the pittsburgh pirates. oh, my. morgan slams one into the seats. and evidently he hit a seat and that's okay. christian guzman has a base hit and he's next. right at the 8:00 hour here in our nation's capital. and morgan take as fastball high. it is nationals baseball on masn two tonight. debbi taylor, rob dibble, i'm bob carpenter and our outstanding crew, good to be back home with them. morgan bumps one foul and the count stays 2-2. the rockies now have a 3-0 lead at philadelphia. and morgan strikes out on the

pitch away. two k's by johnson on morgan and four in the game. next up, christian guzman. >> rob: josh johnson not messing around with nyjer morgan. 98 miles per hour. we talk about this, when you throw off speed, you help some of these guys and nyjer, couple of and he doesn't normally strike out against anyone. i don't attack the hitters you don't think can hit home runs and then you stay away from the ones that you know can. ozzie smith. that guy drove me crazy. >> bob: guzman, josh johnson, he has retired eight straight.

we go to the middle n tngand the marlins lead 1- 0. 

 >> the nationals are traili this one by a score of 1-0-a very special night here on masn. it is military appreciation night. of course we are recognizing the birthday of the u.s. coast guard and i am joined by the president of the uso and senator john warner.

you both were able to take a trip, the first time ever the boat was docked at the peer. how special was that for you, senator? >> first, they always plan to have a small yacht basin here, and the sequoia is a very historic vessel. it was used by presidents it was the secretary of the navy's yacht and a lot of america's history was made on that small boat, a beautiful boat, all lovely paneled and a lot of famous presidential level meetings were on that little boat. and she is still sailing ted and in good shape. and this is the fist time, as i understand it, any boat has docked here at this ballpark. >> right outside this entrance here. >> yes. >> it is kind of exciting. >> a little bit of history and you also got to be a part of history. how special was it for you to take the first trip into nats peer? -- pier.

>> the first trip and the first time watching the game on a perfect summer night that happens to be military appreciation night. that is just about as good as it gets. >> we are celebrating the birthday of the coast guard and the men and women that work in the coast guard, they're very important to us. >> they're very special. they're our first line of defense. all around our country. often times you think ant army, navy, air force, marine, but the coast guard has always been there for america. >> thank you both for joining us. let's g back upstairs to bob. >> that's great, debi, an historic trip coming up to the ballpark don't. and cotedy ross is going to homer and make it 2-0, as he continues to wear out the nats. folks, he hit that ball three- fourths of the way up toward the concourse. >> rob: no way to defend that one, bob. >> bob: cody ross, his 18th of the year. and when he homers, the marlins usually win. and that is not the first time he has done that to our ball

club this year. i don't know what it is about him and our pitchers, but the flats certainly serve up the home run balls to cody ross. >> rob: 3-2, behind in the count again. you have to three an 86-mile- per-hour get me over either cutter that didn't cut or a fastball. >> bob: he homered in the first game he played here this year, friday, april 17th. and in the ninth inning against joel hanrahan. and then this ball hit out to center by john baker and nyjer morgan is there. >> rob: i just wanted to bring up the point about working ahead. hanley ramirez, as talented as he is when he is behind in the count 0-2, hitting .087. when he is ahead in the count, 2-0, .333. when it is 3-1, he is hitting .400. do you see a little pattern there? you want to work ahead. >> bob: how do you do that? >> rob: you get ahead.

breaking ball, fastball, whatever; trough strike one. it is still the best pitch out there. strike one. josh. >> bob: he struck out looking the first time up. >> rob: after the count is 3-0 on him he is hitting .800. >> bob: johnson hits one high in the air to deep left center, and this ball is gone. josh johnson, the pitcher, hits his third home run of the year. have you ever seen a pitcher hit a ball better than that to the opposite field? >> rob: no, but maybe walter johnson was a little bigger than this guy, but he is 6'7", about 270, and he just launches this pitch. the fastball up and away the big 25-year-old just swipes at

it. >> bob: he has homered in two consecutive starts and the marlins lead 3-07. orlando: not that people need a history lesson, but babe ruth won over 300 games as a pitcher before he became an every day player. >> bob: well, i have seen josh johnson hit a golf ball and i know how strong he is, and that doesn't surprise me one bit. and coghlan with a base hit. he is 2-3. and y. d. martin's evening is about to come to an abrupt end. down 3-0. only one out in the fourth and he is in the 80- pitch range. here comes steve mccady again. with nick johnson coming up.

by the way, the marlins, they only have four starters now. they have had days off. they don't need another one until this weekend. they have nine pitchers in their winston cup bullpen. nine. seven right-handers, including the former nat luis ayala, the former angel, brendan donnelly who is back in the big leagues. they just got matt lindstrom back although leo nunez is fredi gonzalez's closer from the right side and he has used dan meyer, the lefty, to close a couple of game based on match- ups on the other side of the plate. they have former nat brian sanches out there. a nine-man bullpen as fredi gonzalez likes his lineup so much, he really only has three extra men besides his back-up catcher. ronny paulino. and you can do that when you have starters taking you deep into games. >> rob: that is something, too, that the nationals need to work

on for next year, trying to get a set la line-up up, platooning i have never been a finance of and having defer lineups every night, it is not con deuce i. to win. so you see a lot of these teams, they have set lineups night after night after night. they don't change a thing. the guys work better on defense every night when they play together. i think that's what fredi gonzalez has done. most of the guys are out there, the same guys, same position, every night. the team with the lowest payroll, and they won 84 games last year. they have already won 55 this year. >> bob: they're on pace for 80- plus again. >> bob: it is just a shame the nationals can't do a thing about this. they are 0-9 against the marlins this year. there is no way one team at the major league level should dominate another team at that level like this. it is unkani. >> rob: and they are fifth in

the national league in offense. he is pretty secure in the fact that they're quo going to score some runs. >> bob: they're 2-7 against the phillies, 5-4 against the mets. 5-3 against atlanta. so they're respectable against two teams. not very good against another, and then invincible against the nationals. they're 10-15 against the central and 14-13 against the west. you could make an argue that the nationals are the reason the marlins are in the race. nobody goes 9-07 against somebody. that is a double play. nick johnson hits it right to adam dunn and chris coghlan is caught off the bag. that ball was hit hard and the marlins are hitting. j.d. martin hard tonight. it was a perfect fit.

find out more at aflac!... ...forbusiness.com

 b.m.w.  nationals baseball on masn brought to you in part on southwest airlines. and by jaguar. visit your local jaguar dealer for the new 510-horsepower jaguar x.k. requests r. and x.f.r. beautiful evening in our nation's capital a hot night. 90 degrees at game time. the ball is carrying for the marlins. the nats haven't been able to get anything done lately against josh johnson.

two hits in the first inning including a base hit by josh willingham after a broken bat single. dukes flied out deep to center, and the nats haven't had a nip of a base hit since. breaking ball misses, 1-1. >> rob: the nationals were in the situation last night, 3-0. they don't want to continually come back from 3-0, but they can do it. >> bob: that is not charlie morton standing 60 feet away, though. it is josh johnson from a town they call jinx, america, right across the refer from tulsa. it is a little town that has an amazing high school athletic program. josh went to high school there, and they have this arch rival named union. and one of those schools has won the last 13 oklahoma state

football championships. happenry ramirez. that's off the bag. but willingham is gone starting the bottom of the fourth inning. get your red on. watch the nating an the diamondbacks. saturday, come out early because we have 15,000 adam dunn bobble heads to give out presented by p. y. n bank. 888-632 nats, visit nationals.com. stop by the ballpark to get your tickets and make sure you come early to get through the gates as quickly as possible to take home your bobble head. i asked josh have you ever considered playing football because you're -- he is such a big guy, but he said no, but he enjoyed painting his face and it ising in the bleachers on friday night. high school football out there in oklahoma and texas, a whole different animal. and a fastball abeauty to the outside corner. 0-2 to dunn. adam played some football under the friday night lights.

johnson went right after him he gets the ball and he is ready to pitch, isn't he? >> rob: yes, he is. she a ready pitcher. >> bob: that's going to get him on the corner. as usual, teddy led for about one fur long. he has a cast on his arm after the per roguy wiped him out in pittsburgh. keep your eye on thomas jefferson on the left. oh, no. he's leaning! he's leaning! you put that head out too far, rob, and you're going down. >> rob: the new meaning to getting the head out.

>> bob: you could see him getting top heavy. >> rob: thomas jefferson, top heavy. and teddy -- >> bob: remember, the per roguy wiped him out in pittsburgh, just tackled teddy head on. >> rob: forward momentum. >> bob: bang. >> rob: major league baseball look ing into the president's race. maybe the presidents are too top heavy. >> bob: 1-2 from johnson to dukes. at the end of the race, teddy held up a sign that said i love p.t.i.! shameless promotion for tony kornheiser's tv show. now we know where tony was here. elijah dukes for a moment. there it is.

and a 2-2 to dukes. elijah strikes out. josh johnson is mowing down the nats. we haven't had a hit since the first. it is now the fifth inning. 3-0. 

