The Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals traded blows all Saturday afternoon before St. Louis emerged victorious by a score of 10-9 at Nationals Park. The starters for both teams, Kyle Lohse and Jordan Zimmermann, were knocked out early as the two clubs combined for 24 hits on the day.
Washington's Zimmermann lasted just 3.2 innings, allowing eight earned runs on eight hits and a walk. Lohse fared only slightly better, giving up eight runs, five earned, in 5.2 innings of work.
David Freese led the St. Louis attack, going three for five with a home run and three runs batted