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. >> bob: ey lionel ya dukes a fantastic throw home on the fly to josh bard hoo was decould iing the runners. let's see if the tag was made. i don't see any way that runner could be safe. >> rob: unless he tagged him high on the chest. they traded an out for a run. here is the play after. here is zobrist coming around third. josh bard has a good angle. no, there is no way. it's just a hook slide but josh bard had the plate blocked. >> bob: and then josh who

started arguing with joe west -- i don't know if he was alerted by somebody else. >> rob: good heads up play. >> bob: somebody else may have let him know that the runners were hung up. so it goes 9-2-4. ey lionel ya dukes will get an assist because it resulted eventually in the runner being cut down. crazy play and here is zimmerman leading off the top of the 3rd. >> rob: how many totals is that for him? >> bob: seven. >> rob: very nice. >> bob: you don't always have to directly throw out the base runner to get an assist in the right field. that's why you make good relays, hit the cutoff man. that's as good as throwing somebody out at home plate. >> rob: that's what, 250-foot throw to the cutoff man gets an assist. >> bob: this is interesting. zimmerman down the line and that ball is foul. and that's an umpire, paul nort who only went about three or four feet down the line and

planted himself and made the call. a lot of umpires don't like to be running down the line and bouncing when they make that call. >> rob: here is a look. i don't know. >> bob: it's hard. >> rob: i saw yellow before i saw white. >> bob: we see white. >> rob: that means it went in front of that foul pole. we should call them fair poles, anyway because if it's hits, that's a homerun and it's fair. i don't get that foul pole. >> bob: looks like that ball crossed it. >> rob: it did. it was a shadow. >> bob: good call by paul nauert. >> bob: and zimmerman.

>> rob: that was not much of a breaking ball when you are throwing 95 miles per hour, the replay. see the head down. watch him keep the hand back. strides first but he keeps the hands back long enough to be able to take breaking ball back up the middle. great hitting. >> bob: ryan had the hitting streak going, these were the kind of base hits he was getting. having a chat with carlos peqa as he is the 6th national bat tore hit his way to first base and the second one to visit peqa so far i here is adam dunn who collected rbi number 45 two innings ago. at least for now, that put adam in the top 5 in the league with 45 rbis. offspeed breaking ball. he took a little bit off and dropped it in. >> rob: that's how he got

ahead of adam in the first at- bat. on the first pitch of that at- bat, adam read it right and got a base hit. when we talk about pitch recognition, you look for the top spin or a little dot on the ball for a breaking ball. the pot on the ball means the hard slider. the over-the-top rotation means a curve ball. >> bob: elijah dukes has had quite a night so far, two-run double, should have had a runner thrown out at home plate. 2-1 to dunn. that's low and away. ball 3. >> rob: ted williams said he could see the seams on the baseball as they came towards him. >> bob: i do believe that ted williams could read the commissioner's signature on the baseball or, back in those days, it was the president of the american league signature. >> rob: scary thought. there were good arms like rapid rob feller. >> bob: second walk of the

night for garza. let's go back to the 1st inning and see what the rbi guys did, the d & d boys in the middle of the line-up. >> rob: that was breaking ball, great pitch recognition and adam dunn gets the first rbi of the ballgame. >> bob: and then the dukes boy, those dukes of hazards. >> rob: elijah dukes coming home with a two-rbi double and matt garza not too pleased. >> bob: early game geico highlights for you. nationals already three runs on six hits. garza came into this game rather unhittable with an opponent batting average of .206. >> rob: who mays boss hog? >> bob: you are not asking me. >> rob: you didn't watch the show, did you? >> i live out by the blond haired guy.

snyder? still drives that general lee around town. >> bob: dukes with two men aboard again. nasty breaking ball in the dirt. did he not swing, says paul naert. >> rob: this is a strong young man. we talked about this. watch him hold up the bat. he stops on a dime. >> bob: that .206 by garza, number 2 in the american league league, hardest to hit. tallet of toronto, .2 .201. >> rob: greinke is a hard-luck guy. took a seagull in extra innings to get the base hit. >> bob: tough call.

and dukes overmatched here. that's the first out of the 3rd and for matt garza, his third strikeout. you are not looking for elijah dukes to bunt a ground ball but you would have loved to see him advance the runners. >> rob: well, he thought maybe he would challenge him. as we said, 80% of the pitches are heaters. and only when he needs an out. you see by the swing that elijah was fooled. did you like my assessment that the strike zone is under attack all night by matt garza? >> bob: yes, he goes -- he is coming after you. >> rob: be ready. he does take something off the fastball from time to time. >> bob: and he will move you off the plate on occasion. >> rob: that was a two-seam

fastball. four-seemer is about 95. two-seamer is about 90 to 92. great movement. it's not about velocity, it's about movement. willingham gets jammed and flies one to dukes. taging is zimmerman and can't go anywhere. two outs. >> bob: get your red on. of the grand slap flex plan is still available. you can pick four games. pick your plan, your game, your seat. make it a free game. it's that easy, including the game against the red sox. the all-new grand slam flex plan. visit nationals.com/grandslam. the runners are still sitting at first and second. willie harris trying to do something about that. willie pulled the ball, first time up and grounded out to carlos peqa at first.

