“I don’t know. Obviously we’re not scoring runs or getting hits with runners in scoring position,” said Nats third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, who struck out four times. “We’re just not as happy about it as anyone else.”

He wasn’t the only one without any answers.

“You got me locked up there. I don’t have any words for you right there,” said center fielder Nyjer Morgan. “But it’s just one of those things where you just have to keep your heads up and keep battling out there.”

Nats manager Jim Riggleman was ejected in the eighth inning after one of several arguments with Holbrook – there were a few close plays at first base, too, that went against Washington. Riggleman took pains to note Holbrook and his crew are good umpires. But he also thinks one of his club’s strengths is its understanding of the strike zone. His hitters weren’t happy so Riggleman wasn’t happy.

“It’s a great ability to pitch when you can throw a ball off the plate and make it come back on the plate,” Riggleman said. “But our guys didn’t feel like those balls were getting back on the plate. And it’s tough to hit those pitches. You’re not really going to do anything with them and we ended up taking a lot of strikes.”

If there is any upside to the last two days it is the starting pitching. Rookie Stephen Strasburg tossed seven innings of one-run ball on Friday night in an eventual 2-1 loss in 11 innings. Martin made it through six innings with one run against him. The two combined for 16 strikeouts and no walks. Martin is 0-3 in four starts yet has a 3.55 ERA and has given Washington a legitimate chance to win three of those games. Martin credited his fastball location and a more liberal use of his breaking pitches, which kept the White Sox off balance, for his outing on Saturday. At the very least Martin is making a strong case for staying in the rotation.

“J.D.’s not a thrower, he’s a pitcher,” Riggleman said. “He’s kind of perfecting his craft out there.”

The only run came on an RBI single by Carlos Quentin in the fourth inning. Chicago didn’t get a runner past second base after that frame. Nats relievers Sean Burnett, Miguel Batista and Tyler Walker combined for three scoreless innings after Martin left the contest. Washington has lost five in a row for the second time this season. It was also the second time the club was shut out. A big weekend crowd of 36,487 went home disappointed.      

“Can’t ask for any more from the guys on the bump. Just give us a chance to win,” Morgan said. “[Martin] gave us a chance, but we didn’t pull it off and they had a guy over there who was matching him pitch for pitch.”

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