 >> nats fans of hopeful of something happening tonight. we go top five. ramirez, cantu, uggla, three, four, five, coming up. aflac trivia from medwick.

aflac! >> reporter: who founded the u.s. coast guard in 1790? >> rob: george washington? >> bob: that's too obvious. >> rob: that's my guess. i don't know. did you know he died in 1799? i bet you didn't know that. >> bob: i have to disqualify myself because i saw the answer i think earlier. the guy who established the coast guard does appear on our currency. >> rob: andrew jackson. >> bob: that could be coin, bill. >> rob: benjamin franklin. >> bob: hamilton. >> rob: it's all about the ben gentleman plains! >> bob: hanley ramirez here. 1-1 -- 1-2 -- 1-1 top of the fifth.

i like the way we mix baseball and history here. jason bergmann was up last inning. after the marlins hit two home runs, one of them by the pitcher. hanley ramirez pops one a mile high on the infield and gonzales has it. >> rob: he is throwing them off their game. you hit them, walk them, and he pops up. >> bob: and he is hitless beyond the fifth inning. jorge cantu is next. a beautiful sky as we look out west. aren't the days getting shorter now, since about two weeks ago? that is a good breaking ball to cantu. a hard luck oh-fer two.

he's hit the ball hard up the middle twice. morgan took one hit away from him and j.d. martin took the other, so he pulls it for a single. willingham had to get over and box that ball down that thing was really skirting on the grass. it will be just another wired wednesday tomorrow with nyjer morgan. it will be fun to listen to him. you'll probably hear some quick- moving footsteps and we'll cover the bases thursday on a day game with craig stammen who pitches against chris volstad. i'm sure craig is egg tore get back out there after a rough outing in pittsburgh. -- eager to get back out there after a rough outing in pittsburgh. but right now it is the nationals' offense that has come to the rescue, the pitching, other than lannan, not very stellar. colin balester was good his last time out but didn't get

beyond six. and i know we have to be patient, but it makes you eager to see jordan zimmermann back out there. the nating will have him pitch a couple of abbreviated outings of the four-inning variety before we see him back up here. 2-0 to dan ugh lar. martin hasn't wanted anything to do with him. he has walked him twice. does dan uggla walk much? he has walked 60 times including his two tonight. 94 strikeouts. that's a lot of at-bats without

contact. martin has walked three tonight, numerous long counts, hit a batter and given up two home runs. jeremy hermida is next. inside corner, 3-2. the third time through the order usually is better than the second. >> rob: none of those batting averages against are good. you are not going to win a lot of ballgames .280 and above. >> bob: 3-2 pitch.

we'll see if they start the runner. they don't. uggla fouls it. way inside. almost hit him. another walk. this game is still within reach. >> rob: it is over for j.d. >> bob: that's why jim riggleman is going to make the move. if it is 5-0, 6-0, maybe you can see if he can finish the game. not in a three-run game. it is urge and here is bergman answering that call. 

 >> look at those nachos. that's a good-looking bunch. >> rob: nice. >> aflac! >> bob: let's pay off our trivia. the founder of the u.s. coast guard who is pictured on currency, it's all about the? hamiltons. >> rob: come on! i think he is, what, the head of the treasury department. >> bob: that's why you have the historical tie in between the coast guard and the department of the treasury. and rob dibble, you have just won two tickets to the tour of the u.s. mint. >> rob: i wouldn't mind that. i know i'm coming home with

some souvenirs. >> bob: i was thissing about going over there and visiting some of my tax money. hermida is oh-fer two. at second base, cantu, uggla is behind him. and jason bergmann is trying to set this wi ballgame down. the speed delivery there. he had hermida way out ahead. jeremy hermida for a couple of years we kept hearing when this y gets healthy, he is really going to be something. he has had a vaetof injuries, but this year pretty healthy hitting right around% and bergman freezes him with a stball after the chan the -- that probably made that

heater look about five or six miles faster. that is the of the inning. northrop grumman here on the big fastball, 95 on the black. that   is the four-seamer. >> bob: thrmn power house. an, withur pitch track tonight. cody ross homered the last time. and a fastball in there from jason. he didn't hold up. cody ross can't believe it. he froze his bat in that one position. let's see if he pulled it back.

oh, yeah, he did. >> rob: he broke that imaginary plane. >> bob: and then he tried to sell it. >> rob: one of the reasons probably why the marlins are going with so many guys in that bullpen, they score over 4.5 run as game, but they only allow 4.91 per game in return. they are 18-13 in one-run ballgames. >> bob: not bad. >> rob: they're at 4.46 runs per game, but the pitching staff allows 5.05 runs per ballgame. that's where you get killed. >> bob: and then when you add the unearned runs. >> rob: and 10-17 in one-run ballgames. >> bob: you if you add the unearned runs, the nationals give up 5.6 run as game, something like that. i mean, you can't recover from that. that's a swing and a miss on a

real good breaking ball in the dirt. the nats are still in this game. willie harris will lead off. he's playing third base tonight. he can run. he the plane can score. he can play anywhere. 

 >> bob: nationals baseball masn brought to you by southwest airlines. book your next trip at southwest.com. and by corona and corona light. kick back and relax with a nice cold corona and lime. relax responsibly. well, you guys are killing us with all of these food shots. we go from nachos to dogs to folks dancing with treats, having a good time at the ballpark despite the 3-0 score. it is time for willie harris to get something going and josh johnson showing why he is a shut down-type number one starter. >> rob: it is a pitching clinic. and i told you this many times, and probably bored you to tears about what a pitcher's job is. and in his last 35 starts over a season and a half, he has just gone out there and his

team has won 26 of those 35 starts. that's what your job is. it doesn't matter what your record ends up being. it is all about what you can do for your ball club. he ha a 10-2 record, but the marlins have won of his first 21 starts this season. that's the bottom line on the starting pitcher. >> bob: there are your quality starts right there. willie harris popped up to short the first time. first pitch swinging back in the second. josh johnson hasn't given up a hit since josh willingham singled hard to left field in the first. the hit before that, guzman was a broken bat job up the middle. so really two well hit balls, the willingham base hit and the dukes' fly ball to the center field wall with two outs in the first and that is strikeout number seven. ladies' night is back on august

20. $30, you get access to the rooftop happy hour and the tickets to the game against the rockies. the happy hour starts at 4:30. complimenty food and drink, player appearances, prizes, deejay, dancing, and more. 202-675-nats. ladies' night. >> rob: oh, yes it's ladies night. >> bob: i have a feeling that men are about to become obese sleet. >> rob: and the feeling is right. >> bob: thank you. if only the king of disco was still with us. >> rob: oh what a night. you have to be able to get down that low. can you get down that low. oh, what a night. >> bob: all right. >> rob: my dad gave me a great voice. what can i say. i don't like it. yeah, okay.

enough about josh johnson. come on. let's start getting it back together. what is most impressive is he has come back from tommy john surgery. >> bob: exaclty. and some guys will tell you when they have a serious injury like that, the work they put in rehabbing is more extensive and they work harder than they did when they were healthy, and they come back. some guys can come back very strong. >> rob: i don't know if you heard what dick pole, the pitching coach of the cincinnati reds said about the volquez tommy john surgy, he is blaming the w.b. c. he is so upset that this kid that was on the all-star team, and that is some frustration coming through. >> bob: when you're 5-52. >> rob: yeah. not the fastball. so dick pole basically took it out on major league baseball and the w.b. c. that one of their star

pitchers will be gone probably through next year with tommy john surgery, and he is very upset. >> bob: well lthe marlin bullpen, luis ayala. the nats did not want him to pitch in the w.b. c. he did and he was never the same. >> rob: daisuke matsuzaka has made eight starts for the red sox there year. >> bob: wil nieves hit ha ball a long way to right field, and it is run down by jeremy hermida, and the nats are gone in order for the fourth consecutive inning. 14 straight for josh johnson. wil nieves making a bid for his second 'v home run in e got sffhis caree plus, the savings engine helps our money grow. and that's something we need and want. introducing the virtual wallet from pnc, a high definition, online view of your money.

pnc. leading the way.

 >> come on, guys. the nats need your help. you'll have to wait another half inning to get the bats out. wednesday against the marlins, 7:00, masn two. the good news is josh johnson cannot pitch tomorrow night. it will be vick vanden hurt. 1-0. in three starts, he has been pretty good. he is relatively inexperienced at this level. john lannan is the nats' ace, 7- 8 with a 3.41 e.r.a. he is coming off one of his rougher starts of the year in pittsburgh. he doesn't get much run support. only eight pitchers have less to work with than john lannan. we'll start you off at 6:30 with byron kerr and ray knight, nats' extra. >> rob: i'm kind of happy that dries dale is not starting.

>> bob: the marlins' box score rolls by. john baker leaves off. >> rob: i have interviewed tommy john a number of times, who the surgery is named after. tommy did not take a season off after he had the surgery. he pitched and then won 171 games, i can do the math, and he's not in the hall of fame. he won almost 300 games. but after he had that ligament replacement surgery, he won 160 games without having the 12 months off to rehab. >> bob: and without his velocity. he became real pitcher. that ball ripped out to center. nyjer morgan, and john baker scorched that thing. three in a row for jason bergmann and here comes josh johnson. >> rob: oh, no.

big man. big lumber. >> bob: homering in two consecutive games. he had never hit a major league home run this year and now he has three. of those home runs, they have driven in run of the nine runs he's knocked in this year. the nats have seen some good hitting pitchers lately. zambrano. >> rob: he as hurt right now, another. >> and you said zambrano has, what, 18 homers? 15, 18? >> bob: hold on. i'm going back. i'll find it. >> rob: how could you not know that off the top of your head? >> bob: i'm in shell shocked. that's why. >> rob: he is not going to hit that curve ball. >> bob: when the cubs played here, carlos zambrano had 19 career home runs. >> rob: 19.

that's awesome. there is a big breaking ball. >> bob: jason has great stuff tonight. when jason bergmann has this kind of stuff, it reminds you of the game he pitched against atlanta a couple of years ago as a starter. but i think there role suits him. i think jason likes getting out there three to six outs, and he has great 12u6 and great command tonight. chris coghlan, the hitter, he's 2-3 with a triple and a single. we're in the top of the sixth inning. the marlins lead 3-0 with josh johnson pitching. it seems like more than that. alfredo amezaga is out for the year that an outfielder that the marlins have used at times as a lead-off man for years. adam dunn, and a one, two,

three, jasonberg plan retires five in a row. he'll be done. think eel hit for him next and then the top of the order coming. 

i'm very happy to be here. >> 23 years ago i never dreamed that this high honor would come to me. >> i was part of something special in boston, but most of all, i'm part of something special here today. >> you'll be remembered forever. >> it is that magical place where baseball is respectful, traditional, simple and pure. it is the hall of fame. >> bob: he is 6'7", 250 powns and right now he is untouchable. josh johnson has only given up one hit tonight and look at the one he got for himself. he put his head down and ran and the ball made it to the bullpen on the opposite side, his third home run of the year.

