Nationals pitcher Scott Olsen says he does not need to prove to himself that he is all the way back from shoulder surgery last summer.
The hard stuff – the long rehabilitation process and the day-to-day grind of getting stronger, healthier – are long over. For Olsen, just being back on the field with his teammates is easy.
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But if the 26-year-old left-hander harbored doubts about his return to the mound this season, the Nats themselves couldn’t be so confident. Olsen’s performance on Sunday against the Los Angeles Dodgers should – for now – go a long way towards answering any lingering questions.
He tossed seven scoreless innings against the Dodgers, striking out eight batters and walking just one. Relief pitchers Tyler Clippard and Matt Capps did the rest as a single run in the bottom of the first inning held up for the entire game in a 1-0 Washington victory at Nationals Park. It was also Olsen’s first win since last July 5th.
“I think [Olsen] pitched pretty good against Philadelphia [last week],” said Nats manager Jim Riggleman. “I think we saw him making some strides towards the end of spring training. So I think that’s the bigger thing – that he feels healthy. Whether there’s a “W” next to it or not it’s encouraging because he felt good.”
A fielder’s choice ground out by Adam Dunn scored leadoff batter Nyjer Morgan in the first. That was the lone run Washington needed off Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley, who gave up just four hits and two walks in six innings. Clippard retired the side in order in the eighth inning with a strikeout. Capps, meanwhile, earned his eighth save of the season despite a leadoff double in the top of the ninth by Los Angeles’ James Loney. The Nats (10-9) finished a 10-game homestand against the Dodgers, Colorado Rockies and Milwaukee Brewers with a 6-4 record. It was the team’s first winning homestand since last Aug. 4-9 against the Marlins and Diamondbacks when they won all six games.
“It just shows how far our pitching’s come,” said right fielder Justin Maxwell, whose diving catch in the ninth inning with a runner on second help preserve the victory. “All our losses we had tough starts. But for the most part when we’ve won we’ve had great starting pitching. Even in those games when we gave up runs early our bullpen has come in and given us a chance. It just shows that pitching and defense really do win.”
Josh Willingham made a fine catch of his own in left field to rob Rafael Furcal leading off the eighth inning. That diving play helped Clippard extend his scoreless string to 7 1/3 innings. His ERA in nine games this month is 0.61. Olsen also induced a 6-4-3 double play to end his seventh and final inning of work. Pinch hitter Andre Ethier smashed a ball on the ground right at shortstop Ian Desmond. Olsen’s eight strikeouts set his own single-game mark as a National. His tight slider was baffling Dodgers batters all afternoon and his control was excellent – 99 pitches with 71 of those for strikes. Olsen’s last victory for the Nats came against the Atlanta Braves last July 5, 2009. He made one more start before undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a small labral tear in his left shoulder.
“[Olsen] dominated tonight. That’s what we want out of Scott and that’s what he’s capable of,” Clippard said. “We’ve all seen it. And I feel confident that it’s going to be more of the same from here on out with him. It was impressive to watch.”
