O's use the longball and some clutch pitching to beat Nats 4-3

The Orioles used a combination of a strong outing by right-hander Dylan Bundy, the longball and some clutch bullpen pitching late to beat the Washington Nationals 4-3 tonight. The O's take the first of four straight between these teams in front of 31,660 at Camden Yards.

Leading 4-3 in the eighth, rookie Donnie Hart came on with left-handed batters Daniel Murphy and Bryce Harper coming up. It was a big spot for Hart. Murphy would double but then got thrown out at second when Hart fielded a comebacker to the mound by Harper. Hart turned toward second where Murphy strayed off the bag. Brad Brach then came on. After a two-out walk and wild pitch, Nats runners were on second and third. But Brach fanned Ryan Zimmerman on a 90 mph splitter to end that threat.

Bundy went six innings, allowing three hits and two runs with four walks and four strikeouts. He improved to 7-4 with a ERA of 3.33. Bundy threw a career-high 94 pitches. He retired nine of the last 10 he faced and he is now 5-3 with an ERA of 3.56 over his last eight starts.

Zach Britton pitched a 1-2-3 top of the ninth with two strikeouts to get his 38th save in 38 chances. He needed just 11 pitches to get the three outs.

The Nationals took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Leadoff man Trea Turner drew an eight-pitch walk, stole second and scored on Murphy's one-out single.

After Washington's A.J. Cole fanned four in two scoreless to start his night, the O's tied it against him in the third. Jonathan Schoop's homer to left made it 1-1. It was No. 20 for Schoop and was confirmed after a replay review. The ball had gone over the left-field foul pole. The Orioles now have five players with 20 or more home runs.

Anthony Rendon led off the Nats fourth with his 16th homer for a 2-1 Nats lead. The O's quickly struck back in the bottom of the inning to lead 4-2. Manny Machado doubled off the left-field wall and scored on a Chris Davis double to right for a 2-2 tie. Mark Trumbo quickly followed with a two-run blast to left. It was his MLB-leading 38th homer and his last seven hits since a fourth-inning single on Aug. 11 have all been home runs.

Trumbo hit an 0-1 fastball 407 feet according to Statcast. He has hit four homers his last five games and seven in his past 11 games. The Orioles as have hit 17 in the past five games.

The Orioles improved to 68-56 and snapped a three-game losing streak. They are now 41-22 at home and lead the all-time series against the Nationals 34-23. The O's are 15-6 versus the Nats since 2012.

In the second game of the series on Tuesday night, Kevin Gausman (4-10, 4.11 ERA) faces right-hander Reynaldo Lopez (2-1, 4.37 ERA).