Major League Baseball
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Washington 6, Houston 3
When: 7:05 PM ET, Monday, April 16, 2012
Where: Nationals Park, Washington, District of Columbia
Temperature: 84°
Umpires: Home - Jeff Nelson, 1B - Bill Welke, 2B - Chris Guccione, 3B - Tim Tschida
Attendance: 16245

Nationals 6, Astros 3:
Rookie Stephen Lombardozzi went 4-for-5 and drove in the decisive runs in the bottom of the sixth inning as Washington topped Houston for its sixth win in its last seven games.

After the Astros tied the game off Stephen Strasburg (2-0) in the top of the sixth, Lombardozzi put the Nationals back on top for good with a two-out, two-run double to left field against Kyle Weiland (0-2). He came in to score when Ryan Zimmerman followed with a two-run single to center.

Houston loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth inning, and Strasburg was one strike away from escaping unscathed before Chris Johnson tied the game with a two-run single to right-center field. The right-hander was lifted for a pinch hitter in the bottom of the frame, having yielded two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out five. Henry Rodriguez, the fourth Washington reliever, worked the ninth for his second save.

The Nationals got on the board in the third inning when a bunt single by Lombardozzi forced Weiland into an errant throw, allowing Ian Desmond to score. Wilson Ramos added a solo home run in the fourth, his first round-tripper of the season, to make it 2-0.

Weiland lasted 5 2/3 innings, giving up six runs on 10 hits and four walks. The Astros got their final run in the eighth on an error by Washington center fielder Rick Ankiel.

GAME NOTEBOOK:
Second base umpire Chris Guccione left the game with an apparent injury in the second inning but returned later at first base, swapping spots with Bill Welke ... J.D. Martinez’s sixth-inning walk was just the seventh ever allowed at home (against 76 strikeouts) by Strasburg ... Lombardozzi had come into the game hitless in seven career at-bats against Houston.
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Houston   Washington
Kyle Weiland Player Stephen Strasburg
Loss W/L Win
5.2 IP 6.0
2 Strikeouts 5
10 Hits 6
9.53 ERA 3.00
Hitting
Houston   Washington
Chris Johnson Player Stephen Lombardozzi
3 Hits 4
3 RBI 2
0 HR 0
5 TB 5
.750 Avg .800
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Hits HR TB Avg LOB K RBI BB SB Errors
Houston 10 0 14 .278 21 10 3 2 1 1
Washington 13 1 19 .371 17 5 5 5 2 0