored a run in the eighth, when pinch-hitter Bixler hit an infield single. Ankiel followed with a single, but Cubs reliever Kerry Wood struck out Danny Espinosa and Zimmerman.

Wood has struck out the last eight batters he’s faced, tying the Cubs’ record by a reliever since the mounds were lowered in 1969.

Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann (7-10) allowed four runs and nine hits in 6 2-3 innings. He walked two and struck out seven.

The Cubs have won nine of their last 11 games and got their third straight series win at home, something they hadn’t done since 2009.

Zimmermann held the Cubs to one run on six hits through six innings but ran into trouble after striking out the first two batters of the seventh. Johnson laced his third single of the game into left field. Ramirez followed with a shot into the left-field bleachers, putting the Cubs up 3-1 before Pena’s homer chased Zimmermann.

Dempster won his third straight start and reached 10 wins for fourth straight season. He’s won 10 or more seven times in career. Only Fergie Jenkins (15) and Reggie Cleveland (8) have more 10-win seasons among Canadian-born pitchers.

Alfonso Soriano hit an RBI triple and Reed Johnson added three singles for Chicago. Johnson went 7 for 8 at the plate over the last two games of the series.

Zimmerman opened the scoring in the first when he homered onto Waveland Avenue beyond the left-field bleachers to extend his hitting streak to 19 games, the second-longest active streak in the big leagues behind the 31-game streak of Atlanta’s Dan Uggla.

The 91 first-inning runs the Cubs have allowed are most in baseball.

Chicago tied it in the fourth on Soriano’s RBI triple. Right fielder Jayson Werth dove for the ball but it clipped the end of this glove and rolled to the wall. Byrd scored and Soriano wound up at third with his first triple since Aug. 23 of last season.

Zimmermann reached 145 innings for the season, leaving him two or three starts left before he reaches his limit of 160 for the season. He had Tommy John surgery nearly two years ago.

NOTES: Cubs starter Andrew Cashner completed a bullpen session before Thursday’s game with no problems, the latest step in his recovery from a strained right rotator cuff. Asked if he expected to be back before the end of the season, Cashner said, “There is no doubt in my mind.” . The Cubs travel to Atlanta for a three-game weekend series against the Braves, the first leg of a six-game road trip that will also stop in Houston. Carlos Zambrano is set to face Atlanta’s Mike Minor on Friday. Zambrano has hit 23 career HRs. He tied Walter Johnson for ninth among pitchers with his homer off Johnny Cueto on Aug. 6. Zambrano is 0-4 with a 6.24 ERA in last 10 starts against Atlanta since July 13, 2003. . The Nationals’ Livan Hernandez will start the opener for Washington against Philadelphia’s Cole Hamels. Hernandez hasn’t won at Citizens Bank Park since May 31, 2006. . Washington’s Michael Morse had to leave the game after being hit on the elbow by a pitch. . Despite an announced crowd of 34,733, just about half the seats were actually occupied on a picturesque afternoon at Wrigley Field. Thursday’s game was a makeup of Monday’s rainout. It was the Cubs’ lowest announced crowd since their June 1 game against Houston.

© 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

DENVER (AP) — The Washington Nationals erased most of a seven-run deficit Saturday night and still had three innings remaining.

But their hopes of a comeback ultimately dissolved into a lopsided 15-7 loss to the Colorado Rockies, a defeat accompanied by some statistical humiliation.

The 15 runs were the most allowed by the Nationals this season and largely the result of a poor start by Livan Hernandez and shaky outings in the seventh by Todd Coffey and eighth by Henry Rodriguez, when the Rockies combined for their final five runs, all with two outs.

Hernandez (6-11) lasted 3 2-3 innings, his shortest start since he also went that distance on Sept. 22, 2009, against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He gave up nine runs, matching his career-high. It’s the fourth time Hernandez has yielded nine runs and second at Coors Field.

“It a tough ballpark, a tough ballclub for him,” manager Davey Johnson said. “He wasn’t real sharp, and when he’s not on, bad things happen.”

Hernandez cited two mistakes he made that led to the Rockies four-run third. After giving up a leadoff single to Chris Iannetta, who had four of the Rockies’ 19 hits, pitcher Jhoulys Chacin tried to bunt and Hernandez hit him with a pitch. Hernandez then fielded Eric Young Jr.’s sacrifice attempt on the third-base side of the mound, threw off the wrong foot and the ball sailed wide of first base.

“I never make errors like that,” Hernandez said. “I got a chance to make (an) out at second base and I no throw it. I freeze, and I throw the ball and I short-arm it. You know, I never do that.”