the marlins three and the nationals nothing, the bottom of the sixth. he is working on a two-hitter. jason bergmann stays in the game, by the way. the nats need to eat up some innings here. they don't want to burn the bullpen ton first night of the series. so bergman will pull a tyler clippard and stay in the game. >> rob: it is actually good sometimes to let a guy stretch it out a bit, use some of his pitches, but also get a feel. relief pitching is a feel. -- it is a feel-type thing where you have to have your pitches right now. it is not like, okay, i can give up a run or two and still have a chance to win the ballgame. >> bob: and because they play pitchers shallow on the opposite side, bergman hits the ball well but lines out to start the sixth inning. the top of the order, nyjer morgan, and josh johnson has done nothing but blow him away

tonight. a soft liner. >> rob: i think that might have hurt him. 97 right on his hand. >> bob: christian guzman trying to keep josh johnson from retiring his 17th consecutive batter. he has already pitched two complete games this year. he had only one in his career coming in and that was last year. >> rob: you have very smooth mechanics. he repeats the delivery so well. he keeps pounding the strike zone. 1% of stuff in the major leagues. not many guy cans throw 95 for seven, eight innings every time out. good breaking stuff, good off speed. nice changeup. >> bob: let me ask you something. i haven't looked up the numbers. does it feel like there are more complete games in baseball being thrown this year? >> rob: it feels like it, but

there really isn't. there are a couple of teams that have combined seven to nine complete games as teams, but not guys, not individuals. >> bob: this guy could change some of that. he is making it look very easy through six. gecko: uh, you wanted to see me sir? boss: come on in, i had some other things you can tell people about geico - great claims service and a 97% customer satisfaction rate. show people really trust us. gecko: yeah right, that makes sense. boss: trust is key when talking about geico. you gotta feel it. why don't you and i practice that with a little exercise where i fall backwards and you catch me. gecko: uh no sir, honestly... uh...i don't think...uh...

boss: no, no. we can do this. gecko: oh dear. vo: geico. fifteen minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance.  >> bob: nationals baseball masn brought to you by swift airlines. book your next trip on southwest.com. fans milling around watching the action waiting for some offense, but it has not come so

far. here is our game summary. j.d. martin only gets one out into the fifth inning. lots of walks. fur of them. 99 pitches. bergman has relieved and done well. nick johnson got the game's first rbi and the next two have come on homers by cody ross and the pitcher josh johnson. so here is nick leading off the top of the seventh. he is 1-4. as a marlin he is 3- 10 with two rbi's playing in his third game. nick has been in a pennant race before. he appeared in the playoffs when he was a yankee. >> rob: how long ago was that? >> bob: it has been a while, 2002-2003. in two division series, nick struggled a bit, but he did have three rbi's and against boston, he went 6-26 with a homer and three rbi's, and he

had five hits in the 2003 world series for the yankees ironically against the marlins. he has a taste of it and he brings a measure of experience to this club, but i think the big thing he brings over with a team in the race, and in the wildcard race, is the .420 object-base average. >> rob: and he can go both ways. he hits lefties better than he hits righty, -- riteys, so that is a huge plus for a good defensive first baseman. >> bob: in the playoffs it is all about match-ups. >> rob: absolutely. even at the end of the ballgame when you might pinch hit for him, listen, this guy is hitting .350 off of lefties. he is probably better than most of the right-handed hitters on the bench. >> bob: yeah. >> rob: like our own ryan zimmerman is probably hitting .278 off of lefties. >> bob: there he is on base for

the second time tonight. you're right, too. the one thing he can possibly teach his teammates is patience at the pallet and taking a few more pitches. >> bob: yeah, i hear exactly what your ear saying. my response is good luck with that with some of these guys. they're hackers. the man at first and the man who replaced him at first. >> rob: ryan zimmerman, .257 versus left-handers. .305 versus righties. >> bob: that is a serious jam job there and the pop-up. one out. we mentioned jordan zimmermann, and debbi taylor has an update. >> he pitched for potomac

against the frederick keys in frederick, maryland, the orioles' amill yours truly, and he had six strikeouts in three and a third innings. he gave up two hits, two runs, one was a home run, an earned run, but six strikeouts and nick is back in his outing tonight. >> thanks for the update, and jim riggleman said in pittsburgh they're looking for him to pitch in the four-inning range a couple of times before they bring him back up here. >> rob: and the stats really don't matter. it is how does that elbow feel tomorrow when he comes and shows up at the training room. you're not worried about how many pitches he threw. how many hits they had, how many k's. how does that elbow feel? because you don't want him to come back here with anything that doesn't make him think he's 100% healthy to go out there and face major league

hitters because he is on -- the adrenaline level up here is night and day. you don't want that kid to be injured. he is the future of this franchise. >> bob: and the ball is hit high in the air by jorge cantu. a long run by josh willingham who was playing deep, and that's the second out here in the seventh inning with dan uggla coming up. friday nights, and there is one coming up against the diamondbacks. for $20, 22 for a premium game ascoreboard pavilion seat. soda, water or beer. me-game music, post-game fireworks. 888-632-nats, and 6 # 87 or www.nationals.com. do any computers make you type the w.'s anymore? i don't think so. here is uggla, three walks.

i don't remember dan uggla ever walking three times in a game. there is ron villone. if jason bergmann doesn't end the inning, they'll have two men on and the left-hander jeremy hermida. 2-1. the nats have walked five marlins tonight. deep short. guzman. the play, and he just can't get anything on the throw, and an infield hit for uggla, and i tell you, i thought there was a play at second base, but nick johnson did a real good job of getting to second base in a hurry and guzman did not have a play at second. >> rob: the ball is hit deep in the hole. nick is running on contact. guzman doesn't even look at second. >> bob: he might have had a

better shot there, if any. >> rob: he knows uggla doesn't have a lot of speed. he just didn't think he could three across his body and throw a perfect strike. >> bob: it looked like nick was into second base pretty quickly there. >> rob: wil nieves may be buying time for ron villone here. the umpire will come out, and that's exactly what the nats were doing. jim riggleman will make the change. so jason bergmann will go two and a third to this point. no runs, one hit, one walk. he struck out three while he was in there, and it will be up to the left-hander villone to get hermida and keep this a 3-0 game just before the seventh inning stretch. ♪

(tucci) more bars in more places. at&t. the best coverage worldwide.

 >> bob: we found a couple i the ballpark with a nats fan in between. good-natured fun. glad they're having a good time tonight. this copyrighted telecast is presented by authority of the washington nationals and may not be reproduced or retransmitted of any form. the accounts may not be disseminated without the express written consent of the washington nationals. lucky-f lefty, lefty match-up. ron villone's 38th appearance for the nats. opponents hitting .244 against

him. it is surprising the right- handers are hitting .229 and the lefties .265, but the three home runs he is giving up to right-handers. jeremy hermida tonight, two punch outs and a ground ball, oh-fer three. he pulled off a good run. villone breaking ball. 80 miles per hour. that's 1-1. that's a front door

breaking ball abeauty. be on, two out. if the nats have any hope, they need to keep this a three-run game just like tyler clippard did in pittsburgh last night. >> rob: last night it was tyler clippard that turned the momentum around in that game. sometimes it is just getting out of an inning, it can change the momentum and the offense gets going.

that ball is jacked down the line. it is going to score one, send another one to third, and the marlins lead 4-0. that huers because that was nick johnson who jason bergmann walked to lead off the inning. first and third, two outs and now cody ross. >> rob: you see the swing by jeremy hermida, head down. he doesn't try to kill the ball, just put it in play. it found a nice little home out in right field.

cody ross, 1-3 tonight with a homer, his 18th. the last time these two teams met, cody ross hit a homer and drove in two runs. that was the homer that sean burnett gave up in his first nats' appearance down in florida. he has homered tonight off of j.d. martin. this guy has made himself into a pretty decent major league hitter with pop. 18 homers and 58 batted in. he didn't leave anything on the bag on that swing.

he hit 22 for the marlinses. it is the top of the hour here at nationals park in our nation's capital. bob carpenter and rob dibble and debbi taylor with you on masn two. sad to report for the 10th time in a row this year, it is all marlins. and a fly ball to right for elijah dukes. they pick up a run. it is a 4-0 game. josh willingham followed by adaniel dunn and elijah in the bottom of the seventh. 

 >> happy birthday to the un states coast guard. thank you for protecting america every day. [ music ]

>> and we air tonight's game on mass inn celebration of the 219th birthday of the united states coast guard. the coast guard has approximately 40,000 -- 40,150 men and women on active duty. the coast guard has continued to protect the nation throughout its long history both at home and abroad. yeah, you can go surfing, buddy, bus of the coast guard and make those sand castles. the bottom of the seventh inning. willingham, dunn and dukes. the nats have not had a hit since about 7:20 this evening and it is just past account.

off the end of the bat. willingham pops it up for nick johnson that's a fair ball by the time nick turns down the music and makes that play. he struggles on pop-ups. now, i was talking to the marlins' broadcasters about this earlier. their ballpark has very little foul territory. that will help nick johnson girlfriendly. does that mean less room to drop balls? >> bob: less room to roam. here is adam dunn and he goes up hacking. i'm pretty sure adam doesn't want the count to get to 0-2.

>> six innings worth of batters retired. >> the phillies have gotten on the board, but the rockies are pounding them tonight. 8-3 up at citizens bank park. jimmy rollins has hit his 12th homer of the year. the rockies dropped a four spot on the phills in the sixth. at the end of the night, if the marlins can keep this going, they'll be only four games behind philadelphia if those two results stand up. adam dunn strikes out for the third time tonight and the 122nd time this year. and that will be nine k's for adam dunn. byron kerr and ray knight, and it was a struggle for j.d. martin, only four and a third innings. josh johnson, he's got his foot on the nats' neck right now. and right now not a whole lot

for the skipper to talk about offensively. elijah dukes with a high chopper out to short. hanley ramirez, high throw and nick johnson stays on the bag. the nats are gone in the seventh. it is a gem for johnson. into the eighth we go. @x@0@p@0

 >> tonight's telecast on masn celebrating the birthday of the united states coast guard is

being brought to you by -- we serve today for a safe tomorrow. pan sonic tough book execute everies, tough book for a tough world. navy federal credit union. we serve where you serve. and the monument all lit up tonight looking beautiful here in early august. we're going to the top of the inning. the top of the eighth inning. i wish it was the fourth. and the nats would have more time against josh johnson if that was the case, but he is poised to close out this game. he has thrown only 82 pitches in seven innings tonight. >> rob: he looked tired, though. he had to run all the way around the bases on the home run. maybe he can't finish this game. >> bob: i like your optimism, as misguided as it is. and a high ball to nyjer morgan off the bat of john baker and

that's how the eighth gets underway. here comes josh johnson. >> rob: and the fact that they have nine guys in their bullpen, you know, pretty much bring out another guy and still have three guys left for the final out in this game. >> bob: one per out, huh? >> rob: yes. >> bob: it is a great luxury to have when you have a guy taking the mound every fifth day and you just feel like you're going to win. now, the nationals are feel that way tomorrow with john lannan, won't they? >> rob: the same way they feel about josh johnson? >> bob: maybe not to that degree, but he is the best the nats have right now. there is no doubt about that. >> rob: that's how good john lannan has been, giving his team the opportunity to win every fifth day. now you have to work on the other four days. >> bob: a swing and a miss.

