Final notes from the clubhouse after the Nats' 1-0 win

Things got a little tight in the ninth inning of tonight's game when Brad Lidge, in trying to protect a 1-0 lead, allowed a leadoff double to Jed Lowrie, then walked J.D. Martinez on four pitches. For a time there, it looked like tonight might be the second time in five days that Lidge was going to blow a game for Gio Gonzalez after the Nationals starter had thrown seven scoreless innings. But Lidge regrouped, retiring the next three hitters in succession to close it out. Jayson Werth has seen a few of those turbulent Lidge save opportunities from their shared time in Philadelphia. What was he thinking when the potential go-ahead run reached base with no outs? "I was calm and collected out there," Werth said. "I knew he had it all the way. That's what I told him when we went through the line. I said, 'Never a doubt.' Doesn't matter how you get there as long as you get there. The result's the important thing and I've got all the confidence in the world in the guy." Manager Davey Johnson likes Lidge's experience in the closer role, which he says allows the veteran not to panic in tough spots. "I was probably closer to panicking," Johnson said. "I had (Sean) Burnett warming up in case they tied it and I didn't like the matchup. But came back (after falling behind Chris Johnson) 3-0, made quality pitches and got the guy out. That was great." Werth tallied the only run of the ballgame when he came in on Adam LaRoche's single in the fourth inning. Werth reached on a bloop to left-center, and then made a big - and ultimately correct - decision to try for second when he saw the ball fall in. "When I hit it, I knew it was a tweener, so I was just hustling out of the box," Werth said. "If he catches it and I'm out, I'm out. "Out of the box, when I hit it, I knew that's about where it was and it just depended on if he caught it or not. My mind was made up when I hit it." When you're only scoring 3.8 runs per game, those are the types of hustle plays you need to make.