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. >> bob: here is martin prado who hit that line drive right at bernadina last time. a word of warping here. it's 8:00. just beyond the top of the hour, twilight is failing on the ballpark, and outfielders on fly balls will be having problems for the next 15 minutes or so. you can lose a baseball up there real quick. in fact, i can hardly see the clock. >> bob: >> and of course it's hit rightny the air, bob. >> bob: yes, and nyjer morgan handles it, and here is debbie. an update on john lannan? >> well, two starts ago, he

felt discomfort in his pitching elbow. it had an mri, didn't reveal any structural damage, just from swelling, so he is going to miss his next start and just rest to help any cleavein' leaveiate the pain. >> it's not fair to my teammates to go out there and not have my best stuff, so just going to shut it done for a little bit, and hopefully it goes away. he said his velocity wasn't affected, but wasn't getting the movement. they could take somebody from aaa like a j.d. martin, or go to the bullpen and have something like bautista make a spot start. >> bob: josh willingham unable to reach that ball by chipper

joans, and he brains an 0-15 with a ground rule double. and you see chipper approach agca rear 500 doubles. >> rob: chipper takes this ball the other way. the hammer tries to make the play. i don't know. might have wanted to slide a little bit. both corners are so dangerous and come up an you so quickly that it's very hard to make a play down the line. >> bob: here is mccann who walked his first time.

breaking ball, the bat breaks into at least three pieces. >> well, and you had some good guys come out of georgia tech. garciaparra. and kevin brown. and by the way, ripping the cover off the ball in boston. jason varitek not starting every day, i think those old

legs like the rest. not going quietly into the night. 1-2 to mccann. knew when heyward comes up, i'll tell you a story about whip he was a youngster in that cobb county league, and what would happen when some scouts would show up who were not affiliated with the braves to watch him play. 2-2 to mccann, who reaches out and hits one to desmond. thought about going to third. he does the wise thing. out at first. two down with troy glaus coming up.

glaus trying to tie the game. right off the end of his bat, and it's foul. >> rob: guy throwing 63, you're trying to hit it like it's a softball. he's not a lot of fun. not a lot of teams want to face livan hernandez.

he can put some guys in some slumps. snoop it does remind you of invoice pitch softball when the guy dropping that thing down on your back shoulder, and if you don't swing, they're gonna call it a strike.

he hits one hard to right. bernadina. oh, yes! that makes up for the line drive he missed! saves a run! and the nationals still lead here in the 3rd! he's a greyhound and a leaper! beautiful catch!

. >> bob: roger bernadina spectacular. >> rob: that is totally laying out for a ball right there. if he misses it, well, one run is in, and the guy is going to second, maybe third, but that make us up for the dropped ball. >> rob: parallel to the ground before he dropped that one, and here is guzman leading off the bottom of the third. >> bob: and i'll bet he hasn't done that too often if right filed. now, i'm sure in center field, going out toward this left center field gap he has made that catch, but it's nice having some speedsters out there at center and right field. boy, it is nice. >> bob: we saw him break his leg on a spectacular catch out in left center last year. >> rob: and i have to tell you as a former pitcher when guys lay out for you like that, i

mean, livan didn't even know what to do. he's tickled to death, but it just fills you up with confidence. guzman hits it sharply. backhanded pick by prado, and that's how the bottom of the third gets under way with ryan zimmerman coming up next, and then adam dunn. good to be back home. rob and i always enjoy coming back home and visiting our library with all of our books behind us, and back here in the what you would call the cozy confines after being out of town. >> i'm going to get around to reading those books one of those days.

zimmerman's ball by the bayer, and uncatchable, except by that gentleman. good job, gentlemen. good fielding crowd today. >> rob: the wife and i went to the aaron space museum today. >> bob: is that the one out by the airport, or the one down here? >> rob: it's the one in downtown, right by the other smithsonian. >> bob: cool. 0-2. inside to zimmerman. well, if you ever get a chance to get out to the one by dulles, it is truly amazing. the size of that building and

the size of the airborne vehicles in there. 1-2 to ryan. first out has been made here in the third. and a breaking ball, is a good take. 2-2. >> rob: and out by where we live in l.a., too, you have air force one is in the reagan library. >> rob: that's a big library. >> rob: yeah, piece by piece put that plane back together on the inside. his motorcade, all of his bulletproof stuff. so there's great things all over the country. >> bob: 2-2 tozimmerman. kennedy kawakami and ryan zimmerman. pulls that pitch to deep short.

omar infante plays it perfectly for the second out! >> rob: wow. >> bob: gorgeous. >> rob: omar infante is known for being a glove man, and this is one of those type of of plays where people know you and say, wow! makes the great catch. he might not have ian desmond's arm, but he still gets rid of it, and with that quick release and getting rid of it early, that's how he was able to throw out ryan zimmerman. >> bob: adam dunn with two outs.

the mets in cincinnati tonight. they're tied 2-2 with the reds in the fourth. and the marlins behind sanchez entertaining the giants, 1-0 san francisco 4th inning down there. outside, 3-1 to dunn. >> rob: you talk about last night's philly's game. joe blanton came back, and now ryan madison after breaking his toe, he had surgery. he's out at least eight weeks. so insult to injury there. >> bob: 3-1 to dunn. in the air, right center, near the scoreboard, and that's it for the nats in the third. [ laughs ]

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. >> bob: i mentioned jason heyward playing in that cobb county league where so many young players have developed into big-leaguers. the local legend down there is when anyone showed up to scout him who was not an atlanta braves scout, there are times when he would mysteriously not be able to be found in the ballpark that day, or was not in the line-up. >> rob: so they didn't -- how anybody but the braves to scout this young man. >> bob: well, there are suggestions that at times that attempt was made. but i think it's great when a team can sign a home town kid. the braves have probably done more of that than anybody in baseball. >> rob: and when they couldn't get tim hudson initially, they

traded for him, and then signed him as a free agent or to be a extension this last year. >> bob: heyward is on a hitting streak, 7 for his last 14. pulls that ball. a real slow one by livan. i don't think we'll look up in the next year or two and jason heyward will be batting 6th very long. next up is melky cabrera. in fact some day when chipper retires, i could sigh this guy being the third or fourth hitter. and a 2-2. livan 41 pitches first inning. 13 in the second, 15 in the third.

>> rob: probably thinking what do we do. to we ask livan is he's tired? >> bob: you know, i think livan will tell them. remember his first start, rob, if new york. >> rob: well, he didn't have a full spring training 1234507 yeah, because we were wondering why he didn't. i more. livan told jim after 7 innings, i've had it. >> rob: no, think if he's done, he'll tell them. stunt want to affect the outcome of the game. >> bob: there it goes to center. that ball is way back there, banging off the vehicle in dead center i field, and heyward's 8th of the year gets the braves back even. that's one of the longest home runs we've seen to that area in this ballpark. >> rob: well, he's just dripping with talent. the ups store will tell you

what happens to this ball that finds too much of the plate. 81 on this. looks like a change-up. and, as bob said, we haven't seen too many balls go that far out of this ballpark. it looked like mclouth's at bat where they worked him and worked him into a situation where he made a mistake, and mclouth got a lead-off double to start the game on nine pitches, and then that ball leave this bail park. >> bob: well, usually when someone hits a home run there, it just clears the wall. that thing was way in the back of that storage area back there where they keep some of the bp equipment.

cabrera reaches out and strobes one to left. there for the first out. infante and kawakami the next two.

one ball and a strike. and a big slow breaking ball. something about chase utley appears to me to be too obvious and we've been tricked. it's not kenshin kawakami, i'm pretty sure of that. but she next with one out here in the 4th.

livan jams him, ball hooking down the line, and just fouls, very close to a solo homer, right down at that .336 mark.