>> rob: you have to give the marlins some credit, too. they have ricky nolasco in the trade for miguel cabrera. they have used system of the trades that they have sent really good players elsewhere, one of their other starters, hanley ramirez came in the josh beckett, mike lowell trade with the red sox. they wouldn't be where they are without making some fantastic evaluations on their trade. >> bob: i was told the marlins don't make -- said to the red sox we don't make this deal unless we get hanley ramirezment he was the deal maker or breaker in this case. >> rob: and even cliff lee. that was four players for one guy. and justin masterson from the red sox, who i think could be a stud in this league, he was sent in the victor martinez trade to maybe just wait. not this year, maybe not even next year, but a couple years from now, you may see a guy like masterson just dominating

at this level and you'll look back and say that was the victor martinez trade. a know a lot of people are down on the indians now, but they picked up a lot of great players for two players. >> bob: 1-1, to left center and he is going to drop one. it bounces to willingham and chris coghlan is 3-5 in the lead-off spot tonight. coming into this game as the lead-off hitter in # 48 games, he batted .267 for the fish. hanley ramirez was their lead f off man until this year when they moved into the number three slot. so they have been conducting a casting call at the top of their lineup to see who wants to be the lead-off man. and there he is on deck. ramirez with nick johnson e stepping in. nick with an rbi lit. a hard hit line drive that dunn turned special a double play. a walk and a run scored.

>> rob: and bonifacio, who has only really hit against the nationals, he was earlier in the year their lead-off guy. >> bob: broken bat, pop fly, and adam dunn can't get it. the runner is trapped off second and out! it is chris coghlan and the inning is over. it will be a base hit for nick, and then an alert play to get the runner who did not like yo, the bue epcall.

(announcer) after four hours, the dangers of driver fatigue increase by 200%.

but with attention assist, your new e-class can actually detect drowsy driving behavior... and warn you. this is the new e-class. this is mercedes-benz.  >> bob: welcome back to nationals park. the marlins 4-0. let's have a look at our mercedes benz. -class, our assist of the gym and it is all about nyjer morgan on the line drive by cantu earlier. >> rob: this is just a head's up play. he wasn't able to make the play in the air, but he gets the short hop and makes the perfect catch, the perfect read and he guns out the former nationals' player nick johnson. the bottom of the eighth. harris, gonzales and nieves. >> rob: and think you said it

was his 12th assist of the season. >> bob: it was. the league leader in that department. he shows bunt and pulls the bat back. matt kevin of the dodgers has 11 and michael bourn with 10. willie harris. right field. it is dropping and the nats have their first base hit since 21 batters ago! two of the three hits tonight are broken bats. >> rob: when you have great stuff like josh johnson, even lurking when you make great pitches, sometimes the hitters break their bats and get singles, get home runs sometimes, and he has given up a few home runs this year, not many. he averages about two a month.

alberto gonzalez is next. >> rob: hitters will let you know who you -- what you're featuring on any given night. 21 straight, that let -- lets you know how good josh johnson has been. >> bob: no way for hermida to get there. >> rob: he has some new wood this at-bat after breaking his bat in the last at-bat and see how it works. >> bob: and that was not on the swing he broke it.

and gonzales rips one up the middle. that's the best contact he has made in a while. two on and nobody out. >> rob: short and sweet. right to the point. he took the fastball right up the middle. not time for a big long swing. time to swing down on it and chop it right back up the middle. you see that quick swing. he has been missing that the last couple of weeks. a guy throwing that hard, still throwing in the low to mid 90s, he is applying the power. all you have to do is make some contact. >> bob: the one thing the nats lack tonight with ryan zimmerman not playing and willie harris starting is a bona fide left-handed bat off the bench. so ronnie belliard, a right- hander is on deck to hit for

ron villone. if you're a tight ballgame, you can call on anderson hernandez, but when you're down by three or four, you need somebody with some pop, and wil nieves fouls that one. will is oh-fer two. the nats haven't had many opportunities, have they, with runners in scoring position. only two at-bats tonight. >> rob: well, the marlins, not much better with that 2-9. they have stranded 10 runners. >> bob: those two at-bats were dunn, and dukes long fly ball way back in the first inning. wil nieves with a base hit to right. willie harris will be held. the bases are loaded with

nobody out as the nats take a cingular approach -- single approach against josh johnson. renyel pinto, the lefty. >> rob: this year, josh johnson has been averaging almost 16 pitches per inning. that's a lot. that just shows you he is a strikeout power guy, averaging a little more than 103.3 pitches per start, and he's right at 90 right now. >> bob: he hasn't pitched less

than six innings since may 14th. so the month of july -- well, he actually went three and a third against the nats, but it rained that night. and then he went seven, six and 2/3, seven and six. that's what is left on the bench having used ronnie belliard now as ronny steps in. >> rob: if ryan zimmerman can swing a bat. he is one of our better fastball hitters. >> bob: belliard is 2-17 as a pinch hitter this year. ball two. 20 batters in a row and now

three consecutive singles. that was right on the corner. ronnie belliard has done the grand slam thing twice. he hates not to play. a late breaker. >> rob: he maybe took the last fastball he is going to see this at-bat. he knows belliard is is a good fastball hitter. ronnie belliard, and this ball is heading to the bullpen. two runs will score! it will be second and third, and it is a 4-2 game! >> rob: nice!

>> bob: that's one of the hardest balls i have ever seen ronnie belliard hit, and the nats have four consecutive hits. they're finally on the board. >> rob: i said he wouldn't get another fastball and he didn't. he got a breaking ball and ronnie belliard is all over that. that's when you go with the pitcher, know what is coming, wait on it perfectly and just crush. that man is very happy and so are we. nice job. that ball had that spin on it. it was a low liner and it carried almost to the bullpen before it hit. and the nats have knocked josh johnson out of this game. wow.

now at chili's -- welcome to chili's. start your three-course meals with a shared appetizer. for a second course, choose two entrees from over 15 chili's favorites, like our big mouth bites -- the mini burgers with giant layers of flavor. or a half-rack of our triple-basted baby back ribs. then save some room to share a decadent dessert. a lot of bold flavors, for a limited time only. chili's --

 >> bob: the nationals are d interesting things in the latter innings of ballgames recently. another look at what ronnie belliard just did, bob. >> rob: northrop grumman on the hanging breaking ball there. he hasn't done too many of those tonight but that one cost them. the two run also come in. second and third, no outs, and josh johnson is knocked out of the game. >> bob: here is an interesting number as renyel pinto warms up. starting with friday night's game in pittsburgh, so now this is the fifth game including that one, from the seventh inning on, the nationals have

now scored 15 runs in those five games. >> rob: give a lot of credit to jason bergmann on the great ob that he did. keepinwhere it was. >> bob: runners atdown third base, wil nieves. >> rob: if he gets pulled by the pitcher, that's a run. >> bob: fastball in there for a strike. josh johnson. >> rob: "major league," the movie where the guy bunted and he -- bunted and he just kept on running from second l the way. n -@@why don't we that one. manot. >> bob: morganwill score a run and that will runner thir

onout. it is now a 4- as you and i talked about the other day, in many ways that is better than a sac fly because you advance both ba @member of the nationals. s a and now christian guzman coming in, fredi gonzalez. he had a caduet is one of many treatment options, in addition to diet and exercise... that you can discuss with your doctor. caduet is not for everyone.

it's not for people with liver problems... and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. to check for liver problems, you need simple blood tests. tell your doctor about any heart problems... and all other medications you are taking... or if you experience muscle pain or weakness, as they may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. how close are you to where you want to be? ask your doctor if caduet can help you go... for both your goals.

 >> time to bring you up to speed with the at&t rapid rewind. josh johnson totally dominating the nats, a two-hitter through seven and through the end of seventh inning, retiring 20 batters in a row striking out nine. and then with the bases loaded after three singles, ronnie belliard get as two-strike breaking ball, drives in two, sets up another run, and maybe another. the nats are right back at the marlins. at&t, the nation's fastest 3 g. network. and like ronnie belliard, your world delivered. [ singing ] a big at-bat for christian guzman, the marlins will play the infield in. the tying run is at third base with one out. and christian guzman tonight is 1-3. the pitcher is 34-year-old

kiko calero. at time this is right-hander has been very effective for the marlins this year. his 10th appearance since coming off the d.l. he had a right shoulder that got inflamed. guzman from the left side this year batting over .300. anything but a ground ball here. that was a 77-mile-per-hour breaking ball hanging upstairs. >> rob: you didn't expect that. he is just trying to get a breaking ball over for strike one. that is probably the pitch you want to drive right here. another breaking ball. ball two. >> bob: the same one. calero at times a strikeout pitcher. 49 k's in 39 innings.

josh willingham waiting. christian guzman over his last 10 games coming into tonight, he has driven in 12 runs elevating his season total, up to 36. 88 on the fastball missing. 3-1. you'd call this a great

rbi count. that's a breaking ball from the side door that comes in, 3-2. >> rob: well, he is not feeling too comfortable with the fastball, so four out of five pitches have been breaking balls, and a back door breaking ball right there to get back in the count. donnelly is warming up right now. >> bob: ronny bell yarr at third base, one out after his dramatic pinch hit. guzman ties the game with a base hit!

he hit it hard enough that nick johnson couldn't get there, and the nats have battled back with four in the eighth. >> rob: one too many breaking balls. ball one with the breaking ball. ball two with the breaking ball. he get as break there on the swinging on the breaking ball. that ball is down. another breaking ball for strike two. full count. and then a bad 80-mile-per-hour breaking ball. so when you see five out of six pitches and they're breaking balls. >> bob: all four of those runs charged to josh johnson. j.d. martin's off the hook. johnson cannot win his 11th. and josh willing ham takes one upstairs. now the nationals in their last

five games have scoreed 17 runs from the seventh inning on. >> rob: and base runners against calero 6-6. >> bob: guzman is taking pretty short leads here. he's only 1-5 stealing this year. and at the same time the nats know how hot josh willingham is. you don't want to take the bat out of his hands. by the way, john baker, the catcher, 21% caught stealing this year.

willingham on a good take. breaking ball, 2-1. so josh johnson goes seven-plus, four runs, only six hits, but four of them came in a row here. he didn't walk a batter, struck out nine. 95 pitches, 67 strikes, and he cannot win the game. >> rob: well, right here, the way calero has been working, he has been throwing nothing but breaking balls, especially in fastball counts. so i would try to steal a base here. he is thinking the same thing. 2-1. i don't think he is going to give in and throw a fastball the a fastball hitter.