this would be a wonderful time for two-out rbi action right after the rays were begin a gift run by the home plate umpire. >> rob: he starts him off with a 75 breaking ball and i was hoping that might be cut down and willie harris can speed up the bat and hit a double down the left field line. >> reporter: willie has six doubles, six triples and a homerun on the year. >> rob: this is the kind of guy who gave me trouble. when you throw hard fastballs like that, you don't want a guy like willie harris to slap the down into left field. that is sometimes harder to get a willie harris out than maybe an adam dunn or an elijah dukes. >> bob: usually, the holes in the swing are a lot smaller. that was a good approach but that was strike 22. >> rob: and i had to see guys

like clark, mike schmidt, dale murphy. and they are swinging as hard as they can, you know. and so, okay, occasionally, you will drop the slide another there but you will throw mostly fastball. a willie harris is like an ozzy smith. he is just trying to put the ball in play off your 95. >> bob: nasty breaking ball and willie hits it pretty well. >> rob: and then you speed his bat up and he pulls his breaking ball and you are like, what am i supposed to throw this guy? >> bob: right down into the picnic area. they tried all kind of gimmicks over the years to get people into this building. last year, they finally figured it out: win. >> rob: win and they will come. >> bob: the rays, by the way, are averaging 22 1/2

22500. kansasity, oakland and cleveland all have lower attendance as does baltimore. >> rob: you have to see jose aquendo over the years. he was one of the toughest outs for me. >> bob: swoo switch hitter. >> rob: switch hitter, from the left side, trying to slap the ball and you throw him a breaking ball and he would pull it for a double. >> bob: willie hits that one up the middle, knocked down by ben zobrist and managing to stay on the bag, carlos peqa. the nats leave a couple. they stranded four and they lead 3-1 after 2 1/2. change it up a bit... and you're sure to get a reaction. [ motorcycle engine growl ] ♪ don't let erectile dysfunction slow things down. ♪ viva viagra! viagra, america's most prescribed ed treatment,

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pnc. leading the way. . >> he is a very, very speci special young man. he has so much to offer to the young people today. he has -- they would love --

anyone, anything, any one that comes through, he uses his hands and picks things out to see if that's the right thing to do or not. i'm very proud of him. >> thank you, helen. she is 101 years old and she is here with them here. the family is enjoying watching ryan zimmerman getting a base hit here in tampa bay. >> bob: isn't that something, long before ryan zimmerman was a gleam in our eye. >> rob: that's his great grandmother? she is 101. that is amazedding. >> i'm just hoping to be up right at 61. >> bob: well, 51 is the new 35. and a base hit to right field for b. j. upton. look out now. this is where the rays can get their base running going.

they have a disrupter who stole 18 and they have a disrupter in the batter's box who has stolen 35. crawford bounced tout anderson hernandez up the middle, first time. upton holding. best defense against that, getting ahead in the count. strikes 1. so these two have combined for 53 steals and they only have been caught eight times. >> that total is probably more than 24 teams in baseball. >> quick release, safe at second is b. j. upton. josh bard got rid of that ball in a hurry and that's number 19 for b. j. >> you want your catcher, you see that josh bard getting ready to fire the ball, does a great job, great throw up there. you can't teach speed.

b. j. upton is one of the fastest players in the big league. >> once they get some technique to go with that speed, look out. 1-1 to crawford. >> rob: looking at the bag from the umpire's view. >> bob: he is there. >> rob: he is banging the bag with his heel. had him reaching on 1-2. >> rob: nice pitch. don't concentrate so much on b. j. upton. carl crawford has stolen 39.

quite a weapon in that number 2 spot. and that hits him. now, you have two speedy runners aboard and a double steal is not out of the question here. >> rob: no, it's not. >> bob: and i know that steve mccaddy is going to come out and ask him what was going on there, but crawford, like derek jeter is known as a diver. they dive over the plate. so carl crawford is going to dive in there and he gets hit in the ribs. fourth time he has been hit by a pitch this year. >> rob: now, look at where he is. he is going to dive towards home plate. first step is towards home plate. he is trying to get inside. that's a pretty good pitch. >> bob: i can think of two hitters off hand that that would have hit, carl crawford and chase utley. guy just about as close to the plate. >> rob: probably four or five more that he has been able to

dodge but when you are a diver and you are trying to slap a hart fastball the other way after that good sinker the pitch before, that's a really good, tough communication between bard and stammen. >> bob: now the tying run's on base. evan longoria retired on the one-hopper to stammen first time up. >> rob: here is the best base stealer in the american league, carl crawford. bobby abreu having a great career with the angels. >> bob: did he find a fountain

