The Nationals let another game slip away on Saturday afternoon and suddenly a frustrating first two months to the 2013 season is looking a lot worse.

A homestand against a pair of sub-.500 teams has turned into a debacle with two losses, two rainouts and a win that took a ninth-inning rally. Against starting pitchers Jeremy Hefner, Dillon Gee and – on Saturday – Kevin Correia, Washington has managed four runs in 20 1/3 innings. Those aren’t exactly Hall-of-Fame names there. Nothing better illustrates the Nats’ quiet bats.

Correia held Washington to eight hits scattered over 6 1/3 innings in a 4-3 win for the Minnesota Twins that took 11 innings. It didn’t help that the Nats allowed an unearned run thanks to an Adam LaRoche error in the fifth inning. The first baseman now has five errors on the year. He had seven all last season and said afterwards that he gave the game to the Twins.

That extra run helped the Twins take a 3-2 lead. And while Washington rallied to score on a generous double awarded to catcher Kurt Suzuki on an infield chopper that scooted under the glove of shortstop Pedro Florimon, it couldn’t push across the go-ahead run. And so in the 11th – after putting the leadoff man on for the fourth frame in a row – Minnesota finally took advantage with an RBI single by Ryan Doumit off reliever Craig Stammen.

“That was a tough one. Very frustrating,” Nats manager Davey Johnson said. “It’s getting my dander up. We’re better than this. It seems like when we play like this we’re just lackadaisical. But I’ll have a chat with them tomorrow.”

Washington fell to 29-31 and is now a season-worst two games under .500. With a 9-game road trip looming after Sunday’s doubleheader against Minnesota, the time to recover is quickly slipping away. The Nats haven’t topped three runs in a game since May 29 at Baltimore – and they lost that game anyway. That’s a lot of pressure to put on your defense and your starting pitching.

“We had the walk-off [Monday against New York] and I thought that was gonna get us rolling,” LaRoche said. “Come right back out and give up 10, score one and then today…we got some hits, but didn’t string them together. We need to start getting those three or four in an inning, pushing some guys across. Not able to do it. Doesn’t help. Gotta play defense.”

Gonzalez had a strong game. But he also needed 114 pitches to get through six innings, allowing two earned runs. He struck out seven, but walked four. Washington used seven relievers until the bullpen finally cracked. Stammen walked the leadoff batter, pinch hitter Chris Herrmann, watched Jamey Carroll bunt the runner to second and then walked Joe Mauer on purpose. That was probably prudent. But Doumit came through with the RBI single and Washington’s luck ran out.

Nats reliever Tyler Clippard escaped a jam in the eighth when he stopped a line drive from Florimon with his right hand. After the game X-rays proved negative, according to Clippard. He recovered on the play to throw out Florimon at first base by a step.

Injuries are a part of this. Bryce Harper is headed to see Dr. James Andrews on Monday – though the swelling in his left knee has subsided a bit, Johnson said on Saturday – and ace pitcher Stephen Strasburg is also on the 15-day disabled list. Strasburg did throw a bullpen session on Saturday, which was his first time on a mound since sustaining a strained right lat muscle on May 31 in Atlanta. That went well, Johnson said, and the team hopes Strasburg will be ready to come off the disabled list on June 16.

One more bit of good news? Ross Detwiler (strained right oblique) made a rehab start on Saturday at Single-A Potomac. He faced 18 batters and appeared to come through that game fine physically with one run allowed on seven hits in 3 2/3 innings. He would be in line to start on Thursday in Colorado. Harper is eligible to come off the disabled list on June 11, but that is extremely unlikely now.

“It’s tough to gain momentum. We had a couple rainouts the last few days. We’re just trying to play our best every day with what we got right now,” Clippard said. “It’s the middle of the season, it’s a long season, and these types of things happen to every big-league club. Everyone goes through injuries. That’s just the nature of a season like we have. We just have to keep grinding, keep playing our best and and the wins will come. Just gotta get through these times.”

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Maybe it is actually a good thing that for once the Nationals left their scouting department bored stiff on Thursday night. With the best record in baseball last season and a prominent free-agent signing over the winter in closer Rafael Soriano, Washington didn’t have a selection in Major League Baseball’s 2013 draft until No. 68.