and a 1-2 pitch here. desmond on a hop, adam dunn stays on the bag, and the runner is out! >> rob: great play by dunn. nice play by ian. >> bob: how about that range at shortstop? >> rob: well, he's a fantastic shortstop, and the more reps he gets out there, he gets better every day. more confident. off the end of the bat. snaps the bat, and then desmond and dunn. how about he caught that on the fly and just chucked it over there for the heck of it. let's see. no, he catches that the air. >> bob: the second base umpire

bill miller motions safe. >> rob: yeah, forget the lee play. >> bob: here iskawakami. and he's looking to go cleanly up the mid-. that's his first hit this year, and the 5th hit in 48 career at bats. >> rob: didn't see that coming. >> bob: that will extend the inning to nate mclouth. >> rob: livan kicking himself right there. two outs with the pitcher up. see this one more time. this is the xmo catching the action, and that ball is caught on the fly. >> bob: but you know what? ian did not assume the umpire called the hitter out, and he turned and threw to first base. that shows me that his concentration level, and as we call it his field awareness, was very good. he didn't try to sell it to the

umpire, he just turned and threw to first. >> rob: well, which we say about second base umpire bill miller. i mean, he was right on top of that ball, and should have made the call correctly. he's still thinking about did i not call that? nah. i'll go home and watch that replay. >> rob: he's not going to like what he sees. >> rob: the masn encore presentation. you're not going to like it, buddy. you've been xmo'ed. >> bob: thissinging looked a lot -- this inning looked a lot ease inquire than it now appears to be. >> rob: getting up close to a hundred pitches now, 91, and we're not through the 4th inning. >> bob: wow. that will be livan's third walk of the night. that will bring up martin

prado, one of the best hitters in the league so far this year. >> rob: they're going to get the bullpen going. 20 straight games in 20 days, lannan being shut down, you know, you figure he's gonna miss a start, but he may miss more than one start, because it's going to take him time to get that elbow back. take court zone shot, that's three days off. miss that start, have to get yourself ready for the next one. he might miss a couple of starts. you don't want to mess around with a guy's arm anyway. >> bob: walker up and throwing. livan needs to shut down the fourth inning here, and then somehow get through 5, at least.

you know, i was thinking about that trivia question. it might be henley ramirez. >> rob: they might have had a holdover from our trip to miami. >> bob: well, it is still fresh in our minds. not a pleasant memory. no balls and two strikes to prado. into hot shot to desmond, to guzman, and the nats are out of the inning. josh willingham will lead off. last time he did, the ball went a long, long wayne. anncr vo: with the new geico glovebox app...

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so here is willingham. kawakami about to throw his 50th pitch. when the hammer gets hot, he's very streaky. as i mentioned, came into that last at bat only three for his last 24. off-speed delivery stays inside. 2-0. off speed, stays inside.

2-0. giants now lead 3-0 in that game at florida. tim lincecum pitching tonight. he is in the 5th inning, only has given the marlins two hits. willingham got jammed. ball not hit that hard. chipper jones first out in the 4th. there was a shocking end moments ago to the geico presidents race. as usually, rob, teddy had the lead. when he lost the lead, i was shocked at what he did, right here. >> rob: well, he basically said to those two presidents, if i can't win, you're not gonna win. >> bob: and here is tall tom

jefferson with the w. george washington, by the way, jumped on teddy wrestling style, shortly after that incident. >> rob: yeah, but teddy is a rough rider. you're not gonna mess around with teddy. >> bob: here is "pudge" rodriguez 8 for 1, hitting .409. kawakami has given up five hits to the nats. one strikeout on the front end of a strike 'em out throw 'em out double-play. hasn't walked anybody. >> bob: looked a lot like livan with a little bit better fastball in the 90 to 91 mile an hour range. but he will change speeds on the ball, a lot like that man

right there, the magician. i've seen livan hit 88 on the gun tonight, and 61. that's a pretty good differential. >> bob: 2-1. >> rob: see that fork ball grip in his glove. >> rob: and rodriguez in the air to right center. oh, heyward made the call and mccann cut right in front of him for the second out. here is roger bernadina who has a base hit, has made an airer, and then one of the greatest catches of the year. >> rob: well, you can call that error a push after that. that was at least one run saved by that catch, and livan knows it. and rogers can just smile now, as before he was kind of upset by that error early in the

first inning. >> bob: well, let's see him get another hit here. >> rob: look at that average jump. >> bob: nats are waiting for someone to take charge in right field. there are reports that michael burgess is just tearing it up in the minor leagues this year. that's a name to think about for the next couple of years for right field. 21 years of age. big strong kid at six foot, 200. mike rizzo had his own press conference before jim riggleman's this afternoon talking about a lot of things in the organization, and he did

tell us that rehab programs are comes along nicely for ross detwiler and jordan zimmerman who is now pitching live batting practice. >> rob: well, very nice. very nice. >> bob: he said that zimmerman is throwing about 75 to 80% in those bullpen sessions. and bernadina will pop it up out behind short for omar infante. he also said detwiler could be the first guy to leave florida soon and go out on a rehab.

we are back at nationals park tied up at 2. told the nashs announced that stephen strasburg will be promoted to aaa. he's going to start on friday. and mike rizzo said he is up for the challenge. >> he's excited for the new challenge. it's a step in the direction that he wants to be in. you know, obviously his confidence level is high. he believes that he could be pitching in the big leagues right now, and that's the confidence level we want him to be at, but he understands that we're doing what's best for him, and what's best for the franchise and the organization, and he's on board with every step. >> and of course you can watch all of the action right here on masn. we will have a tape delay of the game after nats xtra, so you will get to see every pitch that stephen strasburg throw ms. in his debut with aaa

syracuse. bob? >> and mike rizzo said that will be somewhere in the 835 to 95 pitch range, or 6 innings, whichever comes first. stephen has had lots of bad weather in the league at harrisburg. it will be a big night, i'm sure, at the ballpark. look at this! but desmond throws it into the bugout. and he had the play on mcgwire coming from a deep shortstop shift position, and that's going to be a base hit and an error. desmond's first error in about three weeks. well, rob, he played it perfectly with the bare hand. >> rob: it was a do or die play may right here. mccann known for not having great speed. desmond almost like he threw it to hard right there, quick flick of the wrist, and a riser right over adam dunn. kind of a tough error. that's a do or die play. >> bob: they have to give him

an error, though, because the hitter went to second. well, his range is amazing. now the braves have the lead run at second base with one out and troy glaus coming up.

>> bob: drew storm called up several days ago. great line by tom boswell in the washington post. he said when storm comes up here to join clippard and capps, it will be clip, store, and save. out to desmond. sharply hit ball, two outs.

nats take on the marlins friday. come out early, the first 10,000 fans 21 and older receive a free cooler bag presented by miller light, and don't forget free game brews are just $5. throats of fun at the ballpark on thursday, friday, and saturday nights. miller light party nights, and here is jason heyward. they're going to walk him. i don't blame 'em. welcome to the world of sluggers young man. they'll take their chances with melky cabrera. >> rob: well, the braves fans are doing the booing, not the washington fans, and you're going to walk the guy with 8 home runs to get to the guy batting .200. >> bob: with no homers.

>> rob: yeah,, so -- >> bob: this becomes the i big itself out of the night for livan hernandez to get. on the verge 0 leaving the ball game, about to throw to his

110th pitch with mccann ahead of heyward at second and first. a base hit to the outfield does not guarantee a run here.

late reaction by cabrera, and the count is even, 2-2. >> rob: carefully working cabrera after he walked heyward. beautiful change-up diving away at 77. might even have been a two- seamer he took something off. nobody manipulates the ball quite like livan, now that greg maddux is out of the league. >> bob: on the pitch, a fly ball to left. so livan has to gee 41 pitches in the -- has to go 41 pitches in the first inning. he gets his team through 5. has its own patch of grass. ♪ achievement unleashes hidden potential.