>> rob: well, what do i know. >> bob: josh willingham was ripping on that 88-mile-per- hour heater and the count is 2- 2. still only one out here in the eighth. 

 and a breaking ball to -- t josh pops up to the right side. it is the second out. adam dunn helping that number we talked about. it was the sixth inning yesterday in pittsburgh when he wrapped one around the left field foul pole. the nats had been shut out until that inning. guzman had driven in a run and suddenly the nats have the lead. that will be it for kiko calero who gives up an rbi hit, gets an out, and the nats are still battling away here g $15 dollars la in the eighth inning. they have now tied the game. 

 >> bob: adam dunn is waiting for dan meyer. you can follow the nats on your iphone or ipod touch. it is mlb.com at-bat 2009. you can visit nationals.com on your iphone or ipod touch and it features plain, video highlights -- play-by-play and video and live audio. adam dunn is dying to do something after striking out three times today. the left-hander dan meyer has saved a couple of ballgames for

the marlins. until matt lindstrom is back to full capacity, a bullpen with nunez and meyer   . >> bob: they have had donne ready for quite a while and if meyer doesn't retire dunn, we may see another pitching change

with the right-hander dukes coming. the hist is on for adam. and they'll take one off the plate away, 3-0. >> rob: and the percentage is not in the favor as far as numbers go. the left-handed hitters hitting .221 and the rightying .160. >> bob: i think adam wanted to rip on 3-0, but it was little up. >> rob: up and away. that's not his pitch. >> bob: 3-2 now. and the one advantage of the count going there is that guzman gets a head start.

they will take nick johnson and keep him close to first. me eel be retreating as soon as the pitcher goes home and guzman will be off and running. there is the infield defense. how deep is cody ross in center and jeremy hermida in right,ened for that matter coghlan on the o'side. adam dunn, and deep left field, and this ball is gone! his second consecutive opposite field homer give the nationals the lead 6-4! >> rob: dan my ser going to get

in a jam by falling behind and has to three three straight fastballs, even at 94 miles per hour outside. adam dunn caught up to it. good-bye! >> bob: 80 rbi's for adam dunn. here is duking. the changeup up and away. and the nationals have dropped a six spot on the marlins here in the eighth inning. >> rob: that's one of those percentages that did not go the way the manager thought. >> bob: and a rattled meyer now. this is outside to dukes. >> rob: three home runs now given up by meyer to lefties.

>> bob: how about that after three strikeouts? >> rob: he was lulling him into a false sense of security. >> bob: he takes a home run swing. >> rob: don't ever try to figure this thing out. and even their guy said he doesn't like pitching against the nationals. >> bob: the nats got him for a bunch of runs in this ballpark, and dukes, i don't know if he hurt himself on that swing, in

to check him out. he is looking like he -- >> rob: he swallowed a bug. >> bob: somebody could have brought some water out. we've got some unhere. >> rob: this is the third straight fastball and away to adam dunn. he took one. missed one, hit the third. ray lot of happy nationals fans right now. >> bob: isn't that a thing of beauty when a big man stays on the ball like that and just strokes it the other way and out she goes.

>> rob: we like it when he starts expanding his zone. he'll stop throwing the balls away to him if he keeps hitting it out like that. >> bob: but we would sure rather see him do that than take the pitch off the plate for a walk. and it is a 2-1 count to dukes now. >> bob: have you considered switching your cologne? >> in the dark. no peanuts or nothin'. r rob: i don't seem to have a problem up here, but you do. >> rob: you're all over me, all

the time. >> bob: i'm just theorizing here. on the ground ball to cantu. what an inning for the nats! nine batters, six score, and a big blow atwo-run homer by adam dunn. now we go to the the of the ninth. it is 6-4! úú÷÷

 >> rob: coarse light freeze cam, the world's most refreshing beer. when you hit a ball like that, you get the freeze cam rite on the sweet spot, head down, hitting it where it is pitched, and dan, don't call me oscar meyer wiener, can only sit there and watch the coarse

light freeze cam. >> bob: the nationals shore up the defense now. ronnie belliard stays in the ballgame after his megahit, and anderson hernandez is in to play second and gonzales is over to play third base in place of willie harris. and willy is in left. >> rob: it looks like he has a cup on. good choice. >> bob: here is mike mcdougle. he saved the ballgame with an anxious moment of or two in pittsburgh last night for his eighth.

>> now for the marlins. ramirez, cantu and uggla, three right-handed hitters with power in the ninth inning. mcdougle gets ahead. happenry ramirez is oh-fer two. he has been hit by a pitch and walked. >> rob: he is trying to throw a slider, maybe elevate the fastball chest high. i don't think he can pitch up

to that 97 up there. >> bob: and a 1-2 to ramirez and got him for the first out! well called be i my partner and well execute bid the closer! he has one of the best moving fastballs, and he throws it up there and ramirez is just a bit tardy. jorge cantu. last time up he had a single.

2-0. well hit, center field and here comes nyjer and he can't get there. the ball gets by him. dukes back up up. it will be a one-out double for jorge cantu. he is going to try to catch anything out there. >> rob: a good job by elijah dukes backing up right there. a little -- runner on third instead of a runner on second.

>> bob: dan uggla is next and hermida. >> rob: sometimes it is not the bested in to play a single into a double. you still would have the double play in order here. ugh what, three walks and a single tonight. and mcdougle falls behind and with his limited repertoire, falling behind is not good. >> rob: and you also want to try to -- you also want to try to just challenge this guy.

you don't want to throw a bad slider here. go with your best stuff. if you have to throw a 2-0 fastball, maybe he pops -- pops it up. big pitch here, 2-0 to uggla. note even close. the one thing that concerns you about mcdoug is his strikeout- to-walks ratio this year. now the tying run is on base and it only took four pitches. >> rob: it is repeat and

delivery. >> bob: wil nieves is on his way out, and i'm not sure dan uggla, a free swinger, has ever walked four times in one game. >> rob: now what has happened with the double and the walk, mcdougle might have to possibly face national killer cody ross. anything but that. >> rob: cody put as cape on every time he plays the nationals. a home run in four trips today.

low and away.   out of play. strike two. >> rob: a little disconcerting. we need a little noise. >> bob: well, i'm not going to

tell you why. i don't have the heart to mention these numbers. >> rob: we know that. >> bob: of the way this series has gone. >> rob: make some noise. it isn't like golf. think err not trying to sink the putt to win the masters. >> bob: one ball and two strikes. her immediata with a bouncer. the natss pray it stays fair, but it won't. i will say that jeremy hermida has hit a home run in this

ballpark this year in the ninth inning. >> rob: wow. one ball and two strikes. two on, one out in a 6-4 game. and a ground ball to guzman. this is the ballgame! the nats win it on a double play! and they finally beat the florida marlins this year! a very impressive come-from- behind 6-4 win and mcdougle gets his ninth save. a perfect ground ball.

all guzman had to do was step and throw and this baby is in the score books! finally, a w.!   >> the washington nationals beat the florida marlins. byron kerr and ray knight, nats' extra coming up, but first let's go down to the field with debbi taylor. >> thank you. josh johnson was unbelievable and then ran into trouble in the eighth inning. what adjustments did you make? >> i don't know. he was unhittable for however

many innings it was, and he's not the best right-hander in the game for nothing. he is tough. >> and then they bring in the lefty, dan meyer, and what are you thinking? >> first of all, i'm trying to get some strikes and trying to get something i can drive. and i swung at a bad 3-1 pitch. i knew i was either going to walk or hopefully put something in play. >> the marlins had your number all season, nine consecutive wins. what does it mean for the club to beat them tonight? >> hopefully a lot better. the good news is we play tomorrow. it is just good to get a winning streak. >> rob: and it was a good comeback when you guys had that never say die attitude, don't you? >> yeah, i think so. we never feel like we're out of a game no matter what happens. it is just a good win. good job tonight, adam. thank you very much. let's go back to bob. >> thank you, debbi taylor. the nationals continue to hit the ball unbeliefably good from the seventh inning on.

19 runs in their last five games. they win it 6-4. join us tomorrow night, masn 2, game two. we'll get you going at 6:30 with "nats xtra." this is masn sports.com for all of the latest news on the nats. this has been a presentation of masn. stay tuned, "nats xtra" is coming up now from byron and ray and from the booth, so long until tomorrow night! >> welcome to "nats xtra" presented by verizon fios an a fan take as the tick come back victory night for your washington nationals. johnson johnson looks like he is in control and the nationals get a huge home run for adam dunn and score six runs in the eighth inning to win it 6-4. boy, you can't ask for a welcome home present better than that, ray knight, to do

that. >> the biggest run in the season by far. you talk about turning things around. you do that on six hits in that eighth inning. tough at-bats. after being totally dominated from the first inning on. 20 consecutive hitters or six and 2/3 innings of perfect baseball by josh johnson. he dominated with 97 miles per hour fastball. 89 measure sliders. our hitters looked like they have no chance and somehow they figured him out. >> let's break it down. how do they do it in the eighth? >> they got pretty good pitches to hit. job with the fastball. we're going to go right there. a base hit. the breaking ball. he has seen more breaking balls in that inning. belliard, the double and adam the fastball. out away from him, off the left- hander, and he was able to put together those six hits. he went a little more to the breaking ball. he had a great one all night long. but, gosh, 97 miles per hour fastball. we were behind home plate again, the most impressive arm i have seen this season without

a doubt. >> and also, christian guzman, the big base hit as well to tie it up and adam dunn working the count against the bullpen we were talking about. there is the line score for the nationals. six in the eighth innings. there is adam dunn's numbers, the former national and johnson josh. for the importance of a win like there, especially after what you did on the road. you build for the future, ray. gains confidence in yourself and it is against a team like florida that is fighting for the wild cay card. >> it is a first ballgame that we have snatched from somebody, truly snatched it, and we're able to do that. it is just a combination of your bullpen coming in. bergman throws the ball exceptionally well. villone held them close and then you come back with that kind of offense and i cannot tell you, i have been in the situation many mmtimes where ball clubs that i was on was struggling over a period of time, not a whole season, but a period of time. a ballgame like this turns

everything around. you begin do believe that you're not going to lose and i believe this ball club is starting to think that they're going to win ballgames. >> you look at the national league east ateam they have always had trouble beating the florida marlins. talking to josh before the game. he said florida is hockey, confident team. you want to get that swagger yourself. i know it is just one game, but that is a step in the right direction. >> you have to start it now before you hammer it. we have finally started hammering it. they are a good ball club. there is no question about it. they match up strongly against us. they have great starting pitching and the bullpen has been successful a real good fastball hitting ball club. j.d. martin didn't throw his breaking ball a lot. but the best game we have played all year long offensively coming back and doing everything you have to do to win a ballgame. >> and the unique vantage point being back at home, we got to watch j.d. martin's efforts, really in the

first inning. it was tough night for him at the beginning. >> he just didn't have command and he threw a lot of fastballs which is sun usual. he usually uses the fastball to set up the breaking ball. and coghlan hit a triple and johnson comes right behind him and hit as single. and then the line drive to short center field, as they were able to put some runs on the board and everything from that point on. he did track out a few people, but he just didn't have command of his fastball. he missed a lot with it. he threw 90-something pitches, and you go to the third inning. ramirez walks there. the infielder's choice. dan uggla. he is on the fielder's choice here. guzman make as good play. uggla grounds to shortstop. the fourth inning. he bobbles to left. this is a fastball inside. and the 3-1 pitch in the same spot. you and i were looking at it. it is just like it was on a railroad track. and then josh johnson hit his third home run of the year.

