GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: NL: LA DODGERS (31-21) at WASHINGTON (21-32)

NL: LA DODGERS at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LA DODGERS (4) AT WASHINGTON (11) - HOW THEY SCORED
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WASHINGTON 1ST: F Lopez grounded out to second. C Guzman doubled to left.
R Zimmerman homered to left, C Guzman scored. D Young singled to left center.
A Kearns flied out to center. R Church singled to right, D Young to third.
B Schneider flied out to center. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 0,
WASHINGTON 2.

LA DODGERS 2ND: J Kent flied out to center. L Gonzalez flied out to
center. R Martin homered to center. A LaRoche singled to left center.
A LaRoche caught stealing second, catcher to shortstop.(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 2.

WASHINGTON 3RD: C Guzman grounded out to pitcher. R Zimmerman walked.
D Young singled to right, R Zimmerman to third. A Kearns hit sacrifice fly to
right, R Zimmerman scored. R Church struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 3.

WASHINGTON 5TH: C Guzman singled to center. R Zimmerman grounded out to
pitcher, C Guzman to second. D Young singled to left, C Guzman scored.
Y Brazoban relieved M Hendrickson. A Kearns safe at second on throwing error by
pitcher Y Brazoban, D Young to third. R Church intentionally walked.
B Schneider singled to right, D Young and A Kearns scored, R Church to second.
B Tomko relieved Y Brazoban. T Abreu at third base. N Logan struck out looking.
M Bowie struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 1 Error) LA DODGERS 1,
WASHINGTON 6.

LA DODGERS 6TH: T Abreu doubled to center. R Furcal walked. J Pierre
grounded into fielder's choice to first, R Furcal out at second, T Abreu to
third. S Rivera relieved M Bowie. N Garciaparra singled to shallow right,
T Abreu scored, J Pierre to second. J Kent popped out to first. L Gonzalez
singled to right, J Pierre scored, N Garciaparra to second. J Colome relieved
S Rivera. R Martin grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 3, WASHINGTON 6.

LA DODGERS 7TH: R Fick at first base. W Betemit hit for B Tomko. W Betemit
doubled to deep right center. A Ethier singled to left center, W Betemit to
third. T Abreu hit sacrifice fly to center, W Betemit scored. R Furcal flied
out to right. J Pierre grounded out to second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 4, WASHINGTON 6.

WASHINGTON 8TH: J Broxton relieved J Beimel. R Langerhans hit for J Rauch.
R Langerhans struck out swinging. F Lopez walked. C Guzman walked, F Lopez to
second. R Zimmerman doubled to deep right center, F Lopez and C Guzman scored.
R Fick struck out swinging. A Kearns singled to left, R Zimmerman scored.
R Seanez relieved J Broxton. R Church homered to right center, A Kearns scored.
B Schneider flied out to left. (5 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 4,
WASHINGTON 11.</div>

 

NL: LA DODGERS at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">NL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
LA DODGERS 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 4 8 1
WASHINGTON 2 0 1 0 3 0 0 5 x 11 14 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: LOS - MARK HENDRICKSON, YHENCY BRAZOBAN (5TH), BRETT TOMKO (5TH),
JOE BEIMEL (7TH), JONATHAN BROXTON (8TH), RUDY SEANEZ (8TH)
AND RUSSELL MARTIN

WAS - MICAH BOWIE, SAUL RIVERA (6TH), JESUS COLOME
(6TH), JON RAUCH (8TH), CHAD CORDERO (9TH) AND BRIAN SCHNEIDER


WP - MICAH BOWIE (2-2)
LP - MARK HENDRICKSON (2-3)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: LOS - RUSSELL MARTIN (5) OFF MICAH BOWIE IN THE 2ND, 0 ON

WAS - RYAN ZIMMERMAN (7) OFF MARK HENDRICKSON IN THE 1ST, 1 ON
RYAN CHURCH (6) OFF RUDY SEANEZ IN THE 8TH, 1 ON


TIME: 3:15 ATT: 20,982

PROBABLES: SDG - JAKE PEAVY (7-1, 1.47)
WAS - MATT CHICO (3-4, 5.13)

PROBABLES: LOS - RANDY WOLF (6-3, 3.41)
PIT - ZACH DUKE (2-5, 5.55)</div>

 

NL: LA DODGERS at WASHINGTON

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LA DODGERS (4) AT WASHINGTON (11) - EVENT LOG
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La Dodgers Starting Lineups -- R Furcal SS, J Pierre CF, N Garciaparra 1B,
J Kent 2B, L Gonzalez LF, R Martin C, A LaRoche 3B, A Ethier RF, M Hendrickson LHP.

