Power hitters each hit homers as Washington earns road trip split
In a season where little has gone right for the Nationals, a .500 road trip is nothing to scoff at.
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That’s exactly what Washington accomplished since it last played a game at Nationals Park on July 26th. A road trip to Milwaukee and Pittsburgh saw the team’s first baseman, Nick Johnson, and setup man, Joe Beimel, each play his last game with the club — but it also ended on a relative high note Monday evening.
Adam Dunn belted a three-run home run in the sixth inning to put the Nats ahead for good and they added four insurance runs in the seventh to put Pittsburgh away in an 8-4 win at PNC Park.
Washington (34-72) salvaged a 4-4 trip, winning the first two games in Milwaukee and fighting back to win the last two against the Pirates (45-60). The Nats return home on Tuesday with a three-game series against the Florida Marlins.
Dunn’s three-run homer was the big blow on Monday. The left-handed batter curled an opposite-field smash around the left-field foul pole to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 Washington lead. The Nats then teed off on Pittsburgh reliever Jeff Karstens with two down and none on in the seventh. A triple by Cristian Guzman (2-for-4, triple, two RBI) was followed by a two-run homer from Ryan Zimmerman. For the series, Zimmerman reached base 11 times. His homer was No. 21 on the year — just three shy of his career-best total in 2007. He was 1-for-3 on Monday, but reached base three times with a walk and a hit-by-pitch.
Zimmerman now has 70 RBI. Dunn’s homer was his 27th of the season. He also doubled for the 22nd time and has posted a team-high 78 RBI.
Elijah Dukes added an RBI single during the four-run seventh to put Washington up, 8-3. In his third game since a recall from Triple-A Syracuse, Dukes was 2-for-4 with a walk.
The best part for Nats manager Jim Riggleman? Maybe the performance of reliever Tyler Clippard, who escaped a bases-loaded, none-out jam in the fifth and tossed three scoreless innings. He didn’t allow a hit or a walk and his ERA is now 2.52.
