Rendon's blast draws cheers from dugout, stands (Nats win 6-0)

BALTIMORE - The Nationals had never faced Alex Cobb before today, and the first time through the lineup it looked that way.

But once they had a chance to see the veteran right-hander up close and personal, the Nats turned things around in a hurry.

Shut down by Cobb through the first two innings of today's game at Camden Yards, the Nationals came to life in the top of the third, with Anthony Rendon's three-run homer capping a big rally and giving the visitors a 3-0 lead in the opener of this year's Battle of the Beltways series.

Cobb, the Orioles' biggest offseason acquisition, retired eight of the first nine batters he faced today in his first career start against the Nationals. But then came a flurry of offense in rapid-fire fashion. Trea Turner started it off with a two-out single to center, then Bryce Harper drew a walk to put two on for Rendon.

Rendon then belted a ball down the left field line and over the short fence, his sixth homer of the season. The only sound louder than the ball careening off Rendon's bat was the explosion of cheers from the stands, with a large number of Nationals fans in attendance.

The Nats kept the pressure on after Rendon's blast, with Matt Adams singling and Mark Reynolds drawing a walk before Juan Soto (who singled in his first at-bat) struck out looking to end the inning.

Still, those three runs supplied a nice cushion for Gio Gonzalez, who has tossed four scoreless innings on 57 pitches despite a brief scare in the bottom of the third.

Gonzalez landed awkwardly as he delivered a pitch, then moved around the mound in apparent discomfort. The prompted a mound visit from director of athletic training Paul Lessard and manager Davey Martinez, but after a brief conversation Gonzalez stayed in the game.

Gonzalez proceeded to finish out the 1-2-3 inning, then got through the fourth unscathed.

Update: The Nats were unable to tack on most of the afternoon, but they finally did it in the top of the eighth. Five hits off Orioles left-hander Richard Bleier - including a double by Rendon and singles by Adams, Soto, Michael A. Taylor and Wilmer Difo - produced three more runs and extended the lead to 6-0.

Update II: That's a final. Nats win 6-0, with Shawn Kelley recording the final four outs after Gonzalez departed following 7 2/3 brilliant, scoreless innings. Round 1 of the Battle of the Beltways goes to the visitors, who have won 6-of-7 and could wind up in first place by the end of the night.