The rally had started to fade, confidence replaced by doubt as Roy Oswalt set to deliver the two-strike pitch. That’s when he made his mistake, allowing Washington to sneak back into the game. And then allow the Nationals to do even more.
Just like that, the Nationals have posted consecutive wins — and played their second straight game in which they received excellent pitching, solid defense and timely (albeit late) hitting. Washington (18-29) beat Houston, 5-1, last night.
They did this on a night when the opposing pitcher was nearly unhittable. Actually, after Alfonso Soriano’s leadoff single in the first through the fifth inning, Oswalt allowed no hits.
But in the sixth, he allowed a leadoff double to Damian Jackson. After Jackson advanced to third with two outs, the fun began. With an 0-2 count on Soriano, Oswalt, pitching from the windup, started his motion then stopped and stepped off the mound. When no balk was called, manager Frank Robinson raced to the field; after the umpires gathered, they ruled Oswalt had balked in the tying run.
“It was very obvious,” Robinson said.
“It should have been called by me initially,” said home plate umpire, and crew chief, Larry Young.
It was obvious the game had changed, too. That much was evident in the eighth when Washington scored four runs and hit in the clutch — something it has not done much of this season.
That they did much of it against Houston closer Brad Lidge was even more impressive.
Washington can thank the bottom part of its lineup for the win. No. 7 hitter Damian Jackson doubled and scored on a balk in the sixth; No. 6 hitter Ryan Zimmerman tripled and scored the go-ahead run in the eighth; pinch-hitter Daryle Ward, facing his former team, drove in Zimmerman.
Meanwhile, starting pitcher Mike O’Connor had another good outing, allowing only a second-inning homer to Morgan Ensberg.
Other than that, O’Connor was nearly unhittable as he pitched six innings for the second straight game.
“The kid’s got a lot of heart,” Robinson said. “He gives us a chance to win. He gets tougher and tougher each time out.”
“He matched [Oswalt],” Nats shortstop Royce Clayton said.
Meanwhile, no night would be complete for the Nats without injuries. Right fielder Jose Guillen left the game with a cornea abrasion in his left eye, which he scratched with his batting glove during batting practice.
But that wasn’t the only unusual injury. Catcher Wiki Gonzalez was hit in back of the head on Preston Wilson’s backswing in the second inning. An inning later, Gonzalez leftthe game with a mild concussion and cervical strain.
