Ryan Braun plated Rickie Weeks with a single in the bottom of the ninth inning, giving the Milwaukee Brewers a 4-3 victory over the road-challenged Washington Nationals Saturday.
Braun and Jim Edmonds homered for Milwaukee, which squandered a pair of leads before posting its ninth win in 13 games.
After Washington rallied to tie it in the top of the ninth, Weeks hit a one-out single off Drew Storen (2-2) in the bottom half. Joe Inglett walked before Braun lined a single to left.
Braun gave Milwaukee an early lead, belting his 16th homer of the year in the first. In the lineup in place of injured All-Star Corey Hart, Edmonds made it 2-0 with a leadoff shot in the fourth, his seventh blast of the season and second in as many nights.
Washington, which has lost 28 of its last 36 road games, knotted the contest on sacrifice flies by Ian Desmond in the fifth and Roger Bernardina in the sixth. The Brewers moved ahead in the bottom of the sixth as Jonathan Lucroy's double plated Edmonds, who led off with a single but left the game after the inning with a foot injury.
But John Axford (6-1) suffered his first blown save in 15 opportunities in 2010 as pinch-hitter Adam Dunn lifted the third sacrifice fly of the game for the Nationals following three straight singles to start the ninth.
Washington | Milwaukee | |
J.D. Martin | Player | Manny Parra |
No Decision | W/L | No Decision |
2.1 | IP | 6.0 |
3 | Strikeouts | 4 |
3 | Hits | 4 |
3.86 | ERA | 3.00 |
Washington | Milwaukee | |
Michael Morse | Player | Jim Edmonds |
2 | Hits | 2 |
0 | RBI | 1 |
0 | HR | 1 |
2 | TB | 5 |
.667 | Avg | 1.000 |
Team | Hits | HR | TB | Avg | LOB | K | RBI | BB | SB | Errors |
Washington | 7 | 0 | 7 | .241 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Milwaukee | 11 | 2 | 20 | .324 | 16 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 |