Nats know Roark and Ross key to series win

A lot of the talk to begin the season was about how important the likes of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, Daniel Murphy and Ryan Zimmerman are to the Nationals' chance at repeating as National League East champions.

But this week, some different names stepped to the forefront to try to snap a trend of two series losses in a row at Pittsburgh and at Atlanta.

Tanner Roark and Joe Ross pitched well to begin the series against the Mariners, paving the way for two victories in a row.

It is a trend that is not lost on manager Dusty Baker.

"It's definitely what you need. It's a team game," Baker said. "You can't depend on the same guys, but you know, Tanner has a history of quality. Most of our guys do. Sooner or later, water seeks its own level where you're going to do pretty close to what you have been doing, good and bad. So, we're going to have to depend on everybody."

Roark and Ross combined to pitch 15 innings and allow only two runs, while striking out 14.

Baker said the play of Anthony Rendon was key on offense. He had four homers in the series. It is important for the team to be well rounded on offense, just in case you have a game when the top of the order isn't connecting as they normally do.

'They got Murph out pretty good this series, but you know that's not going to continue," Baker said. "And they got Harp out pretty good this series too. And you know that's not going to continue. We had some good signs this series, and hopefully we can do San Diego the same way. It's a good way to get out of a slump."

But Baker cautioned that the Nats also need to get their leadoff man back on track, a theme that was focused upon in Atlanta.

"It's important, also, that we get Trea going," Baker said. "Trea can hit a double, he can hit a homer, he can do a lot of things."

Murphy said that among the reasons this club is in first place is that there is not a gap in the batting order, and there is not a place to relax in this starting rotation.

"Anytime you have a good ball club, everybody's going to get a piece of it," Murphy said. "We won series on the back of Joe Ross and Tanner throwing the ball. Gio threw the ball well today as well. We didn't give a lot of room for error as an offense, starting with myself included. Didn't have very good at-bats today. Hopefully, we can enjoy the rest of the day with our families. It was a good series win and we'll get ready for the Padres on the way in."

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Former Nationals top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito pitched a seven-inning no-hitter against the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs last night in Charlotte. He allowed three walks and had three strikeouts. It was the Triple-A Knights' first no-hitter since 2013. Giolito, sent to the Chicago White Sox in December in the trade that brought Adam Eaton to D.C., has won two decisions in a row. He is now 2-5 with a 5.44 ERA in nine starts for the White Sox Triple-A affiliate.