Despite another tough loss to Yankees, Fedde believes he "can grow from it"

The Yankees used a two-run shot by Aaron Hicks and a key RBI double from Giancarlo Stanton to down the Nationals 4-2 on Monday night in the makeup of a rained-out game from May 16. The Nats won the suspended game 5-3 on a mammoth two-run shot by Juan Soto that almost went over the upper deck in right field.

Right-hander Erick Fedde surrendered three runs over 5 1/3 innings in the loss, walking two and striking out four, dropping to 0-2.

Fedde has given up the lead in two matchups against the Yankees, but still took a lot of positives from a pair of starts against the Bronx Bombers over the past week.

"I'm capable of pitching up here," Fedde said. "That's definitely a good lineup, but something still. Both games now, for the team to give me the lead and not hold onto it, that's ... I have some stuff to work on myself. Frustrating, but I think I can grow from it."

Comparing this start to his last against New York in the Bronx last Wednesday, he used his off-speed pitch a lot more this time around.

"You build off of your last start. If you had success, I try to make them make the adjustments first," Fedde said. "The other day, I used my changeup a lot and I think today I used it a little more, just something to keep 'em off-balance. In a situation like that, I'm still pitching my best stuff against what they got."

Fedde has also taken advantage with his time in the big leagues to work with ace Max Scherzer. They have concentrated on his breaking stuff.

"I've been working with Max a lot on a newer slider," Fedde said. "That was my old one - I've been having a little more trouble up here with it, just coming out pretty hard. But I'm liking the action I'm getting on it, so I'm happy with it."

Nats manager Davey Martinez attempted to get Fedde through the sixth inning with his team down 3-2. But once the Yankees got a one-out single in the sixth, that was it.

"(He pitched) really well," said Martinez. "The first run, to me, should've been knocked down, and he pitched well. He made one mistake. Fell behind to Hicks and tried to get the ball down and got it up, but he did really well. I wanted to keep him at about 100 pitches. The most I think he's thrown I think was 94, so he did well. I was very, very excited to see him pitch the way he did."

Mark Reynolds contributed two RBIs, but struck out with two men on in the sixth in a 12-pitch battle against Yankees reliever Jonathan Holder. The Nats recorded three straight outs in the inning after Anthony Rendon's walk and a Soto single put runners on the corners.

"He was throwing it in and out, cutting it, sinking it," Reynolds said of Holder. "He's pitched me tough. Just hanging in there. The 3-2 pitch he threw, the slider, it was like 83 mph, and he threw me an 87 mph slider and didn't really pick up the rotation like his other ones. But tough at-bat, trying to get that run in."

Adam Eaton and Soto also each had a pair of singles. The Nats went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

Holder, David Robertson, and Dellin Betances shut down the Nats for the next three frames, striking out six batters.

In the ninth, facing closer Aroldis Chapman, Daniel Murphy doubled and pinch-hitter Michael A. Taylor walked. With two on and two out, Trea Turner drove a Chapman offering to deep right field before it was caught by Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge.

"I'm proud of the boys, I really am. I've always said this and a sign of a good team is never quitting and we never quit," said Martinez. "At the end of the day, we faced one of the best closers in the game and we had him on the ropes, and Trea hit the ball to the warning track, so I'm really proud of them."

Rendon had two hits, including a double, a walk and scored two runs.