One run scored on the play, and Young ended up at third. Dexter Fowler, who tied his career-high with four RBI, lined a two-run triple into the right-field corner and scored on Troy Tulowitzki’s sacrifice fly.

The Nationals are 7-17 in games started by Hernandez, and Johnson said he might be replaced in the rotation when the rosters are expanded next month.

“He’s pitched a lot of good games,” Johnson said, “but unfortunately when he’s a little off, he’s really off.”

The Nationals, who finished with 14 hits, quickly got two runs back in the fourth against Chacin (9-8), who lasted five innings and snapped a four-game losing streak that spanned eight starts since his last win June 15.

Chacin gave up a run-scoring double to Michael Morse, who tied his career high with four hits, drove in three runs and raised his average to .327. Chacin issued three of his five walks in the inning and allowed a second run to score on a wild pitch with the bases loaded. But he then struck out Wilson Ramos and retired Hernandez on a groundout.

The Rockies struck for five runs in the fourth and finished Hernandez, whose reliance on breaking pitches and slow stuff makes him a bad match for spacious Coors Field, where he pitched the final two months of the 2008 season for the Rockies. In 19 career starts at Coors Field, Hernandez is 4-8 with a 7.33 ERA and has allowed 148 hits in 108 innings.

Hernandez gave up a leadoff homer in what became a five-run fourth to Ty Wigginton and a one-out homer to Iannetta.

“You make a mistake in this park and you’re going to pay for it,” Hernandez said. “The first one was supposed to be outside and it run in and the guy hit it out. That other one, the curveball’s supposed to be outside and it go the other way. It’s difficult to control the ball here.”

After Iannetta’s homer, Hernandez gave up four singles to the final five batters he faced. Hernandez’s wild pitch brought home the third run of the inning and the final two scored on singles by Carlos Gonzalez and Tulowitzki.

The Nationals erupted for four runs with two out in the sixth against Greg Reynolds. He was scratched from his start Friday at Triple-A Colorado Springs after Juan Nicasio was struck in the head with a line drive.

Reynolds began his fourth tour with the Rockies this season by giving up five straight two-out hits. Rick Ankiel hit a two-run homer, and the barrage continued with doubles by Danny Espinosa and Ryan Zimmerman, who extended his hitting streak to 15 straight games, and a single by Morse.

“I feel good about the offense,” Johnson said. “The pitching needs to be straightened out a little bit.”

Tom Gorzelanny allowed one run in 2 1-3 innings in relief of Hernandez. But Coffey gave up three straight hits and three runs in the seventh. Young singled home the first run, and Fowler doubled home the final two.

Johnson turned to Rodriguez in the eighth. He pitched Friday night, didn’t retire any of the four batters he faced and gave up three hits, one walk and one run. Rodriguez pitched a full inning this time but allowed two hits and two runs and threw a wild pitch.

“A lot of times when a guy has a rough outing, I want to get him out there quick,” Johnson said. “Henry’s throwing strikes. He’s still learning how good he can be.”

NOTES: During his 15-game hitting streak, Zimmerman is batting .444 (28 for 63) with seven doubles and seven RBIs. Five of the seven RBIs have come in his past two games. … Morse matched his career-high for a single game with four hits, the third time he has done. He has gone 18 for 35 (.514) while hitting safely in eight straight games, seven of them multi-hit games … Espinosa had two doubles, the first multidouble game of his career.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Washington Nationals were on their way to their first one-run victory since July 6, when hard-throwing reliever Henry Rodriguez got a little too far behind one of his heavy fastballs and threw it to the backstop with Rafael Furcal at the plate and a runner at third base.

The wild pitch in the seventh inning enabled the Los Angeles Dodgers to tie the score, and Furcal hit an RBI double with one out in the ninth to sent the Nationals to a 7-6 loss on Saturday night.

Trailing 6-5, Los Angeles loaded the bases in the sixth. But James Loney grounded out against Rodriguez, who had given up a single to Matt Kemp and a walk to Juan Rivera after following Ross Detwiler out of the bullpen.

The Dodgers got another chance in the seventh, however. Dioner Navarro drew a one-out walk before pinch-runner Eugenio Velez stole second and took third on a hit-and-run comebacker to Rodriguez. The 24-year-old right-hander then fell behind Furcal 3-0 before walking him with a pitch that sailed over Wilson Ramos’ head, allowing Velez to score.

Rodriguez has a team-high nine wild pitches in 35 2-3 innings, two more than he had last season with Oakland in just 27 2-3 innings. His fastball has been clocked in triple digits, and harnessing all that power can be a problem for a young pitcher.

