The Sports Xchange
Aug 15, 2017
WASHINGTON -- Howie Kendrick hit two solo home runs, and Gio Gonzalez allowed no runs and two hits in six innings as the Washington Nationals beat the Angels 3-1 Tuesday, snapping Los Angeles' six-game winning streak.
Gonzalez (11-5) walked three and struck out four. He didn't give up a hit until there were two outs in the sixth, when Cameron Maybin reached on an infield single.
Mike Trout followed with a single to center, and Albert Pujols was given an intentional walk to load the bases. That brought up Jefry Marte, who lined out to second to end the threat.
Kendrick hit solo homers in the third and fifth innings to open a 2-0 lead.
Washington's Anthony Rendon (3-for-4) singled and went to second on a wild pitch in the sixth. He then scored on an error by Pujols, who was making just his sixth start of the year at first, on a ball hit by Matt Wieters. That made it 3-0.
Cliff Pennington hit a solo homer in the eighth off Brandon Kintzler to trim the lead to 3-1. It was just the second homer in 151 at-bats for Pennington this year.
Sean Doolittle threw a perfect ninth to get his ninth save with the Nationals (71-46).
The Angels (61-59) managed just three hits off four Washington pitchers.
Angels starter Tyler Skaggs (1-3), who has not won a game since April 22, gave up two runs on seven hits in five innings. He was on the disabled list from April 29 to August 5 with a right oblique muscle strain.
Daniel Murphy had two hits for the Nationals.
Kendrick led off the third with a homer just over the glove of left fielder Maybin and into the Angels bullpen.
It was the 100th homer of Kendrick's career and the second in three at-bats, as he hit a walk-off grand slam on Sunday night in the last of the 11th inning in a 6-2 win over the San Francisco Giants.
The Nationals had a chance to pad the lead in the third, but Skaggs retired three batters in a row with runners on the corners to end the threat.
Kendrick went deep again in the fifth as he drilled a 3-0 pitch from Skaggs into the seats in right.
The only baserunners Gonzalez allowed through the first five innings came on a walk to Trout in the first and a walk to Pujols in the fourth. Gonzalez took a no-hitter into the ninth inning on July 31 in Miami before giving up a hit.
NOTES: Washington RHP Stephen Strasburg (right elbow nerve impingement), who last pitched July 23, could make a start this weekend in his native San Diego, manager Dusty Baker said Tuesday. Strasburg threw five innings of one-run ball in a rehab outing Monday for Class A Potomac. ... Angels hitting coach Dave Hansen is not with the team for the two-game series. He is in California due to health reasons, according to the team. ... Nationals RHP Tanner Roark (9-7, 4.74 ERA) will face Angels RHP Ricky Nolasco (5-12, 5.24) on Wednesday. ... The Nationals called up C Pedro Severino from Triple-A Syracuse and sent RHP A.J. Cole to Syracuse.