Ian Desmond is battling back

PITTSBURGH - All season long, Ian Desmond's teammates have picked him up, and last night he returned the favor. After Max Scherzer surrendered the lead on back-to-back homers in the fifth, Desmond evened the score to start the sixth with a solo bomb of his own.

"I was pretty excited to get Max off the hook," Desmond said.

Certainly, the numerous injuries have led to inconsistencies in the Nationals offense, but a season-long struggle from Desmond has interfered, as well. Desmond's average dipped to .204 - the lowest since the eighth day of the season - after last Sunday's 5-0 shutout loss to the Dodgers.

But beginning with the Mets series on Monday, Desmond has torched the baseball. He is 8-for-16 with three homers, five RBIs and six runs scored for a slash line of .500/.579/1.063.

"Obviously, I feel better," Desmond said. "I was in a pretty bad place before, so it's not really hard to feel much better than that. I'm working hard, just like I was in April. I'm just getting hits now. But I definitely can say I feel better, that's for sure."

Desmond revealed after his two-run blast on Monday that he received some words of encouragement from Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. last weekend. which helped him gain a new outlook. Otherwise, Desmond casually says a combination of a few things have been responsible for the turnaround.

"Partly confidence, partly some mechanical stuff and a little bit of luck mixed in there," he said.

In the ninth inning Thursday night, Desmond proved his dangerous power and bat speed, smacking a 98 mph heater from Pirates right-hander Arquimedes Caminero over the right-center field wall for a two-run homer.

"He was able to stay easy on it and use his hands and hit it the other way," Nationals manager Matt Williams said. "So when he does that, he's a pretty dynamic guy. The more calm he is at the plate, the better chance you have to see a baseball as a hitter.

"If you're traveling toward the pitcher, it's more difficult. It makes everything look better, whether it's (98 mph) like the last guy or it's a changeup or a breaking ball. ... It makes it look like a better pitch than it really is. But if you can stay back enough and let the ball come to you, then you have success. And I think he is doing a better job of that."

Desmond's patient approach at the plate isn't only paying off in the power department. The 29-year-old has also drawn three walks over this five-game stretch. He walked three times the entire month of June.

"A guy with that much talent and that much desire to do well is not gonna go a whole season and struggle like that," teammate Clint Robinson said. "He's an All-Star-caliber player and I don't expect him to be anything but good things for the rest of the season."

Throughout the toughest season of his career, Desmond has remained an emotional leader in the clubhouse.

"He comes to the ballpark with a great attitude, a smile on his face and a bounce in his step, and he's a true leader of the Washington Nationals and loyalty is a two-way street, and I'm extremely loyal to Ian Desmond. I have been his whole career and he is towards us," Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said Wednesday on MLB Network Radio. "We love the guy."