♪ all right! achievement looks forward to dinner at home. achievement enjoys newfound freedom. i love you. [ male announcer ] mortgages, home equity loans, and lines of credit from pnc. helping achievers borrow with an eye towards the future. pnc. for the achiever in us all. ♪ traveling in the world of my creation ♪ ♪ what we'll see will defy ♪ explanation [ male announcer ] remember when you were five and anything was possible. ♪ happy 5th birthday again. ♪ come with me and you'll be ♪ in a world of pure imagination ♪

. >> bob: saturday rob during a tight inning against the marlins, there were interesting things happening turn on the game defensively. >> rob: that's right, and a viewer e-mailed us and said something about the cutoff man not being in to position, and right there, adam kennedy. didn't get quite to the position, so the throw is right on line with the cut-off man adam dunn, except he's 20 feet to the right of the mound, and that could have been a catastrophe had "pudge" gotten injured more seriously than that. but sometimes on a quick line tribe like that, you can't get the position of your cutoff guy, so nyjer morgan is actually not to blame for the errant throw. it was just a situation of not getting your cutoff man in your

target to line yourself up with in the throw, and he wasn't in position. but you saw adam kennedy to try to save it. >> bob: waiting for that breaking ball. desmond high if the air, left center field! he's done it, and the nationals lead 3-2! his second of the year! 6th major league home run! and the number 8 hitter has two rbis don't! and rob, he had to supply all the power on that one. >> rob: well, the waited perfectly, a lot like jason heyward. we have a couple of young bucks showing off in tonight's game. ian desmond right here takes that off-speed kawakami curveball, and kawakami showing livan a thing or two, well, i'll take something off my curveball. big mistake. the kid was waiting all over it. >> bob: and now livan hernandez still in the ball game. he was going to go back to back. >> rob: he gave that ball a

jolt. well, maybe a few years ago. he does have nine career home runs, bob, to go with the nearly 200 hits. >> bob: and evidently 113 pitch no, sir problem. he'll stay in the game. >> rob: but i gray with what you said before, that if his first start, not that he took himself out, but he was honest, and you just want your pitchers to be honest. listen, he was gassed. he did everything he could do for the ball club, and he just basically said, skip, i don't have enough to continue, bring in the bullpen, and i've got a lot of respect for livan with that. >> bob: well, you might remember the game we did in tampa on march 24th, livan went five innings, gave up a run on three hits to the mighty yankees, and they had their a line-up, jeter, teixeira, cano, posada. they were all in there. swisher that night. that was really his own extended outing of spring training.

>> rob: well, and that's what we talk about building up endurance. it's a question of, yeah, you're talking about strasburg, he's young, 21, 22 years old, but for a pitcher to go out there, you need your legs underneath you, which means you have to do a lot of running, endurance work, things like that to build up those legs, and for livan hernandez at his age now, it's not just his legs, he has to be able to physically go out there cardiowise, run the bases, field his position. hit. if it was the american league, he would get a lot more rest with the dh, but give him credit for being honest, and obviously how many pitches he has now, give him credit for wanting to stay out there for the 6th inning. >> bob: 2-2 to morgan, and a bouncer out to short. two outs here in the 5th. and we don't often start stories with two outs, but i want to pass on to you that baseball lost ernie harwell

today at the age of 92. great tigers broadcaster, has been battling cancer, and rob i know you share this feeling, he is one of the most sincere, wonderfulgy that any of us have ever met in this game. that golden voice from georgia, lasting throughout his career. he took wonderful care of himself, but he got cancer and could aren't beat it, and we lose him today at the age of 92, and i know hearts are heavy all around baseball. >> just like harry callas, they say the voice of the tigers has gone out. >> bob: yeah, we're losing a whole generation of the great effort announcers ever. >> rob: what a wonderful man. treated everybody with respect. he was wonderful. >> bob: eight years ago i met him where i kidded him, because

he was pretty much retired, and he was on billboards for blue cross/blue shield like every mild and i said ernie, you must be making a fortune. and he said, bob, i'm 84 years old, and i just signed a 10- year contract with a 10-year extension. (laughing) when a fan would make a nice catch, ernie would call out a name in tiger territory and say that was a great catch by that fan from yipsilanti. 3-2 to guzman. >> rob: well, and it's amazing that some broadcasters, because of their greatness, you identify with the ball club

with their broadcasters. vin skully, jack buck, harry callas, ernie harwell. >> great swing by guzman, who needed a hit from the left side in the worst way, and he finally gets one.

>> rob: bob, they always would come over and visit with you so they would have a few nuggets of information nobody else had about you. >> bob: ernie harwell still the only announcer who was ever trade for player. when the he was in the minor league, be the atlanta crackers traded him. well, and the thing about ernie, and here is zimmerman, 0 for 2, ernie didn't have to do anything funny or cute or clever on the air. he gave it toty tiger fans straight, and that wonderful voice of his will never be forgotten. outside to zimmerman. 1-1. ryan has struck out, front end of a strike 'em out, throw 'em out double-play. robbed in the short by infante, his second time up.

nats on top of the desmond homer here in the 5th inning, have outhit the braves 7-5. zimmerman up the middle. kawakami knocks it down, keeps it close, and into the 6th inning we go, but desmond is having a big night. ian's second homer of the year, deep part of left center. nats lead 3-2. what's that sound?

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. >> bob: infante, kawakami scheduled, and then mclouth here in the 6th inning. after 79 pitches, kawakami could be through, as brooks coste waits to pin. hit. >> bob: i know we ran out of

time if that last zimmerman at bat, but he did have three gold gloves in japan, so fields his position quite nicely. that's an extra added bonus for guys like livan and kawakami that they can field their positions. >> bob: 0-2. i outside to infante. he's hit the ball twice to short, and desmond has taken potential hits away from him both times. big doings in florida, where hanley ramirez has hit his 6th

homer of the year, and the marlins have tied the giants. lincecum was cruising along with a shutout. livan has it on the slow one, and then the quick comebacker, brooks conrad will hit for kawakami here. the nationals so far in the season with a line-up that is potentially power-laden really haven't hit that many home runs. they were tied with the braves for the third lowest level in the league coming in, and it two tonight. >> rob: we know adam dunn is going to get hot. it's nice to see the hammer and ian desmond hit, but they've also been hitting very well with two outs, runners in scoring position. so we're still scoring a lot of runs, in a lot of these ball games. so so the home runs are going

to come because but still like seeing nyjer morgan hitting over 37900 with guys in scoring position, and guys just being patient. i think the home runs are going to come, but you also have to give the pitchers a little bit of credit. we have a very scary and intimidating line-up. >> bob: brooks conrad bidding for the pitcher. conrad as a pinch hitter 2 for 8 without an rbi this year. he's a switch-hitting infielder. last year only 54 at bats for atlanta, hitting .204. he's the product of arizona state. >> rob: old school, no batting

gloves. george brett. >> bob: yeah, about the only two guys in the last decade or so that i can remember without batting gloves, two decades, i guess were george brett and andy vanslyke. >> mouses alou, and you don't even know how he kept his hands tough. >> bob: let's not go there. and a 3-1 pitch. he walked him with a breaking ball off the plate inside. livan's 5th walk of the night. one on, one out, top of the order, nate mclouth. >> rob: i think that'll do her. >> bob: well, the top of the order for the brave, number all honesty, they've hit the bail pretty hard against livan. but this is going to be a good effort by hernandez with 123 pitches, by 11 the most he's thrown this year. he threw 112 in the complete

game shutout of milwaukee. a great effort, and he could be the winning pitcher tonight.

