Washington Nationals trounce St. Louis Cardinals with 10-0 win – MLB Update
Washington Nationals' starter Gio Gonzalez had a shut-out game on Friday, August 31, to help thrash the St. Louis Cardinals 10-0 at Nationals Park. The Cardinals struggled in all departments of the game in the second encounter of four-game series.
The most disconcerting aspect of Friday’s game was Adam Wainwright’s 2.2 innings wherein he allowed no less than nine hits and six runs, forcing the team manager to bring relieve pitchers to stop the floodgates of runs.
But relievers had their bit of a struggle as well. It was a tough night for all of them as the Nationals – which had won the first game by 8-1, maintained their dominance.
"Just a really weird night," Wainwright said. "Nothing that's going to do anything but motivate me for next time. Definitely a loss you can pin on my shoulders."
Nationals started it with Adam LaRoche who drove in two runs in the very first inning to give the Nationals a 2-0 lead. This was followed by Ian Desmond, Danny Espinosa, Kurt Suzuki and Jayson Werth’s singles in the third inning that gave the Washington Nationals a 6-0 lead, prompting the Cardinals to bring in the relievers.
All this led to major embarrassment for the Cardinals whose manager Mike Matheny frankly admitted it, saying this should not happen again.
"We face good pitching all season long," Cardinals' manager Mike Matheny said. "This shouldn't happen to us one day, let alone four. These guys are embarrassed right now. We're all embarrassed. That's not the team we are."
Bryce Harper drove in two runs in the fifth and then Ryan Zimmerman hit a two-run homer in the eighth to take the lead to 10-0. Gonzalez maintained his ascendancy on the mound, putting every Cardinals hitters in trouble and allowing them to score.
Gonzalez had eight strike-outs in his shut-out game, allowing only five hits to end the game with a majestic win, giving the Nationals a 2-0 lead in the four-game series. The Redbirds will have enormous challenges to face if they fail to win the remaining two games, with a lot to deal with the Wild Card race in the National League Central.
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