Williams on Strasburg's gem in Nats' 3-1 win
By Dan Kolko
SEATTLE - After one of his worst outings of the season, Stephen Strasburg delivered quite possibly his best.
Strasburg went 7 2/3 innings tonight, allowing just one run on six hits, striking out eight and walking none. He dominated the Mariners through the middle innings, kept his pitch count low and led the way for the Nationals, who snagged their second straight win here in Seattle, this one by a 3-1 score.
Jayson Werth hit a two-run homer in the first to give Strasburg a cushion, and Anthony Rendon added an RBI double. Rafael Soriano picked up his 30th save of the season to close out the win.
Here's manager Matt Williams after the victory.
On Strasburg: "I think this was the best that we've seen him all year, and probably the most important. He was really commanding fastball, fastballs at 96 or 97 miles an hour and the changeup off of it. Throwing the changeup when he wanted to for a changeup, too. So he was really good tonight."
On what he means by this maybe being Strasburg's most important outing: "Just the fact that he had two good ones and then a little bit of a clunker, and then tonight to come back and answer it tonight was important. For him, if he throws it where he wants to, he can be dominant out there. Tonight, he was really, really good."
On when he knew Strasburg was locked in tonight: "He went through (Robinson) Cano, (Kendrys) Morales and (Kyle) Seager, maybe one other guy, in the middle of the game throwing strictly fastball and changeup. Certainly gets guys in swing-mode throwing that hard and then he throws the changeup off of it. He was really good from then on."
On Soriano's ninth inning: "He struck out (Logan) Morrison on a good pitch. Seager got a base hit. It was good. He got the final out for us, and that's all that matters."
On Jose Lobaton having a three-hit night: "He does a really good job behind the plate, and for him to get a few hits in one of those games is important for him, too. It's important for him to keep his timing and his rhythm up there, so that's why we try to get him in there as often as possible."
On the Nats being 15-2 in their last 17 games with Lobaton behind the plate: "That's coincidence. But that's a good thing. When he does get a chance to get behind the plate, that's a good thing."
On the Nats' offensive production: "We got the two-run homer in the first from Jayson and then had Loby on the move 3-2 and Anthony hit a ball in the gap. So they just continue to battle. Were a whole bunch of them tonight, but just a bunch."
Jayson Werth hit a two-run homer in the first to give Strasburg a cushion, and Anthony Rendon added an RBI double. Rafael Soriano picked up his 30th save of the season to close out the win.
Here's manager Matt Williams after the victory.
On Strasburg: "I think this was the best that we've seen him all year, and probably the most important. He was really commanding fastball, fastballs at 96 or 97 miles an hour and the changeup off of it. Throwing the changeup when he wanted to for a changeup, too. So he was really good tonight."
On what he means by this maybe being Strasburg's most important outing: "Just the fact that he had two good ones and then a little bit of a clunker, and then tonight to come back and answer it tonight was important. For him, if he throws it where he wants to, he can be dominant out there. Tonight, he was really, really good."
On when he knew Strasburg was locked in tonight: "He went through (Robinson) Cano, (Kendrys) Morales and (Kyle) Seager, maybe one other guy, in the middle of the game throwing strictly fastball and changeup. Certainly gets guys in swing-mode throwing that hard and then he throws the changeup off of it. He was really good from then on."
On Soriano's ninth inning: "He struck out (Logan) Morrison on a good pitch. Seager got a base hit. It was good. He got the final out for us, and that's all that matters."
On Jose Lobaton having a three-hit night: "He does a really good job behind the plate, and for him to get a few hits in one of those games is important for him, too. It's important for him to keep his timing and his rhythm up there, so that's why we try to get him in there as often as possible."
On the Nats being 15-2 in their last 17 games with Lobaton behind the plate: "That's coincidence. But that's a good thing. When he does get a chance to get behind the plate, that's a good thing."
On the Nats' offensive production: "We got the two-run homer in the first from Jayson and then had Loby on the move 3-2 and Anthony hit a ball in the gap. So they just continue to battle. Were a whole bunch of them tonight, but just a bunch."
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