That also left a lot of staring at television screens for almost five hours as the team’s executives and scouting staff sat in the media room in the basement of Nationals Park and waited to see who would be available when its turn at long last came. The choice? Dallas Baptist right-handed pitcher Jake Johansen, a 6-foot-6, 235-pounder with a wicked fastball and major control issues.

As Roy Clark, Washington’s senior vice president of player personnel, noted on Thursday: If Johansen had better command of the strike zone and better numbers he would have been a top 10 pick. So the Nats will take what they can get. And after a workout at Nationals Park this week in front of general manager Mike Rizzo and pitching coach Steve McCatty the team believes it has a solid second-round choice on its hands.

Nats scouting director Kris Kline saw Johansen, 22, pitch twice in person this season. He disagreed with opinions from ESPN, Baseball America and MLB.com that Johansen is likely a future reliever. The front office doesn’t want to peg him there just yet. Kline reluctantly dropped a Josh Beckett comparison on Johansen, who was able to maintain his velocity late into games, has a hard slider and can hit 99 on the radar gun with his fastball.

Johansen is from Allen, Texas, a suburb 25 miles northeast of Dallas. He was a 2009 high-school graduate and a redshirt sophomore this season. Johansen started 15 games this spring with 75 strikeouts in 88 1/3 innings pitched. But he also walked 26 batters with seven wild pitches and seven hit batters as opponents posted a .301 average against him.

As a freshman Johansen primarily pitched out of the bullpen (20 appearances, four starts) with 40 strikeouts and 32 walks. Kline likes the improvement that he’s seen out of Johansen since his high school days and also from last season to this one.

“This guy is I feel, at 22 years old, just scratching the surface and a late bloomer,” Kline said.

Johansen was described as a “long-levered guy,” by Kline, who said he could be too methodical and deliberate in his approach. The team thinks increasing Johansen’s tempo on the mound will help.

Kline disagreed with some assessments by national outlets that Johansen is a one-pitch pitcher. The fastball is obviously elite. Kline believes the slider is an out-pitch right now. It is thrown as a cutter at 88 to 90 miles-per-hour and blends into a slider. Johansen also has a power – or “downer” – curveball that sits at 75-to-78 MPH. Both pitches are inconsistent, however. Both Kline and Clark believe Johansen wants to sign with Washington and get a quick jump on his pro career.

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The Nationals and the New York Mets were rained out on Thursday in the scheduled series finale at Nationals Park.

There was no make-up date announced and Washington no longer needs to recall a starter for Saturday’s game against the Minnesota Twins. Ace pitcher Stephen Strasburg (right lat strain) will miss that start, but is set to pitch a simulated game in Colorado on Tuesday. He was placed on the disabled list Thursday retroactive to June 1.

“This was a welcome call,” Washington manager Davey Johnson said. “And then not having to add another starter and then we got an off day on Monday. This is much better so I’m happy with it.”

Friday’s game is also in jeopardy with a nasty weather forecast on tap for the series opener against the Minnesota Twins. But for now left-hander Gio Gonzalez is scheduled to start that game. If not, he will pitch on Saturday. Nathan Karns will take the next game with Jordan Zimmermann the day after. All of that is assuming there’s no doubleheader over the weekend.

Ross Detwiler (strained right oblique) is supposed to make a rehab start at Single-A Potomac on Saturday. He would be in line to return to the rotation next Thursday in Colorado.

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Nationals second baseman Danny Espinosa underwent MRIs on both his left shoulder and his right wrist  on Wednesday.

On the 15-day disabled list as of Tuesday, Espinosa has a small tear in his rotator cuff from last season and a fractured wrist with bone fragments. He saw a wrist specialist in Baltimore on Wednesday, but the team isn’t ready to make the results public, according to general manager Mike Rizzo.

“We’re just looking for the medical opinions to come in and we’ll have our protocol and we’ll put together how we’re gonna rehab,” Rizzo said.

In other injury news, Triple-A starter Chris Young, who was signed for rotation depth early in spring training, remains on the disabled list at Syracuse with a lower-back injury.