“He’s a young guy who throws real hard, and he has a tendency to want to let everything go. But that’s part of the package with a guy like that,” Nationals pitching coach Steve McCatty said. “You just talk to him about slowing everything down in his head, focusing on what he’s doing and trusting himself to make pitches. You have to convince him that 98 and 97 is still pretty good, and that he just has to throw strikes. It’s a work in progress.”

Rod Barajas led off the ninth with a single against Ryan Mattheus (2-2) and was forced at second when Ramos jumped on Trent Oeltjen’s attempted sacrifice bunt and made a one-hop throw that shortstop Ian Desmond dug out of the dirt with his foot on the bag. But Jamey Carroll singled and Furcal drove a 2-0 to the gap in left-center to bring home Oeltjen.

“That was awesome,” Oeltjen said. “Furky came through big at the end. He’s been unlucky with some injuries this year, so it’s huge for him and huge for this team to get us going. I hope we can take off from here and keep it going.”

Dodgers rookie closer Javy Guerra (2-0) pitched one inning for the victory, helping send the Nationals to their seventh straight loss in one-run decisions after winning 12 of their previous 14 under those circumstances.

“We’re just kind of spinning our wheels a little bit right now,” right fielder Jayson Werth said. “We’re playing good baseball, but we’re just on the wrong side of things. Every night we feel like we’re going to score a bunch of runs. We’re just one swing away.”

Washington starter Tom Gorzelanny threw 66 pitches over three innings in his second-shortest outing this season, after pitching only two innings last Sunday in Atlanta and tweaking his right ankle in a collision with Braves catcher Brian McCann. The Dodgers got five runs and eight hits against the left-hander, who departed with a one-run lead.

“I don’t think there were any effects at all from the ankle,” McCatty said. “When he warmed up in the bullpen, his ankle was fine and there were no problems. It’s just that his ball was up.”

Dodgers lefty Ted Lilly gave up six runs and eight hits in five innings, and is 1-5 with a 7.47 ERA over his last seven outings. He struck out six and did not allow a homer for the first time in his last six outings.

The Nationals staked Gorzelanny to a 6-2 lead with three runs in the first inning and three more in the third. But the Dodgers got three in the bottom of the third, as Loney hit a sacrifice fly and Lilly hit a two-run double with two outs after an intentional walk to Navarro.

“Fortunately I was able to help with the bat, because I put us in a big hole,” Lilly said. “We were able to come back, in large part due to the work the bullpen did. Then obviously we got some clutch hits as the game went on.”

Washington scored its first three runs when Werth followed an RBI double by Michael Morse with a two-run double. After the Dodgers chipped away with runs in the first two innings, the Nats came back in the third as Rick Ankiel doubled home a pair and scored on a hit-and-run infield single.

“We had a pretty standard approach against Lilly,” Werth said. “We’ve seen him a lot before, so you know what you’re getting yourself into, and we jumped out ahead. But they kept battling back all game, and our inability to tack on runs after the third was the difference. When you don’t score any more runs, it’s tough to win ballgames like that.”

Notes: Saturday marked what would have been the 75th birthday of Hall of Fame pitcher and former Dodgers broadcaster Don Drysdale. The Dodgers were in Montreal, the Nationals’ former home, to play the Expos on July 3, 2003, when Drysdale was found dead in his hotel room at age 56 after suffering a heart attack. Ann Meyers-Drysdale was on hand Saturday with their sons, D.J. and Darren, each of whom threw out a ceremonial first pitch. The Dodgers’ grounds crew painted Drysdale’s No. 53 on the back slope of the mound. … Dave Van Horne, who did play-by-play for the Expos during their first 32 seasons, was inducted into the Hall of Fame on Saturday in a ceremony at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, N.Y. It was the first time that the winner of the annual Ford C. Frick Award was enshrined the day before the players were.

AP Photo/Jae C. Hong

Los Angeles Dodgers’ James Loney, background left, scores on a sacrifice bunt by Ted Lilly as the ball slips out of Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos’ glove during the second inning of a baseball game in Los Angeles, Saturday, July 23, 2011.

