Roark tosses three scoreless in tune-up for WBC (Nats lose 5-4)

NATIONALS QUICK WRAP

Score: Cardinals 5, Nationals 4

Recap: Tanner Roark cruised through three scoreless innings, striking out four and needing only 37 pitches to do it against a Cardinals lineup featuring mostly regulars. Trea Turner launched his first homer of the spring, a solo shot to left off right-hander Jack Flaherty. Chris Heisey, Jhonatan Solano and Derek Norris hit successive singles in the bottom of the second to produce a run. Brandon Snyder drove in two more later to extend the Nationals' lead, but they couldn't hold it. Relievers Braulio Lara and Dustin Antolin combined to give up four runs (all with two outs) in the bottom of the eighth to put St. Louis on top.

Need to know: After an impressive spring training debut Saturday that included a tape-measure home run and an opposite-field single, Bryce Harper went 0-for-3 with a strikeout. ... Jhonatan Solano went 2-for-2 and recorded a triple, a rarity for the catcher. Solano has only two triples in an 11-year professional career.

On deck: Tuesday vs. Astros in West Palm Beach, 1:05 p.m. on MASN

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JUPITER, Fla. - While other starting pitchers take the slow and steady route to building up their arms in early spring training, Tanner Roark is taking the fast and furious approach.

Wanting to make sure he's fully ready to pitch in the World Baseball Classic next week, Roark is several steps ahead of his Nationals rotation mates. To wit: After Gio González threw one inning in Saturday's Grapefruit League opener and A.J. Cole went two frames Sunday, Roark completed three full innings today against the Cardinals.

And he looked like he could have continued for quite a while longer.

Roark needed only 37 pitches to record nine outs, surrendering only a couple of singles while striking out four in an impressive spring debut against the Cardinals.

Relying on his bread-and-butter sinker, Roark worked quickly and pounded the strike zone (26 of his 37 pitches) against a St. Louis lineup featuring regulars Dexter Fowler, Aledmys Díaz, Matt Carpenter, Jhonny Peralta and Yadier Molina.

This outing leaves Roark clearly ahead of fellow Nationals starters, some of whom (Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Joe Ross) haven't even pitched in a game yet. But there is design to the extra early workload, with the Nats trying to build up the right-hander's arm in time for him to be closer to regular-season form when he joins Team USA next week for the WBC.

It's unclear if Roark will make another start for the Nationals before leaving camp March 5, but he could come back to Roger Dean Stadium to face the Cardinals again Saturday on normal rest, perhaps throwing four innings in a final WBC tune-up.

The Nationals staked Roark to a 1-0 lead when the bottom of their lineup strung together three straight singles in the top of the second, with Derek Norris' broken-bat liner to left scoring Chris Heisey.

Reliever Matt Grace, who pitched the bottom of the fourth, surrendered the tying run. But Trea Turner gave the Nats the lead right back with a leadoff homer in the top of the fifth. Turner's blast off St. Louis right-hander Jack Flaherty, was a laser over the left field fence, reminiscent of several of his 13 homers as a rookie last season.

Update: The Nationals have extended their lead to 3-1, thanks to singles by Andrew Stevenson and Brandon Snyder (with a Stevenson stolen base in between) in the top of the sixth. The pitching staff has been on point all afternoon, with Rafael Martin, Neal Cotts and Jimmy Cordero each tossing a scoreless frame of relief.