Fedde, Kieboom lead Nats to 3-1 win in opener (updated)

PHILADELPHIA - The infield was playable. The rain held off. Gabe Kapler used 23 of his 39 available players. Erick Fedde put forth the best start of his young career. Spencer Kieboom lost a tooth and then hit his first career home run.

And there's still another game to be played tonight at Citizens Bank Park.

Who knows what the nightcap of this doubleheader has in store, but the Nationals certainly can't complain about what took place during their 3-1 victory over the Phillies in the opener.

After three postponements in the previous four days, including Monday's bizarre one necessitated by a soaked infield that was not properly tarped last weekend, the Nats simply were thrilled to be playing a game at all. The field held up after hours of work, even if the infield dirt was soft and created a couple of shaky hops.

"We told the guys: Both teams have to play on the field, just go out there and play," manager Davey Martinez said. "Don't worry about the field, just play. The more you worry about it, you tend to try to hold up. And that's when injuries happen. So, just go play the game, and let's come out on top. And they did. They played well."

Fedde led the way, tossing 5 2/3 scoreless innings and striking out nine in the best of his 11 major league starts to date.

The right-hander pitched well in his last outing against the Cardinals but was done in by a four-run top of the second that spoiled the entire start. The Nationals wanted more consistency from the young right-hander today, and that's exactly what they got.

Fedde allowed a first-inning double to Justin Bour (a slicing line drive to left that nearly was caught by Juan Soto) and then walked the big lefty slugger in the top of the fourth. But those were the Phillies' only baserunners against him through 5 2/3 innings.

Fedde cruised along, relying on his fastball to set up his slider and changeup to keep the Philadelphia lineup baffled. He struck out the side in the third, struck out a pair to open both the fifth and sixth and during one stretch struck out eight of 11 batters faced.

After allowing a two-out single to César Hernández in the top of the sixth, Fedde wasn't real excited to see Martinez strolling to the mound - "I was like ... saying some unhappy things" - but then he realized the manager wasn't necessarily going to take the ball from him.

"I asked him: 'What do you got? It's time I treat you like a big boy,'" Martinez said. "He said: 'I want to get him out.' I said: 'Well, it's your game. Go on and get him out.'"

Though he proceeded to walk Rhys Hoskins, Fedde nonetheless departed having put together the best start of his brief career. After never allowing fewer than three earned runs or striking out more than seven in an MLB game, he gave up zero runs and struck out nine over 100 excellent pitches.

"He was really good," Martinez said.

Fedde even contributed to the Nationals' 2-0 lead, recording the first hit of his career in the top of the fifth and eventually scoring on Bryce Harper's two-out single. The real highlight of the inning, though, came moments earlier, when Kieboom not only launched the first home run of his career but did so with one fewer tooth in his mouth than he had this morning.

Cameras appeared to catch the rookie catcher spitting out a tooth as he walked to the plate, but he insisted afterward nothing of the sort happened. He lost a temporary tooth - he's awaiting a new veneer - biting into a baguette this morning.

"Unfortunately, it was not my tooth," Kieboom said. "I know everybody wants it to be my tooth. I have it in my pocket if you wanna see it."

However it happened, the real significant moment for Kieboom today came once he was at the plate and drove the first pitch he saw from Nick Pivetta just over the right field wall. He grinned as he rounded the bases for the first time as a major leaguer, showing off a gap on the upper right side of his mouth.

It was quite a moment for Kieboom, a 27-year-old rookie who was called up to the big leagues in May when Matt Wieters suffered a hamstring injury and has managed to stay here ever since, even after Wieters returned from the disabled list.

"It's something I'll look back on and always remember, for sure," he said. "It's a special moment. I'm sure my parents are pumped, especially my brothers. For me, it was real cool."

The Nationals added an insurance run in the eighth via three straight two-out singles by Anthony Rendon, Juan Soto and Ryan Zimmerman. That proved enough cushion for Justin Miller, Koda Glover, Greg Holland and Sean Doolittle, who closed out the game despite allowing a run with two outs in the ninth.