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Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg did not throw a bullpen session as hoped this week and instead was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday with a strained lat muscle.

Strasburg was examined by a doctor this week and there remains “tenderness and discomfort” in the muscle, according to Washington manager Davey Johnson. Strasburg is not eligible to return until June 16. He had been pitching with the injury for several starts, but was pulled from a May 31 game against the Atlanta Braves after just two innings.

Strasburg played catch on Wednesday, Johnson said, but the team didn’t want him on a mound. It is unclear if the Nats will recall a reliever from the minor leagues to fill Strasburg’s spot on the roster or just wait until they need to add another starting pitcher on Saturday for an afternoon game against the Minnesota Twins.

“It’s a strain. It’s quite tender and we want to get past that before he gets back on the mound,” Johnson said. “Hopefully that’ll be soon.”

Injured left-handed pitcher Ross Detwiler is not a candidate to make that start. He remains on the disabled list with a right oblique injury. He did throw a bullpen session on Wednesday and did well, Johnson said, but hasn’t pitched since a May 15 game in Los Angeles and needs a minor-league rehab start before returning. That start should happen on Monday and likely would be at Syracuse – though low-A Hagerstown is at home, too. Both Double-A Harrisburg and Single-A Potomac are on the road that day.

Johnson did offer a qualifier. The last time Detwiler threw a bullpen session he woke up the next day still stiff. So a start could come as soon as Sunday and would ideally be between 40 and 50 pitches. Johnson didn’t think Detwiler would need more than one rehab start to return to the big-league rotation.

Saturday’s starter will come from Syracuse, Johnson said. The obvious candidates are right-hander Ross Ohlendorf, a former major-leaguer who hasn’t pitched since last Thursday, and Danny Rosenbaum, 25, who has a 3.48 ERA for the Chiefs in 11 starts. He pitched on Monday, but isn’t on the 40-man roster. Washington does have an open spot if it wanted to go in that direction.

FoxSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal is reporting that Ohlendorf is the team’s choice. He has a 4.32 ERA in 11 starts at Triple-A. Ohlendorf has 108 appearances and 73 starts over parts of six major league seasons with three teams (Yankees, Pirates, Padres). Rosenbaum has never pitched in the majors and lasted just 1 2/3 innings in his most recent start at Syracuse.

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The locker sat empty in the happy clubhouse, its contents packed away and its occupant gone. Danny Espinosa has been a key contributor to the Nationals since his first promotion from the minor leagues late in the 2010 season. He has played 390 games for Washington, most of them at second base. But on Tuesday he was absent, a glaring void next to his normal spot alongside teammate Ian Desmond’s stall. Around the room loud music blasted from the stereo system after a thrilling 3-2 comeback win over the New York Mets on Tuesday night. Espinosa wasn’t there to enjoy it.

There was no great surprise. Espinosa was batting .158 with three home runs and nine doubles. His OPS was an abysmal .465 and his on-base average an unsightly .193. Already playing with a small tear in the rotator cuff in his left shoulder – he spent the offseason strengthening the muscles around it after doctors advised against surgery – Espinosa had been playing through a small fracture in his right wrist, too, with painful bone chips exacerbating that injury. It was time. His performance, no matter his track record, was untenable for a team desperate to ignite a stagnant offense.

For now that means a trip to the 15-day disabled list for rest. Afterwards, it will likely mean a trip to the minor leagues to work on both his swing mechanics and the “mental side of hitting” as Washington general manager Mike Rizzo gently put it.

“I said before the game, I’ve played a long time and I’ve seen guys come and go,” outfielder Jayson Werth said. “I’ve seen guys get traded, seen guys get sent down, seen guys get sent up. It’s just part of the game. Danny’s been a big part of this team ever since I’ve been here. Even before I was here. Bonds are made and broken in this game every day.”

Werth spoke before realizing that Espinosa, for now, is simply on the disabled list and not headed to the minors immediately. But his comments will likely hold. Espinosa will not play again until his wrist and shoulder are deemed healthy. The team appears intent on giving him time and space in the minors to regain his swing. Espinosa has 47 career home runs and has proven a capable, if streaky, batter and a strong defensive player. None of that could save him – or teammates Henry Rodriguez and Zach Duke, two struggling relief pitchers who were both designated for assignment on Tuesday in a flurry of roster moves.