. >> rob: how brave was ernie harwell, too, when he said good- bye to the fans in detroit, said i'm ready to go on to my next adventure. >> bob: ernie was very religious, a very spiritual man, and for those who believe,

they know where he is right now. and a save to second after the strikeout. came dancing across the bag to make the tag, but miller called conrad safe.

>> rob: nice pitch. >> bob: drops it in there. >> rob: well, and prado is way in my opinion box. one of the first guys i've seen that from the middle of the plate forward with his foot almost out of the batters box. there's a good view of it, so he lives to try to get the ball before it gets to him.

hard hit to short. great pray to desmond, because the runner right in front of him was sheeting him from the ball.

. >> bob: adam. dunn leads off against eric. one earned run in 9 and 2/3

innings. there it goes! see you way later! 4-2 nationals! heats up in may, we told you. a thing of beauty. >> bob: nats now have three

solo home runs tonight. here is willingham. willingham has one of them, and he's pumping. >> rob: bob, eastern better. i was incorrect. it's 57 home runs, now 58 since 2003 in the month of may. may is his month, you know. april showers bring may home runs. i got dunn's ball! >> bob: right-hander jessie chavez for the braves, because rodriguez is next. lefty bernadina, and then the right-hander desmond.

broken bad, up the middle is infante. one out. here comes "pudge" rodriguez, who has not been a threat this year. maybe that's one reason o'flaherty stays as the right- hander warms up. here is "pudge". he's gone to center field twice. one a base hit, one a fly ball.

off-speed pitch. rodriquez goes the other way, and a bouncer for martin prado, two outs. here is our at&t trivia. at first i was going to go with chase utley, but i'm going to change to henley ramirez. >> rob: i'll go chipper jones, just because it could be. >> bob: oh, come on.

martin prado with over a hundred did at bats? >> rob: he's got over a hundred at bats already? >> bob: plate appearances, they say, which counts walks and sacs. but i would rather pitch to him than chipper, ramirez, or chase utley. >> rob: i agree. i want to know who has the most home runs against us from those three. >> bob: hanley ramirez. >> rob: i think it's chase utley. you think it's hanley? >> bob: bernadina hit this

bail sharply. this game into the 7th, but the nats have blasted their way to four runs tonight. three of them on the long ball. i'm going to let you watch this baby fly. this is unlike any car you've ever seen before. this is power with efficiency. this is an interior that exceeds even the promise of the exterior. this is the all-new jaguar xj.

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. >> bob: chipper jones will turn around and bat right- handed against burnette. he promptly laces one to center, nyjer plays it the right way on a hop, and chipper jones is 2 for 4 tonight after going 0 for 14 coming in.

. >> bob: quickly0-2. this may be the number of the night. brian mccann is still only 26 years of age. seems like he's been around forever. sean burnett disposes of him in a hurry, and looks like riggleman will come in and make a double switch and bring in clippard to face floss and then heyward after that. >> rob: monstrous breaking ball. way across the zone. that's what they call a sweeper, and he tried to sweep

contact and missed. >> bob: sean burnett with a solid outing retires three out of four batters, and here comes clippard, a double switch. this is unlike any car you've ever seen before. this is power with efficiency. this is an interior that exceeds even the promise of the exterior. this is the all-new jaguar xj.

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. >> bob: willingham is gone, so the pitcher hitting in the 5 spot for the nats. here is troy glaus. 0 for 2 with that sac fly. he hit the ball that morgan caught out there in center, and clippard with a first pitch

fastball right in there. couple of heaters to start out the big right-handed batter. high in the air to deep left center, morgan is under it, front edge, tagging is jones, and chipper returns to first.

well, jim riggleman has his defense set up, he has his bullpen set up. had him pulling it. dunn can't reach it, neither can guzman. and it's two on, two out for melky cabrera.

>> rob: well, four out of five pitches to heyward change-ups, and he finally gets one and sneaks it through the hole. it's not the worst outcome in the world, but it keeps the inning going. >> rob: melky cabrera 0 for 3 tonight with five runners aboard this evening stranding all four of them. braves have left 9 already. the opportunistic nashs have only stranded runners in one inning. and a strike. chipper jones led off the inning with a base hit up the middle. here is another one of those situations with some arms in the outfield, it's no guarantee chipper jones scores on a base hit. hard breaking ball, a swing and

a miss. 0-1 pitch, a great breaking ball right there. 12:00 to 6:00. it just drops, and there you see the xmo shows how far away melky cabrera was from actually making contact. what did zimm say about the xmo, bob? >> bob: it can make you look good, and it can make you look real bad. and i am quoting. >> rob: that is ryan zimmerman's quote. >> bob: might be the longest sentence i've ever gotten from ryan. a man of few words. 0-2 again. very late for that one is

cabrera. >> rob: just a little tardy. just a little something to show you he's not getting anywhere near his fastball. try elevating it over his hands a little bit more. >> bob: brad lidge just blew a save in philadelphia. phillies led 1-0 into the 9th. st. louis has tied that game. and the giants give the nationals some more good news. they just got two in the 8th, and they lead 5-3 at florida. mets are 4-4 in the 8th at cincinnati. here in washington, nats 4, braves 2, top of the 7th. and another 0-2 pitch had cabrera leaning but taking.

>> bob: got him on the corner looking at a fastball! now jim riggleman really has his bullpen set up. desmond coming up, then maxwell and morgan, and ian has had a big night with a single, a homer, two rbis. he's the difference in the game right now. ♪ we'll begin with a spin

♪ traveling in the world of my creation ♪ ♪ what we'll see will defy ♪ explanation [ male announcer ] remember when you were five and anything was possible. ♪ happy 5th birthday again. ♪ come with me and you'll be ♪ in a world of pure imagination ♪

johnny venters.

ians batting average now up to 267. he hit 280 when he got to the big leagues last summer. >> desmond hits one out to center. it will hang imfor nate mclouth, and the bottom of the

7th is underway. here is justin maxwell. haven't seen much of max lately. he's 4 for 23. playing time in right field curtailed a bit since roger bernadina showed up. by the way, that game in philadelphia, cole hamels gave up that run in the 9th. brad lynn came in to finish off the in-- brad lidge came in to finish off the inning. st. louis had runner at first and third and one out, didn't score, and the phillies are batting now, bottom 9, tied at 1. 1. >> bob: you talked about all the local atlanta kids on their

team, justin maxwell from bethesda maryland. >> rob: yes, sir. ryan zimmerman. i think tidewater area is local enough, don't you? >> rob: uh-huh. outside. justin maxwell has been more selective this year. that is his 11th walk. so he's aboard with one out, and nyjer morgan coming up. so bobby cox really playing left-handed baseball with hits bullpen tonight. of course his other left-hander is billy wagner, who is going to hang it up when this year is over, huh? >> bob: that's what he said, but he didn't know at the end of last season when he finished up with the red sox what he was gob in a too, and convictedly signed with the braves. >> rob: he's 13 saves away

from 400. >> bob: he's gone through a lot in the last few years, and, you know, the whole tommy john and coming back, they took it out of his hamstring, and bothered his leg for a long time. >> bob: runner going, and a good jump! ground ball right at prado, and maxwell is into scoring position now with two outs. nyjer morgan 1 for 4 tonight. cristian guzman 1 for 3 as he tries to step up and give the nats a 3-run lead here in the 7th. >> rob: well, and he's been hitting from the losed a lot better than the right side, although he did get a hit tonight. loves the number two hole. >> bob: reduced he has been a tearer, .351.

this line-up really sets up well. no contest which side of the plate guzman is most effective from at the moment. there's a base hit! left field! here comes maxwell! and the nationals lead 5-2! it's a two-hit night for cristian guzman, who collects his 9th rbi.