the pitch, 6'7", 250 pounds. he doesn't have to do much but put the bat on the ball. but martin is gone. not effective. he threw about 80% fastballs and, you know, he's not like the other guys. he has to rely on his breaking ball to get people out. and i thought he had hitters stood up several times, especially 3-2. he can throw it over for a strike and he threw a fastball trying to spot it and walked a lot of people. >> is that wil nieves. is that him shaking him off. is it confidence? what are some of the ways that he decides not to go with that breaking ball? >> i don't know. when you have that one that good, you have to be able to throw it in a situation when you get a hitter looking at nothing but fastballs. he established his fastball early. in the first inning he threw 27 fastballs and only four curve balls and one changeup. there were three times when i thought he could throw the breaking ball and get out of the inning. what he ended up doing was extending the inning so deep he ended up with 31 pitches.

they weren't going to hit his breaking ball. it was really good. it always is. tonight he just went away from it for some reason. >> the good news is they played nine innings and not seven or six a comeback victory. we're going to talk about this huge win for the nationals as they get the home stand started with what 6-4 victory over florida. player interviews and more coming up! um... which gives you more bandwidth than cable. so you can upload faster. so it's like comparing a horse and buggy to a sports car. am i the, uh, horse? (announcer) it's a whole new internet. makes uploading as easy as downloading. because your internet's not fast unless it's two-way fast. boss: come on in, i had some other things you can tell people about geico - great claims service and a 97% customer satisfaction rate. show people really trust us. gecko: yeah right, that makes sense. boss: trust is key when talking about geico. you gotta feel it.

why don't you and i practice that with a little exercise where i fall backwards and you catch me. gecko: uh no sir, honestly... uh...i don't think...uh... boss: no, no. we can do this. gecko: oh dear. vo: geico. fifteen minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance.

 >> nats' extra post-game sh brought to you in part by verizon fios, the fastest internet, 100 channels. there is fios and this is big. the nationals fans rejoicing and the nats come up with six runs in the eighth inning and they come back and beat the marlins 6-4. byron kerr and ray knight with you on "nats xtra." glad you can join us as we reminisce a great way to start the home stand. it didn't look like it was going to be a nice night for the nationals. they had a little going in the first enand then they had to wait until the eighth inning to

connect again. >> one of them hit hard. only two balls, and this was a jam shot. it was hit hard there. and willingham. and there is a three-run homer. as the to hit it out at about the 407 sign. >> a single by gonzales as it goes right back up the middle. wil nieves, another base hit. and the breaking ball. the way he drives all the way over. one hops the bullpen out there, and then nyjer gets the ground ball. fielder's choice and he gets the tying run and the 4-3 run in, and a big base hit by guzman as he goes through the breaking ball high. the breaking ball high. and see how he is going to the breaking ball for some reason and he had been to the fastball all night long. and just catches that part of the plate. breaking ball again. and he goes to another breaking ball. the base hit to the right side

for the tying run. he sets it up to adam dunn. he almost could have caught it, and he continues to go the opposite way. >> the nationals with the 6-4 victory over the marlins and let's go to jim riggleman. >> probably as gad as we have seen. maybe somebody else threw one ballgame like that against us, but we just wanted to hang around, you know, stay close. we didn't plan on doing a heck of a lot against him the way he was going. we just wanted to hopefully get into the bullpen. they got a good bullpen, but nobody is going to be as good as johnson. if we could just keep it close, and then all of a sudden we have three great at-bats from harris, gonzales and nieves, and belliard came through huge. belliard is is a pro. he is a great hitter. he really knows how to play the game and he got a huge hit

there for us. nyjer morgan drives one in and moves one over, and guzman get as hit with the infield drawn in. of course dub did what he did, and just at-bat after at-bat. great at-bats, but johnson, to answer your question, was just dominating and really a great credit to our six, seven and eight hitters to load them up for belly. >> and what does this victory say about your team? i'm not going to lie a month ago you wouldn't have won this game. >> well, you know, i think that the ball club is feeling pretty good about themselves. you know, there is a lot of veterans in there. it is perceived as young club. it is a young pitching staff, but there's a lot of veterans in there with a lot of pride, you know. bard, nieves, these guys take a lot of pride wlarks they do behind the plate.

you know, dunn and willingham. niagara ser not a kid. there's a lot of guys there who want to turn this thing around and be a part of it and just try to go out there with them because they were saying all of the right thins. as good as johnson was, the mood in the dug-out was, come on, let's go. et let's get one here. let's pick one up. we never kid, but, you know, they were saying the right things. they knew if we could make him throw enough pitches, maybe we could do something against the bullpen. >> is that a sign of a professional hitter the way adam strikes out three times and comes back with the bomb? >> yeah, that is the thing. he's going to strike out, but he is going to do what he did right there and what he did last night in pittsburgh. you have a chance with adam. you can be on the ropes, but if you get a couple of guys on, and he can hurt you. and he just did a great job and meyer has done a good job in

that bullpen for florida, and adam had a great at-bat against a tough lefty. >> and another great job by the bullpen, and more than two innings and then the one coming in and keeping those guys to the one run that they gave up. >> yeah, you know, that was huge, what all of the guys in the bullpen did. they have been up and or in a lot lately. so that's something we're going to have to keep an eye on. they have really done a great job. i can't say enough about villone, you know. he has just been a horse for us in terms of taking the ball, giving us multiple innings, getting up every day, just really -- this guy -- you know why he has been around a long time. he has been a manager's dream as far as getting the big outs. >> if it is between belliard in the first half and belliard now, he has played well in the

second half? >> yeah, i think he has a little more giddy up in his walk, you know, he is getting after it. he is just kind of i think feeling like, okay, let's go. if this is my role, i'm going to accept it and get after it. but, you know, i'm going to try to get him in there more often because he is such a good hitter. i know that sounds odd. i use the word great a minute ago. he is probably hitting .200, but everybody on our ball club and when you play other teams, they'll say, man, that guy can hit. you don't even look at the averages. he is a professional hitter and he is dangerous. >> and j.d. had trouble following the lines at the plate. can you talk about him? >> well, yeah, j.d. kept us in there. i think it was -- it was 3-0, i

guess when he left, so, you know, it doesn't sound that bad, but they had him on the ropes a few times and didn't quite put him away. he is a battler. he didn't have his good stuff today. he didn't have his location, but, you know, to only give up three, he gave us a chance. and, as it looked like they were ready to break it open, in the first inning, i thought we were going to break it open. i thought dukes' ball was gone for sure. as great as johnson is throwing, it looked like we might have three on the board real quick. so maybe j.d. would have a little breathing room. what happened there? >> he swallowed a bug. dukes has got a little bit of asthma situation, you know, and so our trainer thought maybe

that was going on, but he had swallowed a bug and was really uncomfortable there so he got him some water. >> and zimmerman and kearns, how are they doing? >> they weren't available tonight. we were trail strapped as far as what we could do with our bullpen tonight, with our been up players tonight. that's why we let bergman hit in the sixth and preserve arms in the bullpen and also not to eat up one of our bench players because they weren't available tnt and hopefully they'll be available tomorrow. >> he is going to have to with what lot better than he was today for us to start him tomorrow. >> the planker jim riggleman of the washington nationals. a lot of good stuff there. the nats win in comeback fashion over the florida marlins. we're going to continue the party after this time out and

talk about how the nats did it over florida, their first win over florida in 10 tries dating back to last season. the nats win and we'll talk about it next! 

 >> welcome back to nats' ex byron kerr and ray knight on military night. six runs in the eighth inning. three straight comeback victories, ray, and really the bullpen, once again, one of the heroes as last night it was tyler clippard that settled down the pirates and tonight it was jason bergmann that got it going. >> if you're going to stay close and have a good bullpen, you're going to pull out a lot of wins.

