Nats Are Looking Spiffier After Homestand
Nationals 5, Pirates 2

By Barry Svrluga
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 5, 2008

When the Washington Nationals arrived back at Nationals Park nearly two weeks ago, there was almost nothing about which to be pleased. "We were bad," infielder Aaron Boone said, and that was reflected in the standings. The Nationals had dropped 15 of their previous 18 games, owned baseball's worst record, and were playing a brand of baseball that supported such results.

But as they gathered at midfield yesterday afternoon, bathed in sun as they shook hands following a fine 5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates, their circumstances were markedly different. Smiles are no longer forced, bats are no longer strangled, and wins come more than once a week.

"I think now," catcher Paul Lo Duca said, "the guys in here are starting to believe that we can win."

There is, finally, evidence to support that. The victory yesterday -- anchored by another strong performance from right-hander Tim Redding, who was bolstered by two key outs from Saúl Rivera in relief -- was Washington's eighth in its last 10 games. No longer baseball's worst team, the Nationals concluded their longest homestand of the year having distanced themselves from their horrid 5-15 start. They took three of four from Pittsburgh, swept two games from Atlanta, took two of three with the Chicago Cubs and split a pair with the New York Mets.

"A tremendous homestand," Manager Manny Acta said.

There is no one aspect of the game that spurred the turnaround. Rather, the Nationals are playing better in every facet. Through their first 22 games -- a span that included a 7-2 loss to the Mets that started the homestand -- they hit .227, posted a 4.75 ERA, and committed 14 errors. Over the last 10 games, they hit .267, had an ERA of 3.87, and butchered just four balls.

"We're playing good baseball," said Boone, who started in place of Ryan Zimmerman at third and responded with his first home run as a National. "We weren't doing that for two weeks there. . . . You're seeing a good brand of baseball, and it's fun to be a part of that. I think as the bats continue to come around, we feel like we have a chance to be a really good team."

That wretched span of 18 games that followed the Nationals' 3-0 start featured nearly every malady that can befall a squad. They ran the bases poorly, threw to the wrong base on occasion, swung at pitches they should have taken. During that stretch, they lost six games by one run.

"Then we went through the stockpile of losses where it was hard for them to relax and have fun playing the game," General Manager Jim Bowden said. "And now they're relaxed and having fun playing the game. We could easily have won half of those [one-run] games early and been at .500 -- and maybe be right there right now."

Alas, the Nationals are still in last place in the National League East, a division in which they are the only team below .500. But performances like yesterday's -- a clean game in front of a crowd of 30,564 -- make the players, so glum just two weeks ago, believe last place is not where this team will end up. Lo Duca put it plainly. "We're trying to get to .500," he said, "and go from there."

To do that, Redding will have to pitch as he did yesterday, when he allowed one run in 6 1/3 innings, raising his record to 4-2 and lowering his ERA to 3.20. He dominated the Pirates the first time through the order, striking out five of the nine men he faced over three perfect innings. Adam LaRoche touched him for a homer in the fifth, but he held a 3-1 lead in the seventh.

"He's throwing four pitches for a strike," Lo Duca said, "and his fastball, he's spotting it."

Since Redding was called up from Class AAA Columbus last July, he has been, as pitching coach Randy St. Claire said, "that steady guy, the guy who's always right there." In 22 starts for Washington -- 15 in 2007, seven this season -- he has never given up more than five earned runs. Only four times has he allowed more than three. If the Nationals had to pick one pitcher who could all but guarantee he would keep them in a given game, they would almost certainly select Redding.

"He gives me a lot of peace of mind every five days," Acta said.

Still, the Nationals might not have won yesterday's game without Rivera. With one out and a runner on first in the seventh, LaRoche doubled to deep right-center, putting runners on second and third, threatening the Nationals' 3-1 lead. Acta replaced Redding with Rivera, a decision Redding called "a great move by Manny."

Rivera's first task: Retire Pirates third baseman José Bautista, who came into the at-bat 7 for 13 with three homers in the series. "I wanted to strike him out," Rivera said. Instead, "He made some great pitches on the corners," Lo Duca said. With the count 2-2, Bautista bounced a ball back to Rivera. He held the runners, and recorded the second out.

Next up came pinch hitter Doug Mientkiewicz, an aggressive left-handed swinger. Lo Duca called St. Claire to the mound. The plan: Be careful, but try to get him out with something down and away. Rivera fell behind 3-0, got him to foul back a 3-1 pitch, and then induced another comebacker. The lead was safe.

"If this was football," Redding said, "he'd get the game ball."

If this was football, the Nationals wouldn't even be to Week 4.

"We still got more work to do," Lo Duca said. "We want to be there in September -- with a chance."