>> rob: big rbi there. >> bob: so the walk really hurts the braves, and then riggleman starts speedy guzman on the ground ball. after 7, the nats lead 5-2.

. >> bob: tyler clippard still in there. infante goes up and hits one to left, bernadina circling, and a very quick out to start the 8th

inning. hinske 32 years of age now. five years with toronto. he's been with the red sox, rays, pirates, and the yankees, where he played 39 games to finish up the season last year. didn't play in the division series of the lcs for the world champions, but had a walk and scored a run in one game of world series action. clippard had him waving at that off-speed pitch. >> rob: well, a guy that's looking first pitch fastball to probably hit for a home run and gets a change-up. he can only smile about it. >> bob: then a nasty breaking ball gets him on the hands. maxwell is there. two down. voting is open for the all star game in anaheim. send your favorite nationals to

this year's game by votes up to 25 times at nationals.com. vote early, vote often, and today at www.nationals.com. next up, nate mclouth. and can clippard close out the 8th inning in quick fashion here? one, two, three innings have been hard to come by. livan only had one tonight, and that was in the second. zimmerman over to have a look. it's coming back, but even ryan can't reach that one.

>> zimm did the right thing there, and then he's in contact with his peoples, yeah, i knocked your beer over, give me five. find the railing, and then try to find the ball. >> bob: two balls and a strike to mclouth. very tardy. strike two. >> rob: well, you've got three runs, you've got to get one more out, and it's probably matt capps time. you want to challenge these guys. you don't want to walk them. so the 2-1 pitch, up stairs fastball, here it is, let's see if you can hit it. >> bob: right down the middle!

mclouth obviously not expecting a belt-high fastball. braves are gone in the 8th.

. >> bob: the shift is on for adam dunn. right-hander jesse chavez, 26 years old. they got him from tampa bay in a deal last december for releaver rafael soriano. but he pitched for the pirates before that. and here is adam dun who hit one a d.c. mile. >> rob: chavez can throw it

anywhere from 90 to 98 miles an hour on a good night. >> bob: riley would not allow an appeal. if he's sure, he doesn't have to ask the third base ump. it's like a golf swing, if it doesn't feel right, step away. >> rob: pretty good pitch. just a bit outside. >> bob: that was a 3-1 pitch

evidently, and adam dunn walks. first walk of the night. 19 on the season, and pinch. hitting here will be gonzales for the nats, and of course this is in tyler clippard's spot. thethe nationals have three relievers warming up. taveras pinch running for adam dunn. this is what jim riggleman talked about this afternoon. he now has used four of his five position players, willie

harris who hasn't been in yet, and he doesn't want to use wil nieves, because things are going good with "pudge". "pudge" one for three tonight.

lays down a beautiful bunt. itcher to the first baseman. 1-3 on that one, and alberto gonzales pushes taveras with that great speed of his into scoring position with one out. now the nats have a chance to make it a 6-2 game.

>> bob: it's one of those nights when you can look at almost any spotny the line-up -- well, really, every spot, and they've contributed with the bat or at least defensively. in fact, ryan zimmerman is the only starter without a hit tonight. that's low to punch.

by ryan has defended well, as always. you missed a beautiful night of weather tonight if you didn't come down. the count to "pudge" rodriguez goes to 2-2. well struck to

left field! they're comes taveras! they'll hold im. cabrera covered that ball in a hurry, and runners are on first and third with one out, and for "pudge" rodriguez, 11th multi- hit game of the year. can we see enough of this catch by roger business? -- roger bernadina? after the dropped a ball in the first inning that gave the braves a run. >> rob: have to be a downer, bring up the dropped ball. >> bob: just in the the facts, sir. we're not covering anything up here. we take the bad with the good. and by the way, livan only gave up one run in his 5 and a third

innings tonight. >> rob: i still love you, roger. it's bob that said that. bob. bob was saying that. >> bob: i really liked his base hit in the second inning, though. and the rbi he's about to collect here. >> rob: that would be sweet. nice little fly ball to the outfield. >> bob: matt capps would probably sit down with that happening. >> rob: well, basically you would give credit to roger bernadina with the blown save as we joke in the clubhouse after. >> bob: little bouncer, right side. not going to get him. and safe at first is bernadina! as troy glaus kept turning around trying to figure out where he was was going, and the nats lead it 6-2, asty braves have been one of the sloppiest defensive teams in the league this year. they might give him a hit for beating that out. >> rob: well, and some players

might not hustle town the first base line, but not roger. he's getting right out of the box, hustling down the line, and that play is made because of roger bernadina's hustle, as glaus looks at the runner, then to second, oh, i'm just going to get the out at first, and by that time, bernadina is well by the bag. . >> bob: matt capps has already stopped warming up. they'll give him an rbi no matter which way it is scored so the 7 and 8 hitters for the nats have driven in three runs tonight. >> rob: i mean troy looked at first, second, and then flipped the ball to chavez. can't blame chavez on that. come on, troy. he's a really good third baseman earlier in his career.

he knows better than that. >> bob: roger bernadina given a hit on that play. so he has two-hit night. desmond is already two for three, takes one down the middle. 6-2 nats in their first meets of the year with the braves. still only one out. desmond going opposite way as he was jammed. this is not a light hitting shortstop. this is a legitimate power

hitter in the 8 hole. >> bob: >> nice pitch. >> bob: pitch at the nears, and jesse chavez didn't get the call. >> rob: we'll take it, but jesse throws a beautiful slider right here. maybe it fooled the umpire, but this is right in the heart, the middle of the plate. look at "pudge". he's such a little kid. that's why we love him. >> bob: yeah. both of those guys on base have two hits tonight. put a charm on right here. nice try by hawaii inside. can't get the inside slider, can't get the inside heater.

what do you think. change-up? >> bob: i would .throw this guy a fastball. >> rob: yeah, don't throw young buck a fastball, he might lose another one. >> bob: 3-2 pitch with one out. he goes fastball. >> rob: look out. >> bob: look out dan radisson. >> rob: doing a little quick step right there. >> bob: former minor league catcher, dan radisson. >> bob: now desmond who thinks he is walking, is called out on strikes, for the second out of the inning. that will bring up justin maxwell. >> rob: well, chavez pretty much, bob, surrounded the plate here, and then he gets one low

and gets a call. >> bob: that was not as good as the slider he had earlier. >> rob: no, and it was not as good as the pitch inside, but sometimes 95 is not easy to pick up. mccann is a big guy back there. i'm not saying that he blocked him out, but, you understand, he got a call. now it's time to get a big two- out hit right here if your jay max. >> bob: braves releavers have given up two consecutive lead- off walks that have come around to score. in the inbeing that, adam dunn's lead off homer got the nats on the board.

and the orioles are about to go 3-12, trailing at new york. 4-1 yankees now in that game. >> bob: he spotted that fastball a little bit better, it's got to be really tough to hit off of. >> bob: 3-1. >> rob: just looks like mechanically he falls toward first before he lets it go. then that movement to the right side of the mound, especially against right-handers. scare the remember out of righties. -- scare the heck out of righties. >> rob: yeah, that's a good one running up and in. most big swingers have a hole

in their swing at that location. >> bob: yeah, see him on the first base side of the rubber. that ball tailed across the plate. >> bob: 3-2 pitch, runners moving. and the nats are gone in the 8th. they pick up a run and lead by 4, into the 9th. [ male announcer ] achievement has its own patch of grass. ♪ achievement unleashes hidden potential. ♪ all right! achievement looks forward to dinner at home. achievement enjoys newfound freedom. i love you. [ male announcer ] mortgages, home equity loans, and lines of credit from pnc. helping achievers borrow with an eye towards the future. pnc. for the achiever in us all.

