Lannan roughed up in Rockies 13-6 win, losing streak at 9 games
It started off bad, got worse and now the Nationals losing streak is at nine games, matching their season long, which, sadly, they've done twice.
John Lannan lasted four innings, plus three batters, giving up eight runs, all earned, and walked four. Lannan suffered the loss in the Rockies 13-6 win. The eight earned runs are the most he's allowed in a game this season. All four walks the he surrendered ended up scoring.
Colorado jumped on Lannan in the first, getting a 2-run single from Garrett Atkins. Willy Tavares and Matt Holliday pulled off a double steal, to put both runners in scoring position before Atkins base knock.
Washington tied the game, in the second, when Ronnie Belliard singled to the pitcher with the bases loaded and no one out. Livan Hernandez couldn't handle the come-backer and Lastings Milledge scored to cut Colorado's lead in half. Kory Casto grounded into a double play, but Austin Kearns scored to tie the game.
After a perfect second inning for Lannan, the Rockies tacked on three in the third. Troy Tulowitzki doubled home Holliday and Atkins for the 4-2 lead. Yorvit Torrealba followed with an RBI single to give Colorado a three-run lead.
Lannan retired the side in order in the fourth, but the fifth is where it got ugly, and fast. The first six Rockies reached base and all six scored. After Brad Hawpe singled home Holliday, Manny Acta pulled Lannan in favor of Garrett Mock.
Tulowitzki greeted Mock with a 2-run single to center. Ian Stewart and Hernandez got in on the action and each drove in a run, with RBI singles, to put Colorado up 11-2. When the innings was over, six runs crossed the plate on four hits and four walks and an error.
The Nationals bats came alive in the sixth, but it was case of too little too late. Ryan Zimmerman and Milledge had back-to-back RBI doubles. After Jesus Flores singled to load the bases, Belliard doubled, scoring two, but Flores was thrown out at the plate. After the game it was announced that Flores has a strained right calf and he will have a precautionary x-ray taken. He is listed as day-to-day.
Colorado tacked on two runs in the ninth, off Luis Ayala, for good measure.
Postgame Notes
Lastings Milledge went 3-4 and has hit safely in 15 of 17 games. In that span, he's batting .358 with a double, triple, five home runs and 11 RBI.
Ronnie Belliard is hotter than the weather in August. He is batting .395 with three doubles, a homer, seven RBI and two stolen bases this month. In eight career starts at shortstop, Belliard is hitting at a .452 clip.
Ryan Zimmerman has a modest seven game hitting streak, going 10-28 (.357) with three doubles and four RBI.
Final Linescore
Rockies 13-13-0
Nationals 6-11-3
WP-Hernandez (11-9)
LP-Lannan (6-11)
Pete McElroy's Live Gameblog
Nationals scoring, 6th inning
Trailing 11-2 in the sixth, Washington mounted a mini-comeback. Ryan Zimmerman's RBI double scored Emilio Bonifacio to get the rally started. Lastings Milledge doubled Zimmerman home to make it 11-4. Austin Kearns walked and Jesus Flores singled to load the bases. Ronnie Belliard doubled to the gap in left-center scoring Milledge and Kearns, but Flores was gunned down at the plate on a great relay throw by Troy Tulowitzki.
Mock's night
Garrett Mock tried to stop the bleeding, but ended up opening the wound even further. Mock gave up three runs on three hits and two walks in his two innings of work. He retired the side in order in the sixth, but had trouble in the fifth after replacing Lannan. In all, not the best night for Mock.
Rockies scoring, 5th inning
If you didn't know tonight's game was being played at Nationals Park, you would've thought this game was at Coors Field in Denver they way the Rockies are scoring runs.
John Lannan lasted four-plus innings, giving up eight runs, all earned, walked four and struck out two. He only retired 11 of the 23 batters he faced and left the Nationals in an 8-2 hole. Garrett Mock replaced Lannan and didn't fare much better. Mock gave up three runs on on three hits and two walks. Five of the six Rockies who walked, came around to score.
Brad Hawpe singled home the first run of the fifth. Troy Tulowitzki drove in two with a single. Ian Stewart and Livan Hernandez hit consecutive run scoring single to make it 10-2. With the bases loaded, Willy Harris hit a sac fly to score the sixth run.
Lannan's rough night
John Lannan faced three batters in the fifth and didn't record an out before being replaced by Garrett Mock. He have up eight runs, all earned, on seven hits in four-plus innings. Lannan was hurt by walks, four to be exact, and all four ended up scoring. He had trouble finding the strike zone and never got into a comfortable rhythm. Unless Washington can generate some offense from the fifth inning on, Lannan will lose his 12th game of the year.
4+ IP, 7 H, 8 R, 4 BB, 2 K. 88 pitches, 45 strikes.
Clubhouse Audio: John Lannan
Rockies scoring, 3rd inning
Colorado wasted little time getting the two runs back Livan Hernandez gave up in the second inning.
With runners on the corners, Brad Hawpe's ground out scored Matt Holliday, who singled. Troy Tulowitzki followed with an RBI double to make it 4-2. The next batter, Yorvit Torrealba, singled Tulowitzki home for the 5-2 lead.
