After 0-for-13 opening slump, Werth delivers game-winning hit

The giant scoreboard in right-center showed it for all the world to see, but Jayson Werth didn't need it spelled out in print. As he stepped to the plate in the bottom of the seventh this afternoon, the bases loaded with teammates, Werth knew his batting average contained nothing but zeroes.

"I'm aware," the veteran outfielder said with a smirk an hour later in the Nationals clubhouse.

The Marlins were aware, too, which is why they didn't hesitate to intentionally walk Daniel Murphy in front of Werth with the game tied, even though that would load the bases.

"It's not like it's the first time that's happened," Werth said. "Probably the right thing to do considering the situation and that circumstances. ... Figured with one out, that was the play. No big deal."

What happened next won't end up on a highlight reel of the greatest hits of Werth's career. Facing a 2-2 count against Edwin Jackson, he stuck his bat out at a fastball on the outside corner and blooped the ball into no-man's land between the second baseman, center fielder and right fielder. The exit velocity of the ball off the bat was 70 mph. (Earlier in the game, Giancarlo Stanton ripped a 119-mph base hit to left.)

It doesn't matter. Werth found open grass for the first time this season, and the details how exactly that happened were inconsequential. His RBI single snapped his season-opening 0-for-13 slump and, more importantly, gave the Nationals a lead they would not relinquish en route to a 4-2 victory.

"You knew it was going to happen sooner or later," manager Dusty Baker said. "He's had plenty of opportunities with runners in scoring position. Maybe that can get him going and get him hot."

Werth, without question, has had his share of opportunities through the season's first week. Of his 13 hitless at-bats prior to the seventh inning today, seven had come with runners in scoring position. He had single-handedly stranded 14 men on base.

He had just missed yet another opportunity two innings earlier, again stepping to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs, only to ground the first pitch he saw right at shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria.

"I've never been the best player in April," the 36-year-old said. "I never had a chance to win the Player of the Month for April. I'm usually a slow starter. Hopefully, that'll get me going.

"I feel good. I'm healthy. My drills and swings I've been taking are good. I feel alright. My timing has been a little bit off. And I've been moving my hands around a little bit trying to get comfortable up there. It'll come."

The Nationals need it to come because the current structure of their lineup puts Werth especially in a position to hit in key spots. The three teammates who are hitting in front of him (Bryce Harper, Ryan Zimmerman and Murphy) currently boast the following on-base percentages: .556, .429, .611.

Is it any wonder Werth has come up so many times with runners in scoring position?

"To get J-Dub in that situation, and in a battle to come through right there to give us the lead, that was huge," said Clint Robinson, who added his own clutch, two-run single a few minutes later. "I'm sure it does a lot for him. I know J-Dub doesn't need that type of stuff for confidence, but it's always good to go out there and help your team win and contribute like that."

Contributing to victories is all Werth wants to do right now. He knows the batting average may not look too imposing at the moment, but he also knows he has played a direct role in two of the Nationals' three victories to date, having scored the tying run on opening day in Atlanta via some aggressive baserunning and a hard slide into the plate that knocked the ball out of catcher A.J. Pierzynski's mitt.

"The personal stuff has always been secondary for me," Werth said. "I'm here to win. I'm here to play to win. Looking at that game in Atlanta, I didn't have any hits, but I drew that walk and scored the winning run. That was as big a play as any base hit or home run you could've had. As long as we're winning, I'm happy."