Zimmerman powers Nats to victory over Dodgers

When the Nationals needed big-time performances against a premier opponent to avoid what would have been a discomforting series sweep, they turned to a pair of tried-and-true veterans who desperately want to deliver for this team when it really matters.

Ryan Zimmerman and Stephen Strasburg delivered tonight to beat the Dodgers. And both would like nothing more than to deliver a couple weeks from now when the calendar shifts to October.

Zimmerman's three-run homer in the bottom of the sixth gave the Nationals their first lead of the weekend, leaving Strasburg in line to earn the win after his strong six-inning start. And when Zimmerman homered again and Adam Lind followed with his own blast in the bottom of the eighth, the Nats were well on their way to a 7-1 victory on Sunday Night Baseball.

Brandon Kintzler, Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle finished things off in their typical fashion, and thus the Nats salvaged one win this weekend and a six-game season series split with the Dodgers, the only club in the National League that owns a better record.

"You certainly didn't want them to come in our house and sweep us," manager Dusty Baker said. "Just like they don't want us to come in their house and sweep them. That was the real significance: that we won the ballgame and ended up 3-3 on the year with them."

It was Zimmerman's first blast that altered the course of this game. Having been held to two total runs through the series' first 23 innings, the Nationals were starting to look desperate for offense. But after knocking out starter Hyun-Jin Ryu in the fifth, they gave themselves a chance in the sixth against reliever Ross Stripling.

With two on and nobody out, Zimmerman worked the count to 3-1. Stripling tried to sneak a slider past him, but Zimmerman stayed on it and drove the ball to right-center, over the fence for his 32nd homer of the season. As the crowd of 29,155 roared with delight, Zimmerman pumped his fist and let out a roar of his own rounding first base following one of his biggest home runs of the season.

"I think it was just a frustration for us offensively, because the pitchers have actually been throwing the ball well and we haven't helped them out," he said. "So it's kind of a relief to get a big hit, to get us going, and to score some runs. But, yeah, a lot more of emotion than I usually show for a September game, but who knows?"

The veteran slugger wasn't done. He added another shot to right-center off Josh Ravin in the eighth to extend the Nationals' lead, in the process matching his career-high with his 33rd homer and raising his RBI total to 99. Lind's two-run blast later in the inning turned the game into a rout and made the veteran left-handed masher the club's new record holder with four pinch-hit home runs.

Zimmerman's first homer, though, gave the Nats the lead and put Strasburg in line for his 14th win on a night when the right-hander saw his scoreless innings streak end but not his streak of impressive outings.

Strasburg entered this game pitching as well over a prolonged stretch as he has at any point in his career, but he actually didn't have his best stuff tonight. His fastball was down a tick (averaging about 94 mph) and the Dodgers ran up his pitch count (94 in six innings).

And yet, Strasburg essentially was as effective as he's been for the last month-plus. He pitched his way out of jams, twice getting likely Rookie of the Year Cody Bellinger with runners in scoring position.

"Absolutely, those are the games that you just have to grind and keep fighting," he said. "Just try and keep it close."

The only run that did cross the plate on Strasburg's watch came as the result of a missed play behind him.

With two on and two out in the top of the second, Logan Forsythe sent a drive soaring toward deep left-center. Off the bat, it looked like a sure double, but as Michael A. Taylor made up a considerable amount of ground, it suddenly looked like the third out of the inning. But Taylor, who has been brilliant at finishing those kind of plays this season, couldn't do it this time. The ball bounced off his glove, Yasiel Puig scored and Strasburg's scoreless streak officially came to an end at 35 on a play ruled a double by the official scorer.

"I didn't think it was going to stay in the yard," Strasburg said. "I don't think there's too many outfielders in the game that will actually get to that ball to begin with. So I think you can just appreciate that, just for how talented he is. To actually get there and have a chance at it is pretty incredible."

Besides, that was but a minor blemish on Strasburg's pitching line, and did not spoil at all his overall performance on a night when the Nationals needed him and others to be that effective against a premier opponent in a high-profile game.

"Boy, it was an exciting game to watch, and manage," Baker said. "And it was on national TV. It's about time we kind of made a good showing on national TV."