. >> debbi: ryan told me that the guys all came up with the idea to hand it out. now, they all pretty much know who the player of the game is, but if there's every a decision that has to be made, ryan said "pudge" rodriguez gets to make the call. >> bob: the right of seniority. that's how it should be, and rob i know how important you know those things are, something a little goofy that pulls the club it to when

things are going well. >> bob: little things. like the yankees last year, the whole pieny the face deal. with the rays the year before. >> bob: bautista get this call, because it is not a save situation, the nationals up by 4. martin prado one of the

leagues leading hitters, 0 for 4 tonight. the braves came in hitting just .238. >> rob: well, capper is just kind of playing with the rubber down there if the bullpen and going along with the inning. there he is. >> bob: ball laced out to center, nyjer morgan right there for the first out. ford drive of the game from your washington ford dealers. adam dunn, and this baby went way upstairs. >> rob: he doesn't get cheated. the big bad dunn, what did he do? he took that curveball and gave a happy fan a souvenir, and took the team lead in home

runs. his 58th may home run since 2003. >> bob: there is "pudge" flipping that ball to the pitcher. >> rob: i never looked it when

my catcher threw the ball back harder to me than i threw it to him. >> bob: he's not happy because he's going to 3-2 counts here. now he's really not happy. >> rob: he's such a little leader behind the plate. i'm glad you noticed that little subtlety. >> bob: catch ores warrant the game over in a hurry. get out of here. >> rob: well, not just closers, they're psychiatrists and bar tinders. they have to hear all of the pitchers a problems, and i think "pudge", a lot of people will go to him with their issues. a lot of the young latin players following him around. they love him. >> bob: carlos ruiz has homered in the bottom of the 10th, and the phillies beat st. louis 2-1.

>> rob: i think any player, in order to try and find out what the secret is to the longevity of a career like "pudge" rodriguez's, you just try to hang around the guy and hope some of that knowledge rubs off on you, especially the knowledge part of it. that's a great slider. he guided livan into the 6th inning after a rough start, handling his fourth pitcher of the night.

and 2-2 to mccann. that ball away, and if the braves get one more runner on, we'll see matt capps. wild pitch. >> rob: there he is, the delivery man of the month, for the month of april, matt capps, 10 for 10 in saves. i go back to, like, 1983 with jimmy. jimmy has been around forever. there you go. delivery man of the month. >> bob: 3-2pitch. >> rob: no long are the rolaids manager of the month. give them some rolaids. i never understood that.

>> bob: i thought the thing is the manager has to take the rolaids, and you're the guy who lets him take it easy. >> rob: look at that, nationals era. outstanding snoop 3-2 pitch up the middle. chipper jones will score. it's a 6-3 game, and that should finish miguel batista. brian mccann with his 9th rbi of the year. >> rob: a good set up guy, bob, gibbs up that run and gets you in the game to get you a save. >> bob: and jim riggleman might be making another double switch here, using willie harris somewhere. we'll see. so batista only gets one out in the. gives up a hit, walks a batter, and creates a save situation, and willie harris appears to the nats third right fielder of the night. matt capps has been perfect, 10 for 10.

power match-up here. jammed him, and hit that ball right off his front leg. >> rob: ow.

. >> rob: it will be okay, let's just spray this, like, 200 below zero spray on it and make it feel better. >> bob: giants and marlins now in the 10th. 6-6 that game, and the mets just got a run in the 9th and won at cincinnati 5-4. so there's. >> drama in ball games in the east tonight. nats trying to close out their 14th win right here.

02 to glaus. jim riggleman trying to even -- well, almost even the nats record against the east. they're 5-7 right now. the braves are are just 1-5 against the division. and a 1-2 pitch. ground ball, zimmerman. to his left. that's a game-ending double- play! on a good pick by adam kennedy! and matt capps, 11 for 11! >> rob: you know, and that was not an easy ball for zimmerman either. the nats playing fantastic defense. >> rob: total team effort tonight. bottom of the order did a great job offensively, zimmerman didn't have a great night at the plate, but defensism, he's amazing, and there you see the

pick, flash of leather by kennedy, gonzalez with the quick flip. there you go. 11 for 11 capper. >> bob: the nats have game one of the home stand and the series. tic muc ♪

vo: playing professional baseball isn't easy... vo: but saving money with geico is. vo: geico, 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. . well, the first of three at nationals park, and the nats get the win. debbi taylor is standing by with the nationals shortstop ian desmond. >> debbi: on the home run there, what were you looking for? >> slider. >> debbi: just talk about this line-up. how intimidating is it? >> well, we don't want to be hot at the same time, that's how we like it, we carry each other, and pretty potent. >> debbi: do you get more

excited making the dazzling plays on defense, or coming through with the clutch hit? >> i just like winning. anything, doesn't matter. anytime i can help the team. we're playing good against the east, and we need to continue to do that we want to make a push at the end. >> debbi: livan battled out there today, but you guys came through for him, didn't he? >> yeah, we said we're going to get this one for you. you've been pitching your butt off. that's what you do for a teammate. >> debbi: bob, back up to you. >> bob: ian desmond was great tonight. everybody from the one spot to the 8 spot made sizable contributions to this one tonight, and the nats win it 6- 3. wednesday masn hd, nats game two with the braves. this has been a presentation of masn. stay tuned for verizon fios nats extra with johnny and ray. and from the booth, so long for

just a while. s welcome to nats xtra presented by verizon fios. the nats are right pack on the winning track. 14-12, and a good crowd filing out of nationals park tonight,

very happy with some clutch pitching from matt caps and some long balls tonight by three nationals players. >> we were able to put some runs on the board. hernandez really battled. his first inning, 41 pitches. didn't quite have his command. they were taking a lot of pitches, and that's what you have to do to get him deep enough in the count, because he picks, picks, but a galn't effort by him, and also four other members of our bullpen getting into the action tonight. >> and i think we saw tonight jim riggleman pushing all the right buttons, thinking ahead. a lotth of strategy. double switch here, double switch there, and ends up at kennedy at first base for that nice grab on the game-ending double-play. >> i'm a long way from a general manager, but they made the right decision with him as

the manager. he doesn't miss a thing, johnny. you and i sit up hire talking about situations, and he's ahead of everybody. a lot of people don't think ahead in the fame, they let the game come to him. he's two innings ahead, thinking about the double switches, anything he can do toism prove his defense, help his pitchers. the guy is a brilliant manager, and i think people are starting to notice that. >> how about the confidence he had in livan hernandez. a guy who struggled tonight, he's the first to admit that, but get this win, and now he's 4-1. >> that's part of riggleman's brilliance. he allows him to go out there and continue to pitch. when he looks at his bum pen with burnett not being there in there very often, he felt good about livan going the extra mile tonight. >> roger, thanks so much for joining us outside that clubhouse. congratulations. not only the catch, but a couple of hits tonight, and a

terrific win for your ball club. >> yeah, definitely, that's the thing, just win right there, and go out there and do our thing, and it will work out well. >> i want to ask you about the first ball. it seemed the ball that was hit to you kind of faded away, the one that kind of got away early in the ball game. >> uh-huh. yeah. actually, i tried to pick, you know, i saw the runner and i tried to pick, and i put my eye at the ball, and the ball got away from me. >> you learned that a long time ago not to pick, didn't you, buddy? but forget about that thing. what tremendous play you made on that ball hit to right center field. run us through that. >> yeah, you know, just go out there,, and whatever he hit, i heard the sound, and just go after it. and actually i lost it for a second, and i dove and catch

the ball. >> and roger, you're the guy that we talk so much about, and for the young people watching this ball game tonight, a great inspiration for them, after a serious injury last year, you worked hard to rehab and get yourself back up to where you're going to able to playny the major league level. you did that, and how satisfies it must be for you to be out there in right filed. >> you know, that's part of actually off-season, i went back and worked out hard, and did my thing. i always go back to the big league, you know. keep working on it, and you know i take it day to day. >> well, you can enjoy this one tonight, i'll tell you that. with a couple of clutch hits, rbi, you beat out that infield single and the catch of the game. congratulations, roger. and we always appreciate your team, believe me. thanks. >> nice going. >> thank you. >> one of the true nice guys in this ball club. let's go upstairs to bob and