bergman came in and was throwing speed. and hermida, johnson, and he strikes out looking on the curve ball. that just locked him up. and then he ends up giving up, walking nick johnson and uggla singled to get johnson to second base. that's an infield hit, and they would bring in villone immediately, and hermida singled to right field and flies out to right. and then mcdougle comes in and strikes out hanley on that, 96 up a, and then he ends up giving up a grubble -- ground ball. >> six unassisted followed by a walk and a single. he settled down. like dibs said, if he can come up with another pitch besides that 97-mile-per-hour fastball, he is going to be really effective. he is effective without another pitch because that ball moves so much. >> they gave up a couple of hits. florida tried to mount something in the innings, but they got the double play and

got out of each of those jams, something we weren't seeing in the beginning of the season. >> yeah, you're going to give up hits, the key is to make a pitch when you have to, runners on first and second. when you get a 2-2 count, make a pitch that is a pitcher's pitch. mcdougle did that. actually, martin did it several times during the game. he didn't have his great stuff, but he was able to maintain a 3- 0 deficit as opposed to being down five, six, seven runs. i didn't like what i saw from him basically behind home plate as much as i have other outings because i didn't see him throw the curve ball enough. but still, he was out there and he has that presence of mind that he can pitch out of jams. >> game one goes to the nationals. as we look ahead to the rest of the schedule, five games remaining, including two more against the marlins, wednesday night at 7:00 and then a matinee special on thursday. go watch a ballgame and then friday, saturday and sunday, the arizona diamondbacks and

mark reynolds arrive to take on the nationals. 6-4, the win over florida. we'll continue with "nats xtra"! if you're like a lot of people, you have high blood pressure... and you have high cholesterol. you've taken steps to try and lower both your numbers. but how close are you to your goals? there may be more you can do. only caduet combines two proven medicines... in a single pill to significantly lower... high blood pressure and high cholesterol. in a clinical study of patients... with slightly elevated blood pressure and cholesterol,

caduet helped 48% reach both goals in just 4 weeks. caduet is one of many treatment options, in addition to diet and exercise... that you can discuss with your doctor. caduet is not for everyone. it's not for people with liver problems... and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. to check for liver problems, you need simple blood tests. tell your doctor about any heart problems... and all other medications you are taking... or if you experience muscle pain or weakness, as they may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. how close are you to where you want to be? ask your doctor if caduet can help you go... for both your goals. i just gave you some at the restaurant. yea i know. i threw them out. they were old so... old! they are rollover minutes. they are as good as new. ya know not everyone gets to keep their unused minutes. and these days we can't afford to be wasteful. saving minutes... ...saves money. yea. (announcer) only at&t's family talk with rollover saves your family's unused minutes.

and saving minutes saves money. for back to school, get the lg neon for $29.99 after mail-in rebate.  >> nats' extra post-game sh on masn is brought to you in part by verizon fios, over 100 hd channels and the fastest internet. this is fios and this is big. a 6-4 win over the florida marlins to start the home stand. one of the heroes getting it going in the eighth inning, it was willie harris. he was asked how they got to josh johnson late in the game. >> and it just shows the character of this ball club. tip your hat to that guy tonight. he pitched well. you know, just for us, it was big team win for us. everybody contributed, j.d. kept us right there. he didn't go out. he didn't panic and bergman came in and ron villone. everyone came in and did a great job for us. it was just a great team victory. and for us to go out and put a six spot in the eighth inning

against a pitcher like that in a bullpen like that, that is good for us. >> and a team you haven't beat inn some time. >> exactly. >> we beat the marlins, you know, so hopefully we can continue to play good baseball. if we're playing good baseball, the w's will come. >> and you know how tough it is to come off the bench and belliard is coming in there and getting the pinch hit. that was pretty impressive, right? shoo he is a pro. he has been around the game for a long time, and for him to go out there and do what he did, i mean, it is a great contribution for the team and it is also good for him and his confidence. you know, he has been struggling a little bit, but that can boost your confidence a whole lot and the one thing i do know about baseball, hitting is contagious. if we're getting a couple of hits and you're coming off the bench, you bet have a good at- bat. >> did you have a feeling that adam was going to launch one? >> i missed it. soy always have take feeling when dunn is hitting. he's got the strength of a bull and, you know, i'm glad he did

what he did tonight to get us out of here the way we did. [ and you have john lannan going. >> always good to see lannan going. he's the guy. he's earned the nickname stopper slash ace. e e r. we expect great things from lannan. we don't want to put pressure on him, but i don't think that will bother him at all. >> all right. willie harris there, a key base hit to get things going and a run scored and the nats went on to win 6-4, taking -- talking a little bit about john lannan. he is our ace going tomorrow. >> and john has been so solid, eight out of his last 10 starts have been quality starts. he did give up five runs his last outing that doesn't happen very often he se going to match up real good. they're a national hitting club. he can throw the changeup, and the slider. i imagine they're going to stack the lineup tomorrow with right-handerring. and vander half is learning how to pitch and starring his career as a catcher as a 16-

year-old. he came over here and just made three starts this season going 6-5-6. i don't know that much about him. i know he throws 93 and a slider. >> chance for lannan to get to 8-8 that would be nice. austin kearns and ryan zimmerman, we don't know their condition for tomorrow. >> i think it is the biggest win of the season. i think it is the type of win that can turn your season completely around because it can change your attitude. i have seen attitudes change. guys are running harder, running first step out of the batter's box. that always always the case. i'm not saying they were loafing, but you have to go to that extra gear. you have to give credit to mike rizzo and stan kasten and positive things are starting to happen. >> and the good thing is it is lannan tomorrow and you know he is going to bounce back from that five earned runs the last time out. >> i think so.

he is the best pitcher we have on our staff. [ and game number two, florida marlins and the washington nationals. nats have now won seven of their last 10 and finally snapped this strig against the florida marlins dating back to september 23rd of twite. we'll look for two in a row against florida starting tomorrow night. the nationals take out the marlins with six in the eighth, the final is 6-4. we'll see you tomorrow night at the ballpark!

and trade talks. >> plaxico burress, good news for antonio pierce. find out the latest on the two stars and their legal issues for both players have had to endure for a month. >>

>> we are helping stay current here on espnews, alongside mike yam. i'm anish shroff. we were sort of talking among ourselves in the news room. how do you explain albert pujols going into the slump? since matt halladay arrives. apparently it was just a passing phase, because the machine has returned. >> yeah, there is no slump for albert pujols in a game that's seeing mets fans walk out of fi. now at this point, getting up to the plate. the cardinals up 12-7. albert pujols batting just .226 with two home runs and five ribbies in 16 games since the all-star break. top of the tenth inning, sean green hit mark derosa with the bases loaded. still bases loaded. albert pujols, the numbers discussing. 7 for 9 with five grand slams. 24 ribbies this year with the bases loaded. that also includes the fifth grand slam he's able to max it up you with sean green, that makes it a 12-7 game. his 11 career grand slam. 4 for 5 in this game.

just an unbelievable performance for pujols, too. as we mentioned has been struggling since the break. >> has been struggling. >> past tense. >> red sox and rays knotted at two apieces. dustin poad royia had a solo home run that gave him that advantage. an r.b.i. single, and evan longoria with the solo shot, that tied it up at two apiece. once again, 5 and 9, for the 2-2 game. roy halladay, 16-9. only babe ruth has a better lifetime win percentage. how they gave up -- halladay gave up two in the first. johnny damon, and mark teixeira who we see there. going back-to-back. 4-1 yankees big insurance run. mariano rivera coming in for the four out save. first batter he faced, vernon wells off the wall in left. that's a 2-1 double.

yankees up 4-3. they get another home run off halladay. look at hideki matsui. that traveled a long way. looked like it hit a camera out there. >> the bluejays have lost 7 roy halladay's last eight starts. halladay had been 8-0 in his last ten home starts against the yankees. loses to the bombers for the first time in seven decisions. >> a couple of al teams. angels and the white sox, down to 4 apiece. in this one, gordon beckham, the r.b.i. single in the 7th inning, that one able to tie it for the white sox at 4 apiece. interesting note here, bobby ab he row, two r.b.i. single in the third. then striking again in the fifth inning. 4-3, and once again, the white sox strong here in the top of the eighth. >> the cubs lead the cardinals by a single percentage point in the central.

johnny of the reds facing the cubs lineup. and cueto makes a good pitch there to corey hill. willie ta var he is playing a little too dangerously. cueto came in with a 1.16era. >> not that it mattered. because derrek lee deposits one among the people. number # 2 on the season. -- number 22 on the season. chicago, a national league best, 14-5 since the all-star break. tom goars lonnie acquired at the deadline. he wins in his cub debut. the reds have lost eight straight of 14 of 15. >> the no hitter that almost happened. diamondbacks and pirates squaring off. top of the fourth. up 3-0. ryan roberts, show me the power. second home run of the game for him. robert by the way came into the game with three career home

runs. he hit two unbelievable. bottom 7 here. working on the no hitter. he did that. it's good. he's still got it. now here it comes. facing ronny cedeno, including myself. gets traded from seattle. breaks up the no-no. they're having a pretty good game, i think it's safe to say. longest outing of his career. going 7 innings. he threw 107. the astros 14 straight scoreless innings. when you consider six shutout innings against the phillies in his lasthe start. >> rockies and phillies squaring off. jamie moyer pitching well over his last six starts. adkins, a and that is gone. rockies up 2-0. adkins that is his first home run since june 24th.

rockies up 4-2. gets it again. adkins to centerfield. coming up with a double. adkins finishing with four ribbies. that is a season high for him. philadelphia, they've now lost five of the last six games if you're looking for any sort of silver lining, point to jimmy rollins. surpasses his 2008 home run total with his 12th. >> 104 players tested positive for performance enhancing drugs in 2003. the tests were supposed to be anonymous, and the results destroyed. but names have leaked out. first a-rod, then sosa. then manny and papi. and each time a media frenzy followed. in an interview with the associated press, hank aaron said it's time for full disclosure. said aaron, i just wish they'd name all of them and get it over with. >> and a day after the grand jury decided not to indict antonio pierce on charges not to

carry "planet extreme" -- of. >> he was back at camp and ready to explain what's been on his mind for months. >> i am not sere for how i acted that night or how i responded. i am sorry for putting myself in position that i had to respond the way i had to respond. there are a lot of lessons i learned from this. i've taken them to heart. taken them seriously. there's been a lot of ups and downs. but you know ever since the new york giants got to albany, the sun is out, it's bright. and antonio pierce and the new york giants are looking forward. >> pierce expressed a sense of relief after not getting indicted by a grand jury. he made it clear he is looking forward to getting back to football. and the rest of the team agreed. >> i think everybody was very happy with the decision. and now we can go forward. >> i think everybody's happy, especially him. we can all just concentrate on football and get ready for the season. >> we really doane see a difference in him when he steps on the football field. when he's on the football field

it's a safe haven. so to get that news and get the stress off so that he can completely focus on football. and everyone knows what he means to this football team for us and for him. it was a great move yesterday. >> i think he did what any one of us would have done. i don't think he did anything wrong in any sense of the word. >> he's got a great task at hand. it's a championship to win. and i think we couldn't have done it without him. so i'm excited about it. >> plaxico burress wasn't as lucky as pierce. his tenative arraignment date in a manhattan supreme court is set for september 23rd. he was indicted on his weapons charges and faces a minimum of three and a half years in prison if he is convicted. >> amani toomer has changed teams for the first time in his professional career. the veteran wideout signing a one-year deal with the chiefs today. he spent his first 13 seasons with the giants. toomer big blues all time leader in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns. >> you look at the giants receiving corps for this coming

season. no plaxico and no other toomer. it's dominic hickson who is the top returning receiver. less than 600 yards receiving last year. big blue will also look at the rookie, knicks. >> still to come, the nba schedule was released today. find out why the cubs shot could be a secondary story line when the two meet this coming season. >> plus, the tigers trying to make a push for the postseason they traded for jared washburn. their new starter didn't go as their new starter didn't go as well hey, it's me, water. did you know that when you filter me at home

i'm pretty much the same as i am in a plastic bottle? except that you'll save, like, $600 bucks a year. but other than that, we're pretty much the same. pur. good, clean water. have discovered how easy it is to use legalzoom for important legal documents. so start your business, protect your family, launch your dreams. at legalzoom.com we put the law on your side.

