Roark continues to build confidence in 25-4 dispatch of Mets

It helps when your offense scores 19 runs in your first five innings of work. But it also is important if you are pitching with confidence, again.

Last Wednesday in Milwaukee, right-hander Tanner Roark tossed eight shutout innings for his first win since June 6, a 7-3 defeat of the Brewers at Miller Park. He had lost six straight decisions before breaking through in Wisconsin.

Tuesday night back home, Roark put two solid starts together by firing seven innings, allowing only one run on four hits in a 25-4 crushing of the New York Mets.

Roark (5-12) has shown tremendous control of the strike zone with his fastballs during these last two starts. He has not walked a batter in 15 innings over two starts.

It helped Roark set the tone for the start when the Nats offense batted around twice in the first two frames, scoring seven runs on eight hits to begin the game. Roark put his stamp on the inning with a three-run double off of Mets starter Steven Matz.

Roark then went out and threw whatever pitch he wanted to quiet the Mets.

"Just it's a big confidence booster," Roark said. "We get the runs early on the board and like I said, it always takes the weight off your shoulders. You could pitch with confidence even more and just go out and trust your stuff even more."

And with a smile on his face, Roark detailed his at-bat against Matz that ended with the three-run extra-base hit. Matt Wieters scored all the way from first base as the crowd of 35,029 roared. The double was one of two base hits for Roark. The three RBIs are a career high.

"He's thrown me a sinker inside before," Roark said of the Matz matchup. "I've gotten broken bat or jammed, hurt my thumb big-time, so. I was looking heater, got heater and just hit it, squared it up."

Nationals manager Davey Martinez believes Roark has figured out what was bothering his mechanics at the beginning of the season. Now he hopes his burly right-hander has found his stride with two months remaining.

"This is the Tanner Roark that I've seen for many years from the other side, and coming here, this is what I expected from him," Martinez said. "He's doing really well, and it's really exciting to see him pitch that well. He's a bulldog, and I told him that. I said, 'We need you.' Through these years, I know he's had some good success the second half, so I just told him to stay right there and keep it going. Just a good all-around day for the Nats."

If the Nats are going to make a run in the National League East, it is no secret that they will need Roark to add to the starting pitching that was clicking back in May. Tuesday was another example of the Roark of 2016. That type of consistency from the right-hander, coupled with the reliable Max Scherzer and the return - soon, the Nats hope - of Stephen Strasburg would be the formula that gives the Nats a shot at going on a long winning streak instead of the start-and-stop that the team has had for the past month.