rob. we talk about chemistry on the team, day haveis this year, bob and rob as well, and we saw that tonight, a gutsy performance for this team to get three home runs, clutch pitching from capps, and a 6-3 win. >> you know, johnny, we made the point late if the ball game, if you look at the lineium from 8 through 8 contributed to that win, and there's not a single guy that set foot on the field tonight that did do noting in something to him the club win. i mean, all -- everybody was involved in this one tonight. >> rob: yeah, and the think about it was, too, cristian guzman hasn't been hitting well in the 3 hole, doesn't hit well in the 6 hole, so what to we do? put desmond and bernadina at the bottom of the order. desmond made a great pick, but throws it a away for an error. that's what is going to happen, he's a young guy, comes back

with a great catch, and then a home run that would make livan the winner. his defense has been spectacular the last three weeks. so, you know what? the throwing error in who cares. he was out of position, made a great barehanded play. things like that are going to happen, but the guy was amazing with the glove. it was a great night with the stick tonight. >> ian desmond 1 airer in his last 18 games at shortstop. now down to jim riggleman live. >> he really played good, got some big outs, and batista got an out there to take a little of the load off capps. that's what we're going to have to do, a couple of guys get it going and take the load off clippard and capps. we can't depend on them every night for a win. >> do you feel adam dunn starting to break out now? >> adam was right on three balls tonight. he got the one, but just missed

two others sworn hopefully that's a sign that he's breaking out. >> can you talk about how important that double-play was at the end with heyward waiting on deck? >> that was big. that kid is one of those guys that as at a young age, you know, you're already looking to kind of when he's coming up. so we really didn't want him coming up represent go ahead the tying run, and zimmerman made a great play, and kennedy made a great play to end the inning over at first. >> do you van an example of just this team, this whole game, you overcame a couple of defensive miscues, your pitcher wasn't exactly on his game, yet you guys are finding ways, battling, not cracking, and you're winning games. >> yeah, we've won the games we had a chance to win, and some -- even though the errors mounted a little bit lately, we've really played pretty good defense and really a good example of zimmerman there at the end, but we've won the

games that we could win because our starters have given us good effort, and clippard and caps have done a great job. so like i said, it's -- we're really looking for a couple of other guys in that bullpen to do what we know they can do. there's some really good pitchers in that bullpen who haven't got it going yet, and we're looking for that. >> how significant is it that you've avoided any sustained losing streak this year. what about this time allows that to be the case? >> i think the ball club, like i said, we had a 3-3 road trip, and the guys weren't happy. they didn't come out of florida feeling like we had a good trip. they felt like we needed to win another ball game or two, and just really -- the ball club is really stayed focused on winning tonight's game. just interested in getting after it tonight and trying to win the game. and we have some really good athletes there, like desmond

and nyjer, do something special things for us up the middle. "pudge" doing a great job behind the plate. >> when you're playing 162 games, how tough is it not to take a couple and get on cruise control? >> well, i think, you know, this club has been beaten down for a couple of years. i don't think you ever have to worry about that. nobody is ever going to be satisfied. our club is kind of perceived as a young club, but there's a lot of the lot of veteran players in that clubhouse that i don't think that would ever be an issue. >> did bernadina lose that ball in the sun in the first insomething? i don't know what happened there. sometimes the ball gets hard, it's knuckling a little bit. and i'm not sure why he missed it, but then later he made an unbelievable play just to show his athleticism there, but, yeah, every now and then somebody misses one right at him, and that's what happened. >> jim, can i you talk about

the 7th and 8th inning where you have a runner going, and you sacrifice? you've got speed, versatility. can you do more managing this year? >> well, i think so. we have some guys who can do some things there, but we're kind of -- we're kind of in the middle of the pack, really, in terms of running or not running. it's not the identity of our ball club. you know, it's great to run and steel bases and create a little havoc out there, but it's -- it's not like back in the day, those cardinal days. it was the identity of the club. everybody got on, everybody ran and really weren't worried about too many homers and things like that. so it's a nice component of our club, but it's notny out of our club. >> jim, can you talk about the long time detroit announcer ernie harwell? any thoughts on him passing today, one of the best? >> just heard about it. and i had the pleasure of

meeting ernie harwell several times, really, between interleague play in my team in seattle, he would still come to the games and do something work in the booth, but just as nice a man as you could meet, just a class act, you know, a great dip allow mat for the game. just a wonderful man, and i know last year it was announced that he was suffering from cancer, he had -- i think everybody knew that, and, you know, with great dignity, you didn't hear much about it lately and he passed, and he'll be missed. i know the tiger fans are really suffering right now. jim riggleman on the heels of the nationals winning the ball game. and certainly a sad moment with the passing of one of the great broadcasters of all time ernie harwell. 6-3 the final. defining moment in this ball game? well, there were three homes. all three results in national home runs. >> well, josh gets ahold of

one. he knew it. just like the professional that he is, drops the bat, circles the bases, swung the bat exceptionally well tonight, and ian desmond, he's running full tilt, that ball, johnny, was sky high, dropping in that corner by the bullpen. kid has a lot of pop. but this was a bomb. second deck, and adam just missed two earlier tonight that he missed awfulth just off the end of his bat against the warning track. >> the solo shot hits 4th of the year. adam dunn, his solo home run, his 5th. and adam dunn, a solo homer, his second, and two rbi. the winner pitcher tonight livan hernandez. and he gets his fourth win of the season. we talked about roger bernadina's catch. well, take a look to at it one

more time. it was a sensational grab. well, what does "pudge" rodriguez think of the night's win? we will talk to "pudge" when we come back.

. >> bob: well, livan he hernandez wins the game tonight. gets his 4th win of the year. his patry mate "pudge" rodriguez talk about catching livan tonight. >> well, he's -- he's a tough guy, you know, to be able to throw like almost 125 pitches, and be able to leave the game 3- 2 and get the win, you know, is pretty imprettyive, you know. he was working hard, you know, he was trying to hit the corner and missing by not much but he

did great, just keeping the ball down. he didn't have the slider working today, so used the curveball for a strike and got them out with the curveball. we start to working a little bit inside later on in the game. he did great. livan is just one of those guys. you have to come ready to play every day, and that's what we're doing right now. next week we're going to go to new york, so we have to keep

fighting hard. >> last year at this time, the ball club was 7-17. now they are 14-12. they are doing all right. we sat there watching livan's first inning tonight, a 41- pitch first inning. >> he epitomizes what this team is about, johnny, and that's competing. every win of these guys are competitors. 41 pitches or 15 pitches, it shortens your outing when you go 41 pitches, but still, he made pitch after pitch when he had to. the ball here bouncing to the seat, a double, and they were able to go ahead and capitalize with a run after getting him over to third base.

and then jason heyward, this was a shot. right over that wall in center field. almost off of the back drop out. >> boy does he have a lightning quick bat, and then mccann with a a little roller. but then livan kept on pitching. and they were able to get the win tonight. >> the phillies, the mets are 15-12, the nationals 14-12. only within game out of first place. atlanta with a loss tonight falls four games buy hind. >> i'm here because of you,

pard. >> oh, man. to left field, that ball, and then rodriguez the zinger to center. 15 out of 20 games he has hit safely in. and then desmond, big rbi. he has gotten a lot of big rbi's for this ball club already this season. he has talked about his defense. he's getting big clutch hits, and then a breaking ball that was up. he crushed it. sky high. would have brought rain if there were any clouds up there. and then adam hits a ball just about another 40 feet farther to right field, up in that second deck. three home runs, the first time we've done it since way late the season last year. 100 on the all-time list, tying ronny gant with his 320th home run tonight, so top 100 all time in home runs, that's impressive.