getting it done with the bat. left centerfield. two runs would come in. santana with the double. his first career two r.b.i. ga game. >> down 7-4. not out of it yet. but albert pujols, centerfield for him. he had been struggling entering this game. two home runs, five ribbies in 16 games since the break. hitting just .226. top nine now.

down six. 7-6. one off schumacher. julio lugo comes in to score. and we've got ourselves a tied game. up 7. top 10. that is sean green. mark derosa lets in the go ahead run. cardinals up. bases loaded. next batter, albert pujols, the machine. oh, it's all oilers right now. his second home run of the game. his fifth grand slam of the season. his 11th career grand slam. and the cardinals win. francisco rodriguez by the way blew the save. his fourth of the year. one hit, three hits, one inning, three hits, two earned runs for him. and the mets a golden opportunity for them to come up with a much needed victory. but albert pujols the story in this one. the numbers so far this season with the bases loaded are off the charts. he's 7 for 9 with five grand slams, 24 ribbies this year.

you look at the numbers. >> the machine is automatic. >> it's disgusting to watch, and disgusting the way the kids are using it in a good way. >> how about the nationals scoring six times in the eighth inning. the marlins 6-4. the nats beat the fish for just the fourth time in their last 29 games. florida had won all nine games against washington this season. and my friends in d.c., you can go ahead and book playoff tickets. the nats have won three straig straight. >> the tigers squaring off to debut jarrod washburn of detroit. just a preview from seattle with the trade deadline. trying to make that postseason push. up 3-1. the orioles can pack on two more. nick markakis13th home run of the season. his 13th r.b.i. of the year. got six ribbies in last eight games. that's twice as many earned runs that he's ayou loued over his previous five starts combined. he had a .74era over the last

five starts. detroit has lost six of the last nine . >> twins find out what it's like to score a lot of runs. that he gave up at least 1 # runs over the weekend. finally scoring in double figures. beating the tribe 10-1. instead of a six-game roadie for minnesota. indians did come in with the american league's worst era. >> for the nfl, please handle with care. the redskins, 350 all pro defensive tackle albert ains worth. back at practice after missing two days with a knee problem. ains worth received an nfl record # 1 million in guaranteed money this off season, and wasn't concerned about any knee issue. >> it's not serious. if i had to play today, i could play today, i'd still be out there. i'm just getting old in my 28-year-old age. so they just want to take it easy on me and have me ready for the season.

>> can you describe what it is? >> it hurts like hell. >> last year tom brady missed all of the pats preseason games with a foot injury. then he tore knee ligaments in week one. would go on to miss the regular of the season. this year he wants to play in all of new england's preseason games. >> it's unfortunate that i wasn't out there last year because hopefully that could have helped me out in terms of my timing for the first game. you know, you you never know if i could have avoided the hit that i took had i been out there to understand the presence in the pocket. i want to be out there to participate. i want to be out there to be involved in the game planning and to go through the preseason preparations that you you need to go through in order to, i feel, be ready for the opening game. >> you look at the pats preseason schedule. they open and close against a couple of teams that have played in the super bowl. remember they beat phillie in

super bowl xxxix. of course, lost to the giants in super bowl xlii. in between games against the bengals, and the redskins. >> the quarterback controversy in green bay i've never heard about. after watching aaron rogers flourish in his first full season awith the charges, he has the possibility of bringing in michael vick. gm ted thompson addresses that issue. >> what is the answer that we give to he questions like this? we're always looking to improve our team. we look at all options at all times. i wouldn't care to speculate in terms of the odds or percentages or anything like that. >> we had discussions about a large number of things. we're always talking personnel. it doesn't mean anymore that we're likely to do it or less likely. it's a routine that we go through. it's automatic. >> there are many teams that have ruled out bringing in michael vick. there are eight teams that have publicly expressed that same

sentiment. that includes six playoffs and two with the titans and cardinals. they have a high price first round pick. matt leinart is their back-up qb. >> he doesn't have to worry about brett favre. of tavaris jackson is dealing with a mild ncl sprain. he's on the mend. and he made it clear the injury is not as bad as originally thought. >> at first i thought it was bad. initially it was like please, know, it's not an acl or anything like that. but it turned out not to be as bad. but i was happy. i didn't want it to be what it is. but, you know, i kind of, you know it could have been a lot worse. throughout my whole career in the last couple of days, starting to do whatever it took to do and get back out here.

his current acl is just a part of a pattern. >> it's sort of like the day before school. the first day with the girl it took you two years to pass out. it could be debilitating. for hard core fans, it provides an opportunity to recharge and think about the possibilities that come with a fresh start. today the true fan can take out the sharpy and circle the games they know they can have that lucky jersey dry cleaned and ready to go for. fans in cleveland better have those shaq jerseys. and the team knocked them out of the playoffs. dwight howard and the magic. cavs and lakers on christmas day. and of course, orlando with vince carter.

>> still to come, the yankees have the red sox hot on their trail in the al east. see how new york is trying to distance themselves in the standings. plus, giants pitcher jonathan sanchez has thrown one gem already this season and is dealing with a big way right now. glock were being sold in america as an ankle and from the beginning americans have honored the law. because i suspect was the arena in which the poor individuals -- individual citizens could and did often prevail against the powerful. even before the revolution judges, juries and in question

will decided cases it was a people's power controlled by the law that would prevail even over political wishes of the powerful. laws were to be created by the people through their elected representatives, not judges. law in the new republic will set an abstract matter. it was concrete. the law meant what is said and if some -- if by some loophole even an evil act was not covered by criminal law a prisoner was to go free. importantly the system rest upon a new universally held belief that law and order were necessary for freedom and progress to occur. it has objective truth. and that if a real effort was put forth, the truth could be ascertained. for most missiles and easy concept since a believe in god the ultimate truth was widespread.

thus the legal system was arranged to best discover the truth. rules of evidence, cross-examination and adversarial system were part of the design to discover the truth. many nations tried to replicate without success. it is a national treasure, our legal system. i believe the federal courts are the greatest dispensers of justice the world has ever known. for 15 years i practiced full-time as a federal attorney before federal judges. i saw the system operate and have seen state and local judges, republicans and democrats serve faithfully day after day adhering to the ideal of of to activity, fairness and all. but many intellectuals in recent decades look upon such an approach has antiintellectual. they conclude such thinking that judges actually do in an ideal way. they find this is hopelessly naive. they think it is unrealistic

favorably by judge sotomayor and a law review article said as much in the early part of last century since then many theorists have gone even further, morrill relativists, post-modernist comedy constructionists, critical legal studies adherence, they come from the same pond. they don't believe, some don't, that there is an ascertainable truth. they believe that these ideals actually confused thinking and mislead they believe its results that count. i don't agree. the american people don't agree. ideals are important. high standards can be reached. not every time i sure but most times and if the ideal ascent salles it will be reached less and less.

the american people are not cynics who settle for less than the ideal of impartiality and equal justice for the poor and the rich under the constitution and the wall of this country. and each judge operates under the constitution and the laws of this country. the expect right lead every judge will be fully committed to the heritage of the wall and the judicial oath they take to follow it. that is why i have expressed the view since this process has begun that we are ready for an end rhode perhaps. will we continue to adhere to the classical ideal of american jurisprudence or will we follow a result oriented judging in which judges ceased to be so much committed to the law and equal justice because they know it is really not possible. do they believe words are just

words? do they believe that the constitution can be made to say what one wants it to say? in this world a constitution cannot find a judge to what the judge considers and on why is result. instead, we should see the constitution they say as a flexible living document. under this view judges are not just on pyres. judges are more powerful. judges can make the constitution and the law say what they prefer it to say. judges can ensure the right team wins. judges can make policy. that is the seductive and siren call of judicial activism and judicial activism that me hasten to add is in an propriety that can be embraced by conservatives as well as liberals and our

former chairman senator hatch often said activism is a tendency in the judge to allow their personal and political views and values to override the law and facts of the case to achieve a result they think is desirable. that's what is not acceptable in our system. so i think that is why at the most fundamental level many have a problem with this nominee it seems clear from her writings and speeches that she is eight devotee of the new philosophy of judging. her speeches over the years are quite clear on this matter. although her hearing testimony backtracked in a somewhat confusing manner regretfully i was not able to support the nomination in committee nor will i support the nomination before the full senate and i would like to discuss in great detail a few of the reasons that lead me to

that conclusion. there are more things to will be discussed later as we go along but let me say a few things now. even before the nomination of judge sotomayor i made clear what my criteria would be for assessing a supreme court nominee impartiality, commitment to the will of law, integrity, legal experience and judicial temperament. judge sotomayor possesses the well-rounded reza may i like to see in a supreme court justice and she has a wonderful personal story. she was a prosecutor, a practitioner and a on a public judge. those are good experience categories for a judge on the supreme court. however, for speeches and cases she had decided are troubling

because i believe they reflect lack of proper sense of a clearly stated constitutional right that are guaranteed to american citizens. her testimony was her opportunity to convince all of us that she would be the type of justice we could vote for. instead her interest lacked clarity. the consistency and courage of conviction one looks for in a nominee to the supreme court. in many instances she raised more questions through her testimony than answered. george sotomayor expressed judicial philosophy rejects openly the in partial idea of impartial and objective justice. instead her philosophy in braces and accept some the impact back now, personal experience, gender, sympathies and prejudices, these are her words,

have on judging a fair play and reading of these speeches read in context calls into question judge sotomayor commitment to impartiality and object to the when given an opportunity to explain this philosophy as reflected in speech after speech, and year after year judge sotomayor dodged and deflected in many cases per answers couldn't be squared with the facts. it has been suggested we should disregard those speeches. it had been suggested they are just words merely meant to inspire. in short it has been suggested words of the speeches and simply do not matter. but words do matter what. words or important and if they must have meaning or the result