Nats drop series finale 5-1

By Dan Kolko

Nationals

August 22, 2012, 6:27pm

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A sweep would've meant a nice eight-game lead in the division. Instead, the Nationals will have to settle for taking two out of three and holding a six-game lead over the Braves. The Nats dropped the series finale 5-1 tonight, allowing the Braves to leave town with a bit of momentum when they entered today staring down a possible three-game sweep. If you're Nationals manager Davey Johnson, this one sure wasn't pretty. The Nats managed little off Braves starter Kris Medlen and only got on the board once the right-hander was pulled after seven innings. They made three errors, misread fly balls and threw the ball around the infield. They left the bases loaded in the sixth inning, stranded two in the eighth and after closing what was a 2-0 Braves lead to a single run and then allowed Atlanta to put up three big insurance runs (two of them unearned) in the top of the 9th. You can't win 'em all, and taking two of three over what looks like a playoff team is nothing to be ashamed of. But Nats fans might go to bed tonight wondering what could have been.