>> we're going to take a break, come back and continue more of nats xtra post-game. the final 6-3. livan hernandez has some thoughts about his outing as we continue in just a moment. this is unlike any car you've ever seen before. this is power with efficiency. this is an interior that exceeds even the promise of the exterior. this is the all-new jaguar xj. the stunning result of taking a very different road.

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>> stephen strasburg promoted from double a to aaa. you can see that game in its entirety following the braves game. debbi asked livan hernandez to talk about his outing tonight. >> i don't know. tried to keep the ball close, and making too many mistakes. 3-2, i don't wanted to walk the guy, and have to come in the middle, and good power guys

like young guys gonna hit it out. all i could see is watch the ball go. i know it go very far. >> debbi: how impressive is matt capps? >> he's unbelievable. doing a great job for us. and the best reliever in the game. and he's unbelievable. i'm happy, because he's a physical guy, great pitcher, working hard every day, and he deserves the good year that's happening right now. >> debbi: you come to appreciate these wins a little bit more when you have to battle like that and stay in it? >> sometimes i'll get lucky. in baseball sometimes it's better theren lucky than good, and for me, you don't see too many games like this, and have a chance to win, but this team, i go every five days over there and try working hard and try to make people out, because i know

three in a row for this team is nothing. it's a good-hitting team we have here, and i think it's -- you know, you keep the ball game close, you have a chance at winning, like today. >> there's always a chance of winning when livan hernandez is out there on the mound. there is the rest of the schedule for the week as the braves are here again tomorrow night and thursday night, and the marlins come to town for a big series. nats xtra 30 minutes before every ball game. nationals win it tonight by a score of 6-3. willingham went deep, desmond went deep, adam dunn went deep. game, set, map, washington. achievement: makes big moves... ...and takes baby steps. it helps you keep the lights on... ...and it knows when to turn them off. achievement: is all around us. a part of our very lives. at pnc, we help make achievement happen.

pnc. for the achiever in us all.

6-8 the final, the nationals knock off the atlanta braves. tomorrow tommy hanson goes for the atlanta braves. had some pretty good success

striking out guys in his career, right? >> well, he has an earned run average less than 3. he's pitching well. this year 2-2 with a 2.17. has yet to give up more than two runs per outing. good curveball and fastball. elevates it inside, runs it in on right-handed hitters. bing curveball. and just a 23-year-old young man. has just pitched great. >> and he has won most of his starts for the nationals against the dodgers and against the cubs, and hanson beat houston his last outing. there you see the numbers of hanson comed to howy. -- to louie. thanks very much for joining us tonight. that's our nats xtra post-game, washington wins it by a score of 6-3. we'll see you tomorrow

night 6:30.

little sigh of relief there. yankees going for the win, 4-1. as joba chamberlain comes in. >> oswalt on the mound for the stros. they took on the diamondbacks. top three, two oswalt serving up a blast of justin upton. fifth home run of the season for upton. ended up being a 1-0 game with that being the difference. upton 1 for 4 with his fifth home run of the season. carlos lee went 1 for 3 for the stros in a losing effort. >> twins and the tigers just

gone final. all tied up at 3. in the ninth. j.j. hard haring off the wall. he's running around second. and he is safe. he ends up getting a triple. oh, ryan, the wild pitch. and that does it. minnesota ends up winning 4-3 at target field. black bird gets the -- black it is burn gets the win. and perry gets the loss after uncorking that wild pitch. >> early in the night, magic took care of game 1 against the hawks 114-71. vince carter addressing reporters from orlando. >> it was kind of he didn't go away from the double team a little bit, and he was able to go one-on-one. but doing so under control. that was the key for him. just being under control. he did a phenomenal job of that.

he won the double team. passed out of the double team with confidence. >> >> started out slow, but came on in the second half. what was the difference? >> just keep winning. keep attacking. got more comfortable with what they were trying to do in the second half and where they were playing. so once i took my time and shot my shots with confidence. i got myself going. >> not having to play in the fourth quarter. not having to play real strenuous minutes tonight, is that at all a benefit? >> i think it's a testament to our level of focus. you know, it's easy on get

so there was a significant investment in the recovery act into the workforce and particularly into the primary care workforce. and it's not just for doc tourist, but nurses, nurse practitioners, mental health technician, a whole host of providers who are essential to deliver primary and preventive care. also, a recognition that we don't have nearly enough minority primary care providers and minority providers altogether. we don't have enough medical providers what cultural competency. so that in and of it can be a barrier to medical care. he may have a talk, but with out language skills were cultural competency, you may not have any connection with the community that seems to be served. so again, part of the investment pipeline is set aside for enhanced recruitment of

minority.there's a culturally competent providers and that is being built out along the way. so that has already started. in the recovery act is also an enormous and the end but then our 2010, 2011 budgets build upon, which is an expansion of the footprint of community health centers. community health centers have been enormously successful in delivering lower cost, high quality comment. i would say community sensitive care, well beyond cost in health services, but a range of services from counseling in many cases job fair opportunities, english as a second language, a host of services that really has made the community health centers in many neighborhoods a

real community center, a real place that care is delivered. and i think if you think about the footprint that's needed for primary care delivery, where you really have a medical home, in many cases community health centers have been extraordinarily successful. over the course of the investment made in two budget years in the recovery act, the footprint of the community health centers will be doubled in this country, serving an additional 20 million americans. and i think that's very good news as an infrastructure that not only delivers important primary and preventive care, but actually also is now working carefully with hospitals and communities across the country so they're doing sort of the tree as for hospitals than having folks, through the door of an emergency room curiosity and patience are we referred were initially referred directly

to the neighborhood health center. but a lot of the kind of account about care organizations is developing between community health centers. i was in boston and there was a system of idaho senators around the busiest hospitals that's going on in cincinnati's and a place in denver there are models that are really theory exciting here that the combination of high quality preventive and wellness care combined with hospitals and doing their work in the acute care is much more appropriate use of both the facilities. and i would suggest that it allows supervisors to do the work in a much more appropriate fashion. we've also made, in addition to the workforce training initiatives, that are coming directly to the national health service corps is being doubled. so people who actually agreed to

serve and underserved areas as in exchange for having their loans paid off is going to be again maximized. and that includes doctors, dentists, dancers practitioners again helping to build that pipeline, but also making sure that we can attract providers to areas where they are underserved the reimbursement system clearly has penalized primary care providers over the last several decades. and prior to the passage of the affordable act, those formulas begin to be changed here we made the first step in the readjustment of the medicare formula last year with the payment being available this year, where the recalculation began about what were the asset

that calculated in medicare reimbursement rate to make sure that we were compensating the kind of care delivery that so important in primary care. so office visits and consultations with patients began to get more equal rate with some of the higher technical issues provided by specialty care. and that's going to continue. this is a multiyear, multistep focus. but i would suggest among other things the appointment of the nomination, i should say, of dr. don berwick as the new leader for the centers for medicare and medicaid services is another step in that direction. not only is dr. burke known for his landmark work on quality and cost initiatives, but he's a pediatrician and he knows well the importance of in this very

exciting era of making sure that that work force of primary care providers is enhanced in a forest. and i'm thrilled that he'll be leading this effort and be one of the essential authors of what needs to be the new framework for reimbursement. and we have an enormous opportunity, clearly within the programs that we've run, medicare and medicaid to actually have this shift occurred. i don't think there's any question if you look at how in the long run we are going to an america of both have higher quality health result and a lower cost. it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that we have to begin to intervene at a much earlier stage and in a much more