While the Nationals’ June 18th offense was not as explosive this game as it has been the past four games, it didn’t need to be thanks to a strong start by pitcher Jordan Zimmerman. The Nats have now won eight games in a row, beating the Baltimore Orioles 4-2 Saturday.
The afternoon got off to a bad start for the Nationals as the second batter of the game, Orioles’ center fielder Adam Jones, hit a solo home run off of Zimmerman to right field to put the O’s up by one.
“The first couple innings he [Zimmerman] was really out of sync a little bit,” Nats’ Manager Jim Riggleman said. “He was struggling. Getting behind hitters, having to pitch out of trouble and then he kind of found it.”
However, Washington did not waste much time in tying the game as the other Zimmerman on the team, Ryan, destroyed a pitch by Brian Matusz to left field to make it a one all game. It was Zimmerman’s first home run since coming off of the disabled list Tuesday.
First baseman Michael Morse continued to show impressive power as he hit his 13th home run of the season in the bottom of the sixth inning to put the Nats up 3-1. His 42 RBIs this season mark a career high for the 29-year-old. Catcher Ivan Rodriguez doubled later in the inning, scoring left fielder Jerry Hairston Jr. to put the Nationals up by three.
Baltimore scored one in the seventh, but that was all they would get as the Nats’ pitching staff did not allow any runs after that point.
If the Nats win the series finale against the O’s on Sunday they will have a .500 record for the season. It would be the latest date in the history of the organization that the team had an even record, dating back to 2005.
“It’s very significant,” Riggleman said. “It was kind of a target for us a couple of weeks ago that we felt like we’re not gonna catch the Phillies tomorrow. We’re not gonna catch the Braves tomorrow. Let’s attack each game and set a goal that maybe we can attain and if we can do that we can set some more goals. It’s certainly a sense of accomplishment.”
Realistically speaking, the team will probably not win the NL East this season. It would even take a lot to make the playoffs. But with a combination of veterans and young players both at the major and minor league levels, this Nationals team could be a playoff team or more in the not-too-distant future.
blasky@theeagleonline.com
