Contributions abound in Nationals' come-from-behind win

How did the Nationals pull a 5-4, 10-inning victory over the Braves out of their caps tonight? Take your pick.

There was Daniel Murphy's game-winning hit to deep left field in the bottom of the 10th, but that wouldn't have been possible without Adrián Sanchez's first career hit to ignite the rally.

And the Nationals only found themselves in a situation where one run would win the game because Matt Albers induced a 6-4-3 double play from Matt Kemp in the top of the 10th with the go-ahead run in scoring position.

And extra innings never would have been needed if not for the Nationals' furious rally from three runs down in the bottom of the ninth, a rally that included big at-bats from Bryce Harper, Ryan Zimmerman, Murphy, Anthony Rendon, Chris Heisey, Matt Wieters and Wilmer Difo.

So spread the credit around for this one, because without every one of those contributions the Nats might not have been able to leave the ballpark with one of the season's most uplifting victories, left instead to head home grumbling about another frustrating loss to a pesky Atlanta club that has emerged as their closest competition in the National League East division through the season's first half.

"Team wins, they're great," said Max Scherzer, who pitched the first 7 2/3 innings. "Everyone has a hand in it, a hand in this jar of why we won today."

This was the Nationals' seventh walk-off win out of 86 games played so far this season, only the third time they've won when behind entering the bottom of the ninth.

And in order to do that, they needed a whole lot of help from a whole lot of people.

We'll begin with the game-tying rally, all of which came against Braves closer Jim Johnson, the man who locked down a 5-2 win early Friday morning at the end of a brutally long night at the ballpark. This time around, the Nationals were ready for the veteran sinkerballer.

Harper got things started with a leadoff single to right. Zimmerman followed with a walk. That put men in scoring position for Murphy, whose single to right plated Harper and advanced Zimmerman to third. That kept a man in scoring position for Rendon, whose single to right plated Zimmerman and advanced Murphy to third.

And that proved critical because - after Heisey chugged down the line to prevent a 5-4-3 double play - the tying run remained on third base with only one out, providing Wieters the opportunity to drive Murphy home with a sacrifice fly.

"What stands out was our baserunning, to me, as much as anything," manager Dusty Baker said. "That's something that's overlooked. We try to create as many first-to-third situations as possible."

The baserunning created scoring opportunities, but quality at-bats actually brought those runs home. And high on the list of quality at-bats was the seven-pitch at-bat put forth by Wieters.

With the Braves infield playing back and Johnson firing sinkers in hopes of inducing a game-ending double play from the slow-footed catcher, Wieters worked the count full and then lofted a flyball deep enough to center field to bring Murphy home.

Wieters' approach against his former batterymate from Baltimore?

"With his sinker, something that I can get elevated," he said. "I didn't want to chase anything down and away. Fortunately, I was able to lay off a sinker and a changeup and just be able to get something a little up. The 3-2 curveball was a tough pitch, but something I could get in the air."

Invigorating as the ninth-inning rally was, the Nationals knew it would be squandered if they just gave the lead right back in the top of the 10th. And after Matt Grace issued a leadoff walk, a sacrifice bunt and then intentionally walked the ferocious Freddie Freeman, it was up to Albers to get out of the jam against Kemp.

The big right-hander did just that, coaxing a groundball to short from the slugger that turned into a double play and brought another roar from the crowd of 32,664.

With a chance now to win it in the bottom of the inning, the Nationals turned to the newest member of their roster to set the tone. Sanchez has been in the big leagues only a week, a surprise call-up after Trea Turner fractured his wrist. Already the 26-year-old who spent a decade working his way up the organizational ladder has found himself in some big spots.

Sanchez's first career at-bat came with the bases loaded and two out in a one-run game in St. Louis. He impressed the entire clubhouse after battling back from an 0-2 count to work it full before getting punched out on a 3-2 pitch well off the outside corner.

This time he made the most of a pitch over the plate, lining it to center field for his first career hit.

"At first it didn't cross my mind, until I was actually on base and then it kind of fell on me that it was my first big league hit," Sanchez said via interpreter Octavio Martinez. "In the moment, I just wanted to find a way to get on base."

Like his teammates the prior inning, Sanchez showed off his baserunning skills when he went first to third on Zimmerman's opposite-field single. That allowed Murphy to step to the plate knowing a flyball would win the game.

"I like to hit the ball in the air," Murphy said. "So that's the situation right there."

His subsequent drive deep to left field cleared Kemp's head by several feet. Even if it didn't, it was plenty deep to score Sanchez. And thus the first base dugout spilled onto the field, some to greet Sanchez as he crossed the plate, some to catch up to Murphy after he rounded first.

All were out there to celebrate a dramatic win worth celebrating.

"You saw guys at the top of the dugout," Baker said. "This was a total team game. Guys off the bench came in. The bullpen. ... I'm just glad we came back the way we did."