“For a win like this to happen after those guys got sent down, I don’t want the fans to think that they’re the reason we were losing these games,” Desmond said. “All the guys that got demoted today – or whatever happened to them – they all made an impact at some point and they all did positive things for us. By no means did we win this game because they weren’t here. It was just a matter of time before one of these came.”

Desmond admitted his thoughts drifted to those players as his teammates celebrated on the field after the victory and the fans roared. It was hard for him not to think of Espinosa, his friend and primary double-play partner for parts of four seasons. But while there is sympathy for the departed, there is also no quarter given in pro sports. Injury or not, personal feelings aside, the numbers dictated what had to happen.

“Danny, he’s a tough guy. He reminds me a lot of myself,” Nats manager Davey Johnson said. “He’s gonna go out there and play. He’s been playing with a bad shoulder, he’s been playing with a broken wrist. He needs the rest. I love the guy. Total gamer. Hopefully he’ll come out of this and get back on track and be back soon.”

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The answers just aren’t there right now for Nationals pitcher Dan Haren. Always prone to allow home runs even in his best days, he gave up three more on Wednesday night in an ugly 10-1 loss to the New York Mets.

Haren has now allowed 15 homers on the season. That’s through just 12 starts and 67 2/3 innings. He’s twice allowed 31 in his career. It’s unlikely he’ll be given the chance to get that far if he keeps allowing them at this rate. Marlon Byrd hit two on Wednesday and David Wright smashed another. Washington, which needed a good start to build momentum from a series-opening win the day before, instead lost another game in the NL East standings to the first-place Atlanta Braves.

“It’s just very disappointing, obviously. I feel bad for the guys,” Haren said. “I’m letting them down. I can’t be this inconsistent. I’m the same guy that five days ago went through one of the toughest lineups in baseball and kept us there. To lay another egg tonight is just…I’ve got to be better.”

Haren was speaking about the two runs he allowed in 7 2/3 innings against the homer-happy Orioles at Camden Yards last week. But that was a distant memory when manager Davey Johnson pinch hit for him in the fourth inning with the Nats already down 5-1. Roger Bernadina doubled and Washington left runners stranded at second and third with one out. It was that kind of night.

“It seems like he can’t catch a break,” said Nats catcher Kurt Suzuki.

But it must be more than that. Haren can’t tell right now how he’ll pitch from start to start and when he isn’t on things spiral out of control quickly. There isn’t much middle ground. Johnson thought Haren’s pitches looked “flat” from the dugout, but otherwise offered little explanation for the veteran’s struggles.

“I’ve been pitching in the big leagues since 2003,” said Haren, 32. “I don’t remember many times as tough as this one where it was just so up and down where I feel good one day and so bad the next. Body wise, I have no excuses. I’m healthy. If it was something, that’d be an easy way out, to say ‘Oh, I’m hurt.’ But I’m not hurt. I’m just not getting the job done.”

Haren has always pitched with a chronic hip condition and last year landed on the 15-day disabled list with a bad back. But the hip had never really been an issue before and he’s long been a durable workhorse and one of the better pitchers in the majors. But the signs that he was fading last season have emerged again in 2013. Haren is on a one-year contract worth $13 million after spending the last two-and-a-half years with the Los Angeles Angels.

“It’s not for lack of trying. I’m going out there, I’m doing my best,” Haren said. “I feel like I’m letting down the team, fans, front office, everybody. No one feels worse about it than me, but I’ve got to take the ball in five days and I’ve got to believe because the team needs me. And I know I’m good. I’ve been good at times this year. Just no consistency whatsoever.”

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How rare was Jordan Zimmermann’s complete game shutout in Friday’s 1-0 win over the Reds? It was just the eighth for the Nats since moving to D.C. in 2005 and was the first complete-game one-hit shutout. Here are the Nats pitchers who have pitched complete-game shutouts.

