Harper lifted the Nationals to a 2-1 victory over Atlanta on Tuesday with an eighth-inning bloop double, continuing Washington’s mastery of the Braves entering Wednesday’s third contest of a four-game home series.
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Oliver Perez pitched a flawless eighth for the Nationals and closer Jonathan Papelbon went the ninth for his fifth save in as many tries. “Not to take it for granted, I’m definitely excited, but I’m looking for many more to come”.
Baltimore had won their first seven games but were beaten by Xander Bogaerts’ two-run double and Jackie Bradley’s triple, despite Chris Davis’ two-run homer.
Get breaking news and SI’s biggest stories instantly. “Sometimes you’ve got to keep them honest”. He joined Ryan Zimmerman and Ian Desmond as the only players to hit 100 home runs in a Nationals uniform, and he did so in fewer games.
“I’ve always kind of been one to work the count and see a lot of pitches”, Werth said. Atlanta was unable to get on track offensively against Tanner Roark who threw seven shutout innings in place of scheduled starter Steven Strasburg. “Don’t want to comment on it because there’s an ongoing investigation with Major League Baseball and the local authorities, so we’ve just got to leave it at that for now”.
Make no mistake, it’s the pitching that has them smashing team records. Ready to roll. I think the main thing I saw was he had a very good change-up and he was throwing some first-pitch curveball strikes.
Atlanta first baseman Freddie Freeman was hitless in four at-bats and is hitting.080 in 25 at-bats this season.
“We’re taking it one day at a time and we are just going out there and competing, playing loose and playing together”, Strasburg said.
With LF Olivera unavailable, the Braves recalled INF Daniel Castro from Triple-A Gwinnett and Kelly Johnson started in LF. “He’s a guy that can play three infield positions (2B, 3B, SS).and help us”.
Lee Dae-ho’s 10th-inning, two-run homer secured the Seattle Mariners a 4-2 victory over the Texas Rangers while Maikel Franco drove in both runs as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the San Diego Padres 2-1. However, his second start worked out better than the first because his routine wasn’t interrupted by almost a 90 minute rain delay.Manager Dusty Baker did not rule out that Strasburg could start Thursday against Atlanta. If Strasburg, who is 7-7 in 20 career starts against the Braves, cannot go Thursday, the Nationals could turn to Yusmeiro Petit (0-0, 4.50 ERA; 57 career starts in 162 appearance).WALK-OFFS1.
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The Baltimore Orioles suffered their first defeat of the season, losing 4-2 to the Boston Red Sox.