Washington Starting Lineups -- F Lopez 2B, C Guzman SS, R Zimmerman 3B, D Young 1B,
A Kearns RF, R Church LF, B Schneider C, N Logan CF, M Bowie LHP.

Umpires -- Jerry Crawford (HP), Brian O'Nora (1B), Phil Cuzzi (2B),
Chris Guccione (3B).

Gametime Weather: 86 degrees, Clear, wind in from center at 12 mph.


LA DODGERS 1ST: R Furcal grounded out to third. J Pierre grounded out to
second. N Garciaparra grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 0, WASHINGTON 0.

WASHINGTON 1ST: F Lopez grounded out to second. C Guzman doubled to left.
R Zimmerman homered to left, C Guzman scored. D Young singled to left center.
A Kearns flied out to center. R Church singled to right, D Young to third.
B Schneider flied out to center. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 0,
WASHINGTON 2.

LA DODGERS 2ND: J Kent flied out to center. L Gonzalez flied out to
center. R Martin homered to center. A LaRoche singled to left center.
A LaRoche caught stealing second, catcher to shortstop.(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 2.

WASHINGTON 2ND: N Logan struck out looking. M Bowie grounded out to
catcher. F Lopez grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 2.

LA DODGERS 3RD: A Ethier lined out to third. M Hendrickson struck out
swinging. R Furcal grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 2.

WASHINGTON 3RD: C Guzman grounded out to pitcher. R Zimmerman walked.
D Young singled to right, R Zimmerman to third. A Kearns hit sacrifice fly to
right, R Zimmerman scored. R Church struck out swinging. (1 Run, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 3.

LA DODGERS 4TH: J Pierre popped out to second. N Garciaparra lined out to
left. J Kent grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 1,
WASHINGTON 3.

WASHINGTON 4TH: B Schneider flied out to left. N Logan singled to center.
M Bowie sacrificed to catcher, N Logan to second. F Lopez struck out looking.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 3.

LA DODGERS 5TH: L Gonzalez fouled out to third. R Martin walked.
A LaRoche struck out swinging. A Ethier popped out to shortstop. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 1, WASHINGTON 3.

WASHINGTON 5TH: C Guzman singled to center. R Zimmerman grounded out to
pitcher, C Guzman to second. D Young singled to left, C Guzman scored.
Y Brazoban relieved M Hendrickson. A Kearns safe at second on throwing error by
pitcher Y Brazoban, D Young to third. R Church intentionally walked.
B Schneider singled to right, D Young and A Kearns scored, R Church to second.
B Tomko relieved Y Brazoban. T Abreu at third base. N Logan struck out looking.
M Bowie struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 1 Error) LA DODGERS 1,
WASHINGTON 6.

LA DODGERS 6TH: T Abreu doubled to center. R Furcal walked. J Pierre
grounded into fielder's choice to first, R Furcal out at second, T Abreu to
third. S Rivera relieved M Bowie. N Garciaparra singled to shallow right,
T Abreu scored, J Pierre to second. J Kent popped out to first. L Gonzalez
singled to right, J Pierre scored, N Garciaparra to second. J Colome relieved
S Rivera. R Martin grounded out to shortstop. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 3, WASHINGTON 6.

WASHINGTON 6TH: F Lopez flied out to left. C Guzman singled to right.
R Zimmerman struck out swinging. D Young singled to center, C Guzman to third.
R Fick ran for D Young. A Kearns flied out to right. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 3, WASHINGTON 6.

LA DODGERS 7TH: R Fick at first base. W Betemit hit for B Tomko. W Betemit
doubled to deep right center. A Ethier singled to left center, W Betemit to
third. T Abreu hit sacrifice fly to center, W Betemit scored. R Furcal flied
out to right. J Pierre grounded out to second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
LA DODGERS 4, WASHINGTON 6.

WASHINGTON 7TH: J Beimel relieved B Tomko. R Church grounded out to first.
B Schneider lined out to right. N Logan grounded out to third. (0 Runs,
0 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 4, WASHINGTON 6.

LA DODGERS 8TH: J Rauch relieved J Colome. N Garciaparra grounded out to
shortstop. J Kent flied out to center. L Gonzalez doubled to deep right.
R Martin struck out looking. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 4, WASHINGTON 6.