Not doing their job
Nationals pitchers are not doing their job when it comes to holding runners on. In the first inning tonight, Willy Tavares stole second and after Matt Holliday walked, they pulled off a double steal. Jesus Flores didn't even manage a throw on the duel theft. It's John Lannan's responsibility to keep the runner, or runners, close to at least give Flores a chance on the throw. All too often Washington's pitchers haven't been doing this. Opponents are stealing bases at an alarming rate this season; 93 steals in 109 attempts. That's an 85% success rate. Nationals' catchers have only thrown out 16 would-be base stealers all season. Washington pitchers aren't the only ones to blame, but if they don't do their job, the catchers can't do theirs.
Lannan thru 3 innings
John Lannan looks to be off his game tonight. He's already at 62 pitches, almost half for balls; 32 strikes, 30 balls. He's leaving strikes over the middle of the plate and the Rockies aren't missing them. Manny Acta doesn't have anyone up in the pen yet, but unless Lannan can shake this funk, it's only a matter of time.
3 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 2 K.
Nationals scoring, 2nd inning
John Lannan spotted the Rockies a 2-0 lead in the first and it looked like it was going to be a long night, considering how anemic the Nationals offense has been all season, but they managed to tie the game in the second.
With nobody out and the bases loaded, Ronnie Belliard hit a come-backer to Livan Hernandez, who knocked the ball down. His throw home was off target and Lasting Milledge scored to make it 2-1. Kory Casto grounded into the 4-6-3 double play, allowing Austin Kearns to score the tying run.
Rockies scoring, 1st inning
If the Nationals are going to put an end to their eight game losing streak, they are going about it the wrong way.
John Lannan gave up a 2-run single to Garrett Atkins to fall behind rather quickly. Brad Hawpe followed with a single and Emilio Bonifacio booted a grounder by Troy Tulowitzki to load the bases. Lannan got Yorvit Torrealba to ground into the 5-2-3 inning ending double play to minimize the damage.
Starting Line-Ups
Rockies:
2B Clint Barmes
CF Willy tavares
LF Matt Holliday
1B Garrett Atkins
RF Brad Hawpe
SS Troy Tulowitzki
C Yorvit Torrealba
3B Ian Stewart
P Livan hernandez
Nationals:
2B Emilio Bonifacio
LF Willie Harris
3B Ryan Zimmerman
CF Lastings Milledge
RF Austin Kearns
C Jesus Flores
SS Ronnie Belliard
1B Kory Casto
P john Lannan
Game Preview
Colorado (55-69) at Nationals (44-79)
Nationals' starter Tim Redding wasn't too happy with the play of center fielder Lastings Milledge in the Rockies' three-run fifth last night.
Trailing 2-1, with two-outs and a runner on first, Matt Holliday hit a hard liner to center that Milledge broke in on. The ball went over his head for a run scoring double. The next batter, Brad Hawpe, followed with a two-run homer to put Colorado up 4-2 and hold on for the 4-3 win.
Redding suffered the loss, his eighth of the year, and when asked if Milledge should have caught the ball, he said "I'm not commenting. Next question. I made my point. We should have won the game."
Milledge took full responsibility for the play "I should have made the play, I didn't make it."
The loss, the eight straight for Washington, drops them to 8-19 since the All-Star break and 35 games under .500. It's their third streak of eight or more losses in a row this season.
John Lannan faces former franchise ace Livan Hernandez.
Pitching Match-Up
LHP John Lannan (6-11, 3.40) is coming off one of his best games of the season, but ended up with a no-decision for his effort. He gave up one hit and one unearned run in six innings in the Nationals 5-4, 13 inning, loss to the Brewers. Lannan walked five while striking out six.
After taking a 1-0 lead in the sixth, Ronnie Belliard's error led to the unearned run and Lannan was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the seventh. The five free passes matched a career high, which he had done twice last season.
Lannan, who won back-to-back games in mid-July, is winless in his last four starts, going 0-2 with a 3.86 ERA.
This is the second start against the Rockies for Lannan. He pitched seven outstanding innings of five-hit, two-run ball, but he wasn't around to get a decision. The Nationals bullpen gave up six runs in the eighth to fall 8-2.
Leading 2-0 in the seventh, Lannan served up a two-out, two-run homer to Ian Stewart for the only blemish on the night. He walked two and struck out eight. This is only the 10th start at Nationals Park for the young lefty. He hasn't had much success at home this year, going 2-6 with a 5.29 ERA..
RHP Livan Hernandez (10-9, 5.24) got absolutely hammered in his Rockie debut on August 10th. He didn't make it out of the third, giving up nine runs on seven hits and four walks in 2 2/3 innings as the Padres pounded Colorado 16-7.
Hernandez, the former Expo, was claimed off waivers from Minnesota on August 6th and put in the rotation on the 10th. Three of his prior four starts were as ugly as his most recent.
Hernandez went 1-3 with a 6.94 ERA. In the three losses, he allowed at least five runs and nine hits in each game.
This is the 14th time Hernandez will face his former organization. He's won seven and lost five, compiling a 3.96 ERA. Pitching on the road for Hernandez has been brutal. Opponents are hitting .375 off the workhorse and he's 2-6 in 10 starts. That's not surprising, since he is nine games under .500, 57-66, in his career on the road.
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