2005 – 9 shutouts (one complete game)

8/04 — John Patterson            7-0 (Dodgers)      4H    0BB  13K

2006 – 3 shutouts (one complete game)

8/15 — Pedro Astacio             5-0 (Braves)        2H    0BB  5K

2007 – 6 shutouts (no complete games)

2008 – 8 shutouts (no complete games)

2009 – 3 shutouts (one complete game)

7/21 – John Lannan               4-0 (Mets)           7H    0BB  1K

2010 – 5 shutouts (one complete game)

4/17 – Livan Hernandez        8-0 (Brewers)      4H    2BB  3K

2011 – 10 shutouts (two complete games)

4/19 – Jason Marquis             3-0 (Giants)         5H    0BB  7K

6/15 – Livan Hernandez        10-0 (Cardinals)  3H    0BB  6K

2012 – 9 shutouts (one complete game)

8/31 — Gio Gonzalez             10-0 (Cardinals)  5H    3BB  8K

2013 – 3 shutouts (one complete game)

4/26 – Jordan Zimmermann   1-0 (Reds)           1H    1BB  4K

Demonstrating how much the game has changed as far as protecting the arms of pitchers, complete game shutouts were much less rare the last time Washington had a team in the Major Leagues. From 1961-71, the Senators had 102 shutouts. All but 22 were complete games.

The one-hit shutouts were by Tom Sturdivant (1961), Tom Cheney (1963), Barry Moore (1967), Jim Hannan (1970), and Dick Bosman (1969, 1970). Bosman’s second one-hit, complete-game shutout came against the Twins. The game’s leadoff man, Caesar Tovar, laid down a bunt single for Minnesota’s lone hit.

1961 (8 shutouts, all complete games)

5/13 — Tom Sturdivant          2-0 (Red Sox)     1H    1BB  5K

5/14 — Joe McClain               3-0 (Red Sox)     5H    0BB  2K

6/09 — Dick Donovan            1-0 (White Sox)  6H    4BB  1K

7/06 — Dick Donovan            1-0 (Orioles)        4H    0BB  7K

7/07 — Joe McClain               3-0 (Twins)          3H    3BB  4K

7/30 — Bennie Daniels           4-0 (Athletics)     6H    3BB  3K

9/16 — Pete Burnside             3-0 (Athletics)     5H    4BB  4K

9/29 — Pete Burnside             2-0 (Athletics)     2H    1BB  4K

1962 (11 shutouts, 10 complete games)

5/30 — Claude Osteen            8-0 (Athletics)     6H    1BB  6K

6/08 — Dave Stenhouse         1-0 (Tigers)          6H    5BB  4K

6/30 — Tom Cheney               1-0 (Twins)          5H    2BB  10K

7/17 — Dave Stenhouse         1-0 (White Sox)  3H    1BB  4K

7/18 — Bennie Daniels           1-0 (White Sox)  3H    3BB  2K

8/05 — Tom Cheney               2-0 (Red Sox)     4H    1BB  8K

8/18 — Don Rudolph             2-0 (Angels)        5H    1BB  4K (8 innings, Osteen save)

8/23 — Don Rudolph             6-0 (Twins)          6H    4BB  3K

8/27 — Tom Cheney               7-0 (Orioles)        4H    1BB  6K

8/28 — Don Rudolph             4-0 (Orioles)        6H    3BB  5K

9/05 — Claude Osteen            3-0 (Twins)          3H    2BB  0K

1963 (8 shutouts, all complete games)

4/11 — Tom Cheney               8-0 (Red Sox)     1H    1BB  10K

4/26 — Tom Cheney               6-0 (Athletics)     3H    1BB  12K

5/09 — Dave Stenhouse         6-0 (Indians)       7H    1BB  5K

6/04 — Tom Cheney               1-0 (Red Sox)     5H    1BB  6K

6/10 — Claude Osteen            1-0 (Yankees)      6H    0BB  2K

6/23 — Tom Cheney               4-0 (Angeles)      4H    1BB  5K

8/17 — Benny Daniels            10-0 (Twins)        2H    3BB  5K

8/30 — Claude Osteen            7-0 (Red Sox)     5H    1BB  6K

1964 (5 shutouts, all complete games)

5/24 – Buster Narum             3-0 (White Sox)  6H    5BB  2K

8/26 – Buster Narum             2-0 (Yankees)      5H    2BB  4K

9/07 – Bennie Daniels            3-0 (White Sox)  5H    2BB  5K

9/19 – Bennie Daniels            1-0 (White Sox)  4H    5BB  1K

9/23 – Don Loun                   1-0 (Red Sox)     5H    0BB  2K

1965 (8 shutouts, 5 complete games)

5/02 – Phil Ortega                  13-0 (Angels)      5H    2BB  6K

6/08 – Pete Richert                2-0 (Orioles)        3H    1BB  9K (7 innings, Kline save)

6/18 – Pete Richert                2-0 (Orioles)        4H    2BB  6K (8 innings, Kline save)

7/02 – Frank Kreutzer            6-0 (White Sox)  3H    3BB  10K

7/18 – Mike McCormick        3-0 (Yankees)      2H    2BB  1K

7/19 – Phil Ortega                  8-0 (Tigers)          3H    1BB  3K

9/04 – Jim Duckworth           1-0 (Tigers)          2H    4BB  11K (7 innings, Ron Kline save)

9/29 – Jim Hannan                 9-0 (Athletics)     5H    4BB  3K

1966 (6 shutouts, 5 complete games)

4/27 – Mike McCormick        2-0 (Yankees)      5H    1BB  4K

5/03 – Phil Ortega                  3-0 (Orioles)        3H    1BB  4K (7 innings, Cox save)

7/09 – Diego Segui                3-0 (Yankees)      8H    2BB  5K

8/26 – Mike McCormick        1-0 (Indians)       4H    0BB  3K

8/31 – Mike McCormick        3-0 (Athletics)     4H    1BB  4K

9/18 – Phil Ortega                  1-0 (Athletics)     2H    1BB  5K

1967 (14 shutouts, 10 complete games)

4/30 – Barry Moore               3-0 (Twins)          1H    2BB  0K

5/01 – Pete Richert                1-0 (Athletics)     1H    3BB  9K (7.1 innings, Knowles save)

5/06 – Darold Knowles         2-0 (Angels)        2H    3BB  6K (6 innings relief of Moore)

5/18 – Pete Richert                2-0 (Orioles)        3H    1BB  5K

6/01 – Camilo Pascual           1-0 (Angels)        4H    1BB  6K

6/16 – Bob Priddy                 1-0 (Red Sox)     7H    1BB  3K (7 innings, Baldwin save)

8/07 – Phil Ortega                  5-0 (Twins)          3H    2BB  7K

8/13 — Frank Bertaina            2-0 (Athletics)     5H    1BB  6K

8/29 – Dick Bosman              3-0 (White Sox)  5H    1BB  4K

8/31 – Frank Bertaina            6-0 (Yankees)      3H    2BB  6K

9/09 – Darold Knowles         4-0 (Angels)        2H    3BB  3K (6 innings relief of Pascual)

9/17 – Frank Bertaina            5-0 (Tigers)          7H    3BB  8K

9/29 – Phil Ortega                  1-0 (White Sox)  4H    3BB  6K

9/30 – Frank Bertaina            4-0 (White Sox)  5H    0BB  6K

1968 (11 shutouts, 9 complete games)

4/15 – Camilo Pascual           7-0 (Angels)        7H    2BB  9K

4/19 – Joe Coleman               3-0 (A’s)              6H    3BB  6K

4/21 – Camilo Pascual           2-0 (A’s)              6H    3BB  0K (6.2 innings, Knowles save)

4/28 – Phil Ortega                  1-0 (Indians)       2H    4BB  5K

5/22 – Frank Bertaina            2-0 (White Sox)  4H    4BB  5K (8.1 innings, Baldwin save)

8/06 – Joe Coleman               1-0 (Angels)        4H    2BB  8K

8/12 – Camilo Pascual           2-0 (Twins)          5H    1BB  3K

8/26 – Frank Bertaina            1-0 (Twins)          2H    4BB  9K (11 innings, Higgins win)

8/27 – Camilo Pascual           2-0 (Twins)          4H    1BB  7K

9/02 – Jim Hannan                 1-0 (White Sox)  4H    1BB  4K

9/22 – Camilo Pascual           6-0 (Tigers)          4H    1BB  4K

1969 (10 shutouts, 7 complete games)

4/11 – Barry Moore               4-0 (Orioles)        5H    2BB  3K (6 innings, Higgins save)

4/30 – Jim Hannan                 1-0 (Red Sox)     4H    1BB  5K (7 innings, Higgins save)

5/02 – Dick Bosman              5-0 (Indians)       1H    3BB  7K

6/06 – Barry Moore               1-0 (Twins)          2H    3BB  4K (5 innings, Knowles 4IP save)

7/06 – Dick Bosman              5-0 (Red Sox)     7H    0BB  6K

7/09 – Joe Coleman               3-0 (Indians)       4H    6BB  11K

7/14 – Joe Coleman               3-0 (Tigers)          5H    4BB  9K

7/19 – Joe Coleman               4-0 (Yankees)      2H    2BB  11K

9/01 – Joe Coleman               4-0 (Angels)        9H    4BB  8K

9/02 – Jim Hannan                 2-0 (Angels)        3H    0BB  3K

1970 (11 shutouts, 7 complete games)

4/29 – Dick Bosman              4-0 (Brewers)      7H    2BB  6K

5/20 – Dick Bosman              2-0 (Yankees)      4H    4BB  4K (6 innings, Knowles 3IP save)

7/18 – George Brunet            4-0 (Angels)        6H    1BB  5K

7/20 – Jim Hannan                 2-0 (Brewers)      5H    2BB  6K (8.1 innings, Knowles save)

7/25 – Jim Shellenback          5-0 (Angels)        2H     4BB  5K

8/03 – Dick Bosman              4-0 (Tigers)          8H    2BB  4K (6 innings, Joe Grzenda 3IP save)

8/13 – Dick Bosman              1-0 (Twins)          1H    7BB  7K

8/17 – Jim Hannan                 7-0 (Royals)        1H    2BB  6K

9/13 – Joe Coleman               10-0 (Tigers)        3H    0BB  7K

9/16 – Bill Gogolewski          2-0 (Orioles)        2H    4BB  4K (7 innings, Knowles 2IP save)

9/17 – Dick Bosman              2-0 (Orioles)        5H    0BB  4K

1971 (10 shutouts, 7 complete games)

4/05 – Dick Bosman              8-0 (A’s)              6H    3BB  2K

4/18 – Denny McLain            4-0 (Indians)       3H    3BB  6K

4/27 – Denny McLain            2-0 (Twins)          6H    1BB  8K

5/31 – Denny Riddleberger   4-0 (Angles)        2H    2BB  5K (5 relief innings, Cox save)

6/19 – Jackie Brown              2-0 (Red Sox)     5H    5BB  5K (7.1 innings, Cox save)

6/27 – Jim Shellenback 8-0 (Yankees)      6H     1BB  3K

8/07 – Pete Broberg               7-0 (Indians)       5H    0BB  9K

8/13 – Denny McLain            4-0 (Angels)        10H  2BB  2K

8/14 – Mike Thompson          2-0 (Angels)        6H    4BB  3K (8.2 innings, Paul Lindblad save)

9/01 – Bill Gogolewski          2-0 (Yankees)      4H    0BB  5K

Kdunleavy@washingtonexaminer.com

Serving up four home runs and losing 15-0 in Cincinnati was an inauspicious Nationals debut for veteran Dan Haren. Four weeks later against the same Reds, Haren found himself in a pitcher-friendly park, aided by the force of a powerhouse team gathering momentum.

In a 6-3 victory Saturday afternoon Haren delivered six solid innings and was the beneficiary of two brilliant plays by centerfielder Denard Span and an offense that collected 10 hits as Washington won its third straight.

Limiting the Reds to six hits and no walks while fanning five, Haren was unspectacular compared to the work of Gio Gonzalez and Jordan Zimmermann, who limited Cincinnati to one hit each of the previous two nights.

“I was kind of disappointed when I gave up the second hit,” Haren joked.

But his work fit the definition of a quality start, the first in five attempts for Haren (2-3), as he settles in to a new role after serving as the staff ace for Oakland, Arizona, and Anaheim.

“I’m obviously happy with the way it went,” Haren said. “It sucks it’s take so long to have a good outing. I finally feel like a part of the team. I gotta be like this or better the rest of the year.”

Haren faced the minimum nine batters in the first three innings before wavering. Span’s running catch against Votto in the sixth inning kept Haren comfortably in front.

“I’ve been waiting a long time to just have a good start,” Haren said. “I don’t want to make too much of it. But my confidence has been building. Ever since the first game, getting pounded in Cincinnati, I think from then on my confidence has gotten better and better, more and more.”

Manager Davey Johnson was happy with the work of Haren.

“That was more like him,” Johnson said. “He changes speeds, moves the ball around, just pitches.”

Wall ball with Tarasco

After failing to come up with two balls hit to the wall by the St. Louis Cardinals early this week, Span got help from coach Tony Tarasco before the opening game of the Cincinnati series on Thursday afternoon.

“I told him to come out and hit me some balls close to the wall so I can get familiar with where I’m at out there,” Span said.

Nobody knows wall ball better than Tarasco. His most famous moment as a player came when he was with the Baltimore Orioles, trying to field a towering drive to right-field by Derek Jeter in a playoff game at Yankee Stadium. With a baseball glove 12-year-old Jeffrey Maier reached over the edge of the wall and snatched the ball from Tarasco in one of baseball’s most legendary and controversial plays, which the Orioles believed should have been overturned by fan interference.

Span no Paul Blair

As a second baseman for the Baltimore Orioles in the 1960s and early 1970s, Johnson played with one of baseball’s all-time best centerfielders, Paul Blair, and was asked how his former teammate compares to Span.

“Nobody reminds me of Paul,” Johnson said. “Paul played real shallow. But we never had any balls hit over his head. He could go back with the best of them. [Span] covers lots of ground easy out there. He’s fun to watch.”

Kdunleavy@washingtonexaminer.com

Gio Gonzalez threw strikes on Thursday night – 78 to be exact, on 112 pitches — keying his one-hit work over eight dominant innings in the Nats’ 8-1 victory over the Reds. Gonzalez (2-1), the Nats’ starter most susceptible to wildness, had walked 11 in 20 innings, lasting no more than six innings in any of his previous four starts. But with the lead from the third inning on, Gonzalez was able to attack.

“When he starts thinking about what he’s trying to do … that’s when he starts falling into trouble,” catcher Kurt Suzuki said. “Today it was just, get the ball and go. It was rock and fire. That’s what Gio needs to do … When he does that, he’s successful most times than not because his stuff is that good.”

Gonzalez cooled off one of the best offenses in baseball. Cincinnati (13-10) entered second in the National League in runs scored (114) and first in bases on balls (96). But Gonzalez set down the first 11 Reds he faced before Joey Votto got their lone hit of the night, an opposite-field home run.

“It was first-pitch strikes,” Gonzalez said. “You want to attack the strike zone quick, especially with a team like that. You don’t want to give them a chance [when] you fall behind on them and let them swing it. That’s what happened to Votto – fell behind on him.”

On his 26th birthday, Danny Espinosa gave Gonzalez a margin for error. His double to the wall in right-center in the second inning gave the Nats a 1-0 lead. It was similar to the ball Espinosa hit a day earlier which was run down by Cardinals center-fielder Shane Robinson.

“Just a big sigh of relief,” Espinosa said of the hit after entering three for his previous 28. “Maybe it was because it was my birthday.”

Espinosa later scored on a single by Denard Span. In the third inning, his two-run home run, completed a four-run outburst for a 6-1 lead.

With three hits and three RBI, Span had a big night as well, also sparked by a break. His chopper to the left side in the second inning was fielded bare-handed by shortstop Zack Cozart, whose throw was late by half a step. Espinosa came home on the two-out infield single.

“That [hit] probably felt the best,” Span said. “That’s when I finally, finally felt like we finally caught a break. I said finally like five times there. But finally it felt good.”

Kdunleavy@washingtonexaminer.com