WASHINGTON 8TH: J Broxton relieved J Beimel. R Langerhans hit for J Rauch.
R Langerhans struck out swinging. F Lopez walked. C Guzman walked, F Lopez to
second. R Zimmerman doubled to deep right center, F Lopez and C Guzman scored.
R Fick struck out swinging. A Kearns singled to left, R Zimmerman scored.
R Seanez relieved J Broxton. R Church homered to right center, A Kearns scored.
B Schneider flied out to left. (5 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 4,
WASHINGTON 11.

LA DODGERS 9TH: C Cordero relieved J Rauch. R Langerhans in left field.
B Clark hit for R Seanez. B Clark walked. A Ethier struck out swinging. T Abreu
grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, B Clark out at second. R Furcal
grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) LA DODGERS 4, WASHINGTON 11.</div>

 

Zimmerman powers Nationals past Dodgers

<h3>WASHINGTON 11, LOS ANGELES 4</h3>WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Washington Nationals Ryan Zimmerman hada homer and four RBI, Dmitri Young went 4-for-4, and MichahBowie made the most of his first career start against the LosAngeles Dodgers on Thursday night.

Zimmerman had a two-run homer in the first inning and a two-rundouble off the wall in the eighth to help the Nationals avoid athree-game sweep with an 11-4 victory over the Dodgers.

After Austin Kearns singled home Zimmerman, Ryan Church'stwo-run homer capped the Nationals' largest scoring output athome since they scored 11 runs here last June 17 against the NewYork Yankees.

"This is the major leagues," Dodgers manager Grady Little said."We're not playing American Legion baseball here or Division IIIcollege. These guys can play. You might can hold somebody downfor a little bit, but sooner or later, they're going to bustout.

"Tonight, they busted out on the L.A. Dodgers."

Bowie (2-2), who was pressed into the rotation because four ofWashington's five Opening Day starters are on the disabled list,allowed three runs on three hits in 5 1/3 innings. TheNationals improved to 3-0 this season when he starts.

"He's been throwing strikes since the day he signed with theBraves' organization," Little said. "I can remember when the kidsigned over there and he's been a strike thrower all the waythrough his career. That's what's helped him stick around andpitch this long. That's impressive. You can certainly see whythey would take him out of the bullpen and put him in theirrotation."

Young's RBI single to left scored Cristian Guzman, who had threehits, and gave the Nationals a 4-1 lead in the fifth. The hitalso chased Dodgers starter Mark Hendrickson (2-3), who allowedfive earned runs on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings.

"Hitting is contagious," Young said. "When we all hit like that,we're going to score runs."

Dodgers right-hander Yancy Brazoban entered and promptly made athrowing error that allowed Kearns to reach second as Guzmanadvanced to third. An intentional walk to Ryan Church loadedthe bases with one out.

Brian Schneider then delivered a two-run single to right thatgave the Nationals a 6-1 lead and chased Brazoban.

"That's a concern, for sure, but we'll see," Little said. "Hefelt something in the back of his shoulder and we'll evaluatethat tomorrow in Pittsburgh and see where we stand."

The Dodgers pulled to 6-4 in the seventh by scoring a runagainst Nationals right-hander Jesus Colome with a leadoffdouble by pinch-hitter Wilson Betimit, a single by Andre Ethierand a sacrifice fly by Tony Abreu.

"We were trying to get out of town before they broke out thebats," Dodgers CF Juan Pierre said of the Nationals, who managedonly nine hits in the first two games of the series. "We werehoping they would get hot against San Diego instead of us. Wehad them on the ropes right there when it was 6-4 but they putsome hits together."

Colome, who has more wins (4) than any Nationals starter, hadprovided scoreless relief in 10 of his past 11 appearances.

Right-hander Jon Rauch yielded a two-out double by Luis Gonzalezin the eighth but struck out Russell Martin to end the threat.

"We tried coming back there for a moment, but we were lettingthem in a little bit faster than we were driving them in,"Little said. "That was the rest of the story."

Closer Chad Cordero worked the ninth to pick up his eighth saveof the season and his fourth in as many opportunities sincereturning from the bereavement list May 14.

Zimmerman followed Guzman's double with a two-run homer thatgave the Nationals a 2-0 lead in the first inning. The blastsnapped a two-game hitless streak for Zimmerman, who leads theNationals with seven home runs. He has gone hitless in threeconsecutive games only once this season.

"We faced two good pitchers in (Brad) Penny and (Derek) Lowe,and just being able to score first and kind of put the pressureon them felt better than anything else," Zimmerman said. "That'stwo really good pitchers that, if they're on their game, youcan't really do much against them. Hopefully we can keep thisgoing."

The Nationals added a run in the third on a walk by Zimmerman, asingle by Young and a sacrifice fly by Kearns.

