NATS TIE BIG LEAGUE SEASON HIGH WITH 23 RUNS

Gonzalex Loses No-Hitter in 8^th

WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 (AP) – The Washington Nationals exploded for 23 runs, tying a major league season high, on 21 hits, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 23-1 at Nationals Park.  The outburst equaled that of the Arizona Diamondbacks who defeated the Chicago White Sox 23-7 on May 9 at U.S. Cellular Field.  The 22-run margin of victory is the largest in a big league game this year.  Eight different Nationals batters amassed at least two hits, led by second baseman Danny Espinosa who finished with four safeties.

Washington starter Gio Gonzalez carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning before yielding a one-out single to Pedro Alvarez.  It was the only hit of the game for the Pirates.

Things started out rather slowly.  Following a scoreless first inning, the Nationals picked up a pair of runs in the second off Pittsburgh starter Jeff Locke.  Ian Desmond doubled with one out and scored the game’s first run when Bryce Harper tripled.  Espinosa singled home Harper to give Washington a 2-0 lead.

The Nationals doubled their advantage in the fourth.  Wilson Ramos led off with a two-bagger and advanced to third on Espinosa’s base hit.  Two outs later, Kevin Frandsen’s double into the right field corner scored both runners and the lead increased to 4-0.

Washington blew the game open in the fifth, with eight runs.  It began an incredible three-inning stretch that saw the Nationals score 19 times.  Two big home runs in the fifth—a two-run shot off the bat of Desmond and Espinosa’s three-run blast—made it 9-0.  Later in the inning, Adam LaRoche drove home two more with a base hit and Harper made it 12-0 when he singled home Anthony Rendon.

If that wasn’t enough—and it surely was—the Nationals added five more in the sixth inning, all after two were out, with Harper’s bases loaded, bases clearing double the key blow.  Five more runners crossed home plate in the seventh.  Gonzalez belted a two-run homer to get things started and Ramos capped the effort with the second three-run double of the game.

While all this was going on, Gonzalez was holding the Pirates hitless.  Isolated walks in the second and third innings did no damage and after issuing a two-out free pass to Travis Snider in the third, Gonzalez retired 13 straight hitters, a string that was interrupted when Starling Martre drew a lead-off free pass in the eighth.  After the walk, Gaby Sanchez flied to right for the first out, but Alvarez followed with a clean single to left on the first pitch of the sequence.  Jayson Nix hit what appeared to be an inning-ending double play ball to Desmond at short, but the toss to second ended up in right field, allowing Martre to score.  Gonzalez was removed in favor of Ross Detwiler who avoided any further damage and retired all five batters he faced to end the game.

8/16/2014, Pit14-Was14, Nationals Park

                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9     R  H  E   LOB DP

2014 Pirates           0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1  0     1  1  3     2  0

2014 Nationals         0  2  0  2  8  5  6  0  x    23 21  1    11  1

Pirates              AB  R  H BI   AVG    Nationals            AB  R  H BI   AVG

Harrison,J        ss  4  0  0  0  .349    Span              cf  6  3  2  0  .300

Polanco,G         rf  4  0  0  0  .253    Frandsen          lf  6  1  3  2  .262

Martin,R          c   4  0  0  0  .282     Hairston         lf  0  0  0  0  .207

Marte,S           cf  1  1  0  0  .313    Rendon            3b  3  3  0  0  .297

Sanchez,G         1b  3  0  0  0  .144    LaRoche           1b  6  2  2  3  .238

Alvarez,P         3b  3  0  1  0  .236    Desmond           ss  6  4  3  3  .289

Nix               2b  3  0  0  0  .114    Harper            rf  4  3  3  5  .269

Snider            lf  2  0  0  0  .256     Detwiler         p   0  0  0  0  .000

Locke             p   1  0  0  0  .269    Ramos,W           c   4  2  2  3  .251

 Hughes,J         p   0  0  0  0  .000    Espinosa          2b  6  3  4  4  .250

 Walker,N         ph  1  0  0  0  .264    Gonzalez,G        p   4  2  2  2  .182

 Cumpton          p   0  0  0  0  .059     Taylor,MA        rf  1  0  0  0  .154

 Axford           p   0  0  0  0  .000                         46 23 21 22

 Davis,I          ph  1  0  0  0  .210

 Wilson,Ju        p   0  0  0  0  .000

                     27  1  1  0

Pirates                          INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Locke            L 2-5           4.1 11 10  9  3  2 108  68  5.71

Hughes,J                         0.2  2  2  2  1  1  20  12  2.24

Cumpton                          1.2  6 11  8  5  1  67  34  6.13

Axford                           0.1  1  0  0  0  0   4   3  3.32

Wilson,Ju                        1.0  1  0  0  0  1  16  12  2.64

                                 8.0 21 23 19  9  5 215 129

Nationals                        INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Gonzalez,G       W 9-5           7.1  1  1  0  3  8 104  66  3.59

Detwiler                         1.2  0  0  0  0  2  15  12  3.26

                                 9.0  1  1  0  3 10 119  78

Pit: Walker,N batted for Hughes,J in the 6th

     Davis,I batted for Axford in the 8th

Was: Taylor,MA inserted at rf in the 8th

     Hairston inserted at lf in the 9th

E-Harrison,J, Alvarez,P, Cumpton, Desmond. 2B-Span(23), Frandsen(1),

Desmond(20), Harper(7), Ramos,W 2(11), Espinosa(16). 3B-Harper(3).

HR-Desmond(19), Espinosa(11), Gonzalez,G(3). RBI-Frandsen 2(17),

LaRoche 3(58), Desmond 3(78), Harper 5(32), Ramos,W 3(39), Espinosa 4(46),

Gonzalez,G 2(6). CS-Marte,S. K-Harrison,J 2, Polanco,G 2, Martin,R 2,

Marte,S, Alvarez,P, Nix, Snider, Rendon, Desmond, Espinosa, Gonzalez,G,

Taylor,MA. BB-Marte,S 2, Snider, Span, Rendon 3, LaRoche, Harper 2,

Ramos,W 2. SH-Gonzalez,G. HBP-Frandsen, Rendon. HB-Hughes,J, Wilson,Ju.

WP-Cumpton, Wilson,Ju.

GWRBI: Harper

Temperature: 66, Sky: clear, Wind: in from left at 6 MPH.

Attendance: 41,998

Game Time: 3:11