Rafael Furcal hit an RBI double with one out in the ninth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied from an early four-run deficit to beat the Washington Nationals 7-6 on Saturday night.
Rod Barajas led off the ninth with a single against Ryan Mattheus (2-2) and was forced at second when catcher Wilson Ramos jumped on Trent Oeltjen’s attempted sacrifice bunt and made a one-hop throw that shortstop Ian Desmond dug out of the dirt with his foot on the bag. But Jamey Carroll singled and Furcal drove a 2-0 to the gap in left-center to bring home Oeltjen.
Dodgers rookie closer Javy Guerra (2-0) pitched one inning for the victory, helping send the Nationals to their seventh straight loss in one-run decisions.
Trailing 6-5, Los Angeles loaded the bases in the sixth. But James Loney grounded out against Henry Rodriguez, who had given up a single to Matt Kemp and a walk to Juan Rivera after following Ross Detwiler out of the bullpen.
The Dodgers got another chance in the seventh, however, and got the tying run. Dioner Navarro drew a one-out walk before pinch-runner Eugenio Velez stole second and took third on a hit-and-run comebacker to Rodriguez. The right-hander fell behind Furcal 3-0 before walking him with a wild pitch way over Ramos’ head that allowed Velez to score.
Rodriguez has a team-high nine wild pitches in 35 2-3 innings, two more than he had last season with Oakland in just 27 2-3 innings.
Washington starter Tom Gorzelanny threw 66 pitches over three innings in his second-shortest outing this season, after pitching only two innings last Sunday in Atlanta and tweaking his right ankle in a collision with Braves catcher Brian McCann. The Dodgers got five runs and eight hits against the left-hander, who departed with a one-run lead.
Dodgers lefty Ted Lilly gave up six runs and eight hits in five innings, and is 1-6 with a 7.47 ERA over his last seven outings. He struck out six and did not allow a home run for the first time in his last six outings.
Gorzelanny and Lilly were teammates with the Chicago Cubs at the start of last season before Lilly was dealt to the Dodgers just before the non-waiver trade deadline and won his first five starts with Los Angeles. Gorzelanny, obtained by the Nationals in a trade on Jan. 19, is 0-4 with a 5.80 ERA in his last nine starts since beating Florida 5-2 on May 7.
The Nationals staked Gorzelanny to a 6-2 lead with three runs in the first inning and three more in the third. But the Dodgers got three in the bottom of the third, as Loney hit a sacrifice fly and Lilly hit a two-run double with two outs after an intentional walk to Navarro.
Washington scored its first three runs when former Dodger Jayson Werth followed an RBI double by Michael Morse with a two-run double. After the Dodgers chipped away with runs in the first two innings, the Nats came back in the third as Rick Ankiel doubled home a pair and scored on a hit-and-run infield single.
Notes: Saturday marked what would have been the 75th birthday of Hall of Fame pitcher and former Dodgers broadcaster Don Drysdale. The Dodgers were in Montreal, the Nationals’ former home, to play the Expos on July 3, 2003, when Drysdale was found dead in his hotel room at age 56 after suffering a heart attack. Ann Meyers-Drysdale was on hand Saturday with their sons, D.J. and Darren, each of whom threw out a ceremonial first pitch. The Dodgers’ grounds crew painted Drysdale’s No. 53 on the back slope of the mound. … Dave Van Horne, who did play-by-play for the Expos during their first 32 seasons, was inducted into the Hall of Fame on Saturday in a ceremony at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, N.Y. It was the first time that the winner of the annual Ford C. Frick Award was enshrined the day before the players were. One of Van Horne’s most memorable calls was at Dodger Stadium on July 28, 1991, when Dennis Martinez of the Expos pitched a perfect game and Van Horne said: “El Presidente, El Perfecto!” … Dodgers manager Don Mattingly hit three home runs against Bert Blyleven, who will be inducted into the Hall on Sunday. The first time they faced each other was Aug. 12, 1984, at Cleveland, when Mattingly grounded out sharply to first base his first time up — and was hit by a pitch his next time up after the first two pitches went under his chin. “He was tough, that’s for sure, and he had good stuff,” Mattingly said. “But I liked facing Bert. I hit Bert all right.”

Read more: Colorado Rockies, Washington Nationals, Rockies Beat Nationals, Jason Hammel, Pro, MLB

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jason Hammel pitched into the seventh inning for his second win in 13 starts, and the Colorado Rockies beat the Washington Nationals 3-2 on Friday night to end a five-game losing streak.

Hammel (5-8) allowed two runs and five hits in 6 1-3 innings as Colorado won for the first time in eight road games. The right-hander was coming off his shortest outing of the season, when he gave up seven runs in 3 2-3 innings in a loss to Kansas City.

All three Rockies runs came in the fourth inning. Todd Helton scored on a balk and Ty Wigginton and Cole Garner each had a run-scoring single. Nationals starter John Lannan (5-6) left the game in the same inning after Wigginton’s line drive hit him on the nose.

(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)