of youth? that's a double steal, and the throw goes to centerfield. and the tying run will end up at third base on a throwing error by josh bard. i sometimes, you have to let them go. look at longoria. he is right in bard's way. bard has to throw this ball and it goes over the third baseman. sometimes, it's better if you stay right in front of them, get around him, not an easy task and the throw goes arye, but it's the kind of pressure these guys put on you. >> bob: and now that's a 3-2 game with the tying run 90 feet away. >> rob: now you know why manny acta was trying to manufacture runs after we were up 3-0. >> bob: this team can score

runs even if they are not slugging the ball. the nats have given up 345 runs, this team has scored 352 runs. longoria overmatched by craig stammen. that's a big strikeout. two down. straight change that went down and in to the right hander. you don't usually associate right handed to right handed. he is happy at the end of -- joe maddon is upset. something is not happy.

actually, joe west is not happy, telling joe maddon something about it. >> bob: there is a strobe light just beyond the pool in right center where the ray is swimming. it's either that. >> rob: i think that's what it is. >> bob: it's either that or people taking pictures out there and their flash bulb are popping up toward home plate. it's not right in the hitter's line of sight, but a right handed batter, if you look just off center, out there, that's the people taking pictures of the ray. >> rob: how can you not take pictures of those cute little rays? >> bob: they are adorable. >> rob: so if it the player gets blinded and strikes out and he plays for your home team? >> bob: i bet the marketing department never thought of

that one. they could put a sign that says, flash photography only if you are facing away from the field. >> rob: or when the owe bone. is up. >> bob: pen california bounced up the middle -- peqa bounced up the middle his first time out. and the nationals -- 0-2, don't make it too good. that's big breaking ball. right off the table. the rays get an unearned run. it's a 3-2 nats lead into the middle innings. you don't do laundry at the beach. you salt-wash everything and let it breeze dry. knit, delicate, permanent press... the ocean doesn't care. so grab your bag.

. >> bob: come on out to the miller light bash. live bands perform, pre-fame and the nats face off against the blue jays. that will be our return a week from tonight. stay after and catch fireworks extravaganza. your tickets are available, nationals.com, 888-632-nats and always at the box office at the ballpark. washington and toronto sounds like a beach bash to me. top of the 4th, bard, hernandez

and guzman. big breaking ball was a strike evidently when it crossed home plate. ball caught very low by dioner navarro. that was the 69th pitch of this game by matt garza. you talk about three long innings. this ballgame has been in progress for an hour and 16 minutes to get through a 3-2 first three in innings. >> rob: well, tomorrow night, the fans at home will only miss about an inning and a half. >> bob: it's possible. you get into the american league with the dh, everything slows down. >> rob: yes, sir. one season, '95, spent in the american league, longest year of my life. >> bob: did you see how jonathan papelbon got fined.

>> rob: yeah. everybody is throwing 3-2 pitches, those games can go 3 1- 2 hours. well, there a speed up the game rule that came into effect a while back and they want you to be ready in about 2 1/2 minute. then you come from a local break. >> bob: and the pa announcer has to get it. >> rob: it took 3:38 for jonathan papelbon. he was fined 1,000 bucks. >> bob: he admits he was warned about it previously. >> rob: i mean, when i was playing, the third base umpire always had a stop watch. when it was a local game, whatever, the locals were a little bit quicker but nationals were 2 1/2 minute. you sea me pitch. i warm up on five pitches. i'm standing there and waiting for the guy to give me the

okay, go ahead and pitch. and you would be waiting for 30 seconds. he is one of those guys that like to, you know, the second base umpire, i guess, has the stop watch. 2-2 to josh bard. that's a fastball that misses up and away. and the nationals continue to work the count beautifully against matt garza. here is a guy who has thrown 120 pitches this year but through three innings here tonight, he is almost halfway there. in fact, he is beyond halfway. 3-2 to bard who slams it out to ben zobrist at second base. i i ben zobrist who already had trouble catching one ground ball that came off the turf into the dirt who threw willie harris out. >> bob: what's the difference do uneath?

úrob:no, the di is fin but you have the sin thettic fake type whatever this grass is and it takes a hop off of there and then it hops into the dirt and the dirt is not the same speed. so you have a spinning ground ball, it may be different when it gets to you. >> bob: anderson hernandez shows bunt, draws longoria in from third and takes it up high. >> rob: i mean, there's regular grass infield now that, back in the day when i was playing, like dodger stadium, it was a really, really tough infield. our infielders had a tough time trying to catch ground balls there. >> bob: great swing, rndez basehit to left. the nationals have thei7th hit now against a pitcher who came in the second toughest to hit the american league. >> rob: we do pretty well again the best pitchers in baseball. it's the guys with the 8 e.r.a. that kill the mets. >> bob: righ. >> b: look at this great swing. take it to left field, cut down the