Nats lose two more players, another series opener (updated)

MILWAUKEE - The sleep-deprived Nationals landed in Milwaukee 16 hours later than scheduled, thanks to a travel nightmare late Sunday night and early this morning in Philadelphia. They had every reason to complain about their travails, and the fact they now had to open another tough road series while fielding an injury depleted lineup.

But they chose to try to look on the bright side. They shrugged off their charter flight mechanical problems and wondered if somehow the whole experience might bring them together and make them forget their woes.

"We're not playing great baseball right now, so hopefully this can kind of divert us and erase our minds," outfielder Adam Eaton said. "Hopefully this ... can give us a little more jet lag and refocus us."

And to their credit, the Nationals put themselves in position to win another game on a night when they could've been excused for rolling over. Max Scherzer grunted his way through 112 pitches. Howie Kendrick and Eaton stepped up with a pair of big home runs.

And then the Nationals started dropping like flies again. And the bullpen couldn't hold a lead. And the infield defense collapsed to make things even worse.

And when it was all over, the Nats had suffered a 5-3 loss to the Brewers, yet another winnable game gone awry, yet another series opener dropped.

On a night when Yan Gomes and Andrew Stevenson became the latest position players to depart with injury, the Nationals were charged with four errors (and that doesn't include three more plays they could've made) while the bullpen gave up three late runs to hand the game to Milwaukee.

"They've done it probably a million times," a clearly frustrated Davey Martinez said of his stone-gloved infielders. "They've done it since they were 5 years old. No difference. Ball's hit to you, just get an out. We're not asking you to do anything superb. Just get an out."

That seemingly simple task proved far too challenging during the critical sequence in the bottom of the seventh, when lefty Dan Jennings was asked to face the top of the Brewers lineup and preserve a one-run lead. Here's what happened next, in order:

* A sharp grounder that second baseman Brian Dozier couldn't handle and then threw away.

* A wild pitch.

* A grounder to third than Wilmer Difo couldn't handle and then threw away.

* An RBI single to right.

* A dribbler two feet in front of the plate that Kurt Suzuki couldn't handle.

If someone wanted to compile a short video that perfectly encapsulates the Nationals' season to date, that sequence would suffice.

"Just couldn't make plays," Martinez said. "Jennings came in, threw a groundball, threw some really good pitches. We just couldn't make plays. We talk about it almost every day: When you give teams 31 outs a game, 32 outs a game, it's tough to win. We've got to play better defense."

In spite of everything that took place before and then during the game, things started off swimmingly for the Nationals. They jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to Kendrick's first inning blast, a welcome sight for a lineup that has been forced to rely heavily on its 35-year-old utility man turned No. 3 hitter.

With Scherzer on the mound pitching with a lead, maybe everything would be alright, after all. Or maybe not.

The Brewers responded to the early deficit by scoring a run a piece in the bottom of the first and second, hitting a few bullets off Scherzer but also taking advantage of one of the Nationals' biggest weaknesses right now: defense at shortstop.

Much as they've hoped Carter Kieboom could hold his own, the 21-year-old has had a devil of a time in his first two weeks in the big leagues, at the plate but especially in the field. Both of the Brewers' first two runs were scored via hits at Kieboom, and though the first was a rocket liner just beyond his leaping attempt, the second was a sharp grounder right him. And his inability to make what should've been an inning-ending play instead allowed Milwaukee to tie the game and erase the Nats' early lead.

"The way I've been playing has been unacceptable," said the rookie, who has been charged with four errors in 10 big league games, along with other makeable plays not made. "I mean, by all means there are all these plays I've missed, or I need to make, and I usually do make. There's no excuses as to why they're not being made. The fact of the matter is that's what's happened, and all I can do is learn from it and better myself going forward."

Both pitchers settled down after the early issues, but that was overshadowed by the latest round of Nationals injuries.

Gomes was first to depart, the starting catcher having been hit by a pitch in the upper left forearm (just above the elbow) in the top of the first and replaced by Suzuki in the top of the third. The Nationals announced his injury as a forearm contusion, and X-rays were negative. But unless Gomes reports Tuesday morning confident he can play, the Nats may have no choice but to get Spencer Kieboom from Harrisburg to Milwaukee ASAP to make sure they have two healthy catchers. (Suzuki, by the way, got beat up pretty good tonight in relief of Gomes.)

Stevenson, meanwhile, departed in the bottom of the fourth, two innings after he dove headfirst into first base trying to beat out a grounder and one inning after he appeared to grab his side following a swing. The Nationals announced his injury as "back spasms."

"We'll see how they are tomorrow," Martinez said.

So if you've lost track, the Nats tonight were playing without their Nos. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 hitters from opening day, plus their backup first baseman, plus their backup-to-the-backup outfielder. (Their backup outfielder, Michael A. Taylor, was out of the lineup for the second straight day after jamming his left wrist but had to enter to replace Stevenson because the team was out of outfielders.)

And yet in spite of all this, the Nationals were right in the thick of this game, thanks to Scherzer. Despite his laborious opening two innings (50 pitches), he found his groove and then really stepped up in a huge spot in the bottom of the sixth.

With the bases loaded and his pitch count into triple digits, Scherzer struck out Orlando Arcia with a 95 mph fastball, pumping his fist as the Brewers shortstop swung through the pitch. Then as the crowd of 29,299 rose to urge on pinch-hitter Ryan Braun, Scherzer got the former NL MVP to ground out on his 112th pitch of the night, stomping his way back to the dugout.

"You have to stay within yourself, and understand what pitches you need to throw and what's the situation," the three-time Cy Young Award winner said. "That's when the game's on the line. You want the ball in that situation. I've always said most of your outings, how you feel are determined by the last 15 pitches you throw. I take a lot of pride in the last 15. No matter when it is."

Trouble is, the Nationals wish those last 15 pitches came in the seventh inning, not the sixth. And the reason they didn't goes all the way back to the game's first two innings, when multiple plays weren't made, forcing Scherzer to work harder and build his pitch count up to 50, all but guaranteeing a shorter start.

"If you think about it, the big issue is the pitches," Martinez said. "It cost Max pitches. It cost him another inning. You get Max out there in the seventh inning, we're in great shape. But we've got to start playing defense. The hitting comes and goes. But we've got to catch the ball. We've got to catch the ball."