Martin's fifth homer of the season and second in as many nightspulled the Dodgers to 2-1 in the second. Andy LaRoche followedwith a single but was caught stealing to end the inning.

The Dodgers added two runs in the sixth on RBI singles by NomarGarciaparra and Luis Gonzalez.

 

Zimmerman powers Nationals past Dodgers

<h3>WASHINGTON 11, LOS ANGELES 4</h3>WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Washington Nationals Ryan Zimmerman hada homer and four RBI, Dmitri Young went 4-for-4, and Micah Bowiemade the most of his first career start against the Los AngelesDodgers on Thursday night.

Zimmerman had a two-run homer in the first inning and a two-rundouble off the wall in the eighth to help the Nationals avoid athree-game sweep with an 11-4 victory over the Dodgers.

After Austin Kearns singled home Zimmerman, Ryan Church'stwo-run homer capped the Nationals' largest scoring output athome since they scored 11 runs here last June 17 against the NewYork Yankees.

"This is the major leagues," Dodgers manager Grady Little said."We're not playing American Legion baseball here or Division IIIcollege. These guys can play. You might can hold somebody downfor a little bit, but sooner or later, they're going to bustout.

"Tonight, they busted out on the L.A. Dodgers."

Bowie (2-2), who was pressed into the rotation because four ofWashington's five Opening Day starters are on the disabled list,allowed three runs on three hits in 5 1/3 innings. TheNationals improved to 3-0 this season when he starts.

"He's been throwing strikes since the day he signed with theBraves' organization," Little said. "I can remember when thekid signed over there and he's been a strike thrower all the waythrough his career. That's what's helped him stick around andpitch this long. That's impressive. You can certainly see whythey would take him out of the bullpen and put him in theirrotation."

Young's RBI single to left scored Cristian Guzman, who had threehits, and gave the Nationals a 4-1 lead in the fifth. The hitalso chased Dodgers starter Mark Hendrickson (2-3), who allowedfive earned runs on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings.

"Hitting is contagious," Young said. "When we all hit like that,we're going to score runs."

Dodgers right-hander Yancy Brazoban entered and promptly made athrowing error that allowed Kearns to reach second as Guzmanadvanced to third. An intentional walk to Ryan Church loadedthe bases with one out.

Brian Schneider then delivered a two-run single to right thatgave the Nationals a 6-1 lead and chased Brazoban.

"That's a concern, for sure, but we'll see," Little said. "Hefelt something in the back of his shoulder and we'll evaluatethat tomorrow in Pittsburgh and see where we stand."

The Dodgers pulled to 6-4 in the seventh by scoring a runagainst Nationals right-hander Jesus Colome with a leadoffdouble by pinch-hitter Wilson Betimit, a single by Andre Ethierand a sacrifice fly by Tony Abreu.

"We were trying to get out of town before they broke out thebats," Dodgers CF Juan Pierre said of the Nationals, who managedonly nine hits in the first two games of the series. "We werehoping they would get hot against San Diego instead of us. Wehad them on the ropes right there when it was 6-4 but they putsome hits together."

Colome, who has more wins (4) than any Nationals starter, hadprovided scoreless relief in 10 of his past 11 appearances.

Right-hander Jon Rauch yielded a two-out double by Luis Gonzalezin the eighth but struck out Russell Martin to end the threat.

"We tried coming back there for a moment, but we were lettingthem in a little bit faster than we were driving them in,"Little said. "That was the rest of the story."

Closer Chad Cordero worked the ninth to pick up his eighth saveof the season and his fourth in as many opportunities sincereturning from the bereavement list May 14.

Zimmerman followed Guzman's double with a two-run homer thatgave the Nationals a 2-0 lead in the first inning. The blastsnapped a two-game hitless streak for Zimmerman, who leads theNationals with seven home runs. He has gone hitless in threeconsecutive games only once this season.

"We faced two good pitchers in (Brad) Penny and (Derek) Lowe,and just being able to score first and kind of put the pressureon them felt better than anything else," Zimmerman said. "That'stwo really good pitchers that, if they're on their game, youcan't really do much against them. Hopefully we can keep thisgoing."

The Nationals added a run in the third on a walk by Zimmerman, asingle by Young and a sacrifice fly by Kearns.

Martin's fifth homer of the season and second in as many nightspulled the Dodgers to 2-1 in the second. Andy LaRoche followedwith a single but was caught stealing to end the inning.

The Dodgers added two runs in the sixth on RBI singles by NomarGarciaparra and Luis Gonzalez.