Gonzalez shuts down Rockies for 12th victory
The Nationals have made it beyond the halfway point of the 2012 regular season and are showing no signs of slowing down.
On an afternoon when the game-time temperature began at 101 degrees and conditions on the field were even hotter, Nats left-handed starter Gio Gonzalez got back on track after two shaky outings and his team simply waited for the Colorado Rockies to self-destruct.
Gonzalez allowed just one run in six innings of work and two Rockies errors and a wild pitch contributed to a three-run sixth inning as Washington took a 4-1 victory at Nationals Park on a sweltering Saturday.
“It was unbelievable that each one of these guys came in today with hot weather and they still came out and competed,” Gonzalez said. “They did a great job. I was just doing my best to just keep us along in the game and save the arms in the bullpen.”
Ian Desmond homered in the second inning — though later it was announced he would miss Tuesday’s All-Star Game with a nagging left oblique injury. Ryan Zimmerman drove home the go-ahead run in the sixth with an RBI single.
Rookie Bryce Harper — who was added to the NL roster for the All-Star Game by manager Tony La Russa as a replacement for Giancarlo Stanton on Saturday — scored moments later after a combination wild pitch by Colorado reliever Josh Roenicke and a throwing error by catcher Wilin Rosario. Roenicke, who is actually Desmond’s brother-in-law, followed that with a throwing error on a pickoff attempt. Zimmerman scored from third base to make it a 4-1 game.
“They made some errors but it’s usually because you force them by your play and a couple of those errors,” manager Davey Johnson said. “Errant pickoff, those help, but we had the right guys up at the right time. I felt like we were going to score some runs that inning anyway.”
Gonzalez had done enough to keep the game close before Colorado’s meltdown. He allowed just three hits in those six innings and struck out six batters — though there were three walks issued, too. The Rockies’ lone run came in the fourth inning after a leadoff double by Michael Cuddyer, a fielder’s choice ground out and a sacrifice fly by Jordan Pacheco that tied the game at 1-1. Gonzalez earned the win thanks to that sixth-inning outburst. He is now 12-3 with a 2.92 ERA and next will be heading to the All-Star Game in Kansas City, Mo. Those 12 wins match the most by any Nats starter before the All-Star Game since the team moved to the District in 2005.
“I’m just looking forward to the barbecue in Kansas City,” Gonzalez cracked. “Other than that, chit-chatting with [fellow All-Star Stephen Strasburg], trying to pick his brain a little bit, trying to have some fun out there. But at the same time, it’s a good win. [Sunday] we have another one, and we’ve got Jordan [Zimmermann] on the mound and we feel real comfortable with getting that win for him.”
The bullpen did the rest after Gonzalez departed. Ryan Mattheus struck out the side in relief in the seventh inning, and Sean Burnett retired three of the four batters he faced in the eighth. Tyler Clippard closed things out in the ninth for his 14th save.
Desmond was the only Nats player with two hits Saturday. He also scored twice. Colorado starter Jeff Francis was solid himself, pitching into the sixth inning with five strikeouts and a walk before his defense and bullpen let him down. Danny Espinosa doubled and scored a run.
Washington improved to 49-33 with the victory and is 16 games above .500 through 82 games — technically the start of the second half. The Nats remained 4? games ahead of the second-place New York Mets in the National League East. The Mets defeated the Chicago Cubs 3-1 on Saturday. Washington is guaranteed to have the best record in the National League entering the All-Star break no matter what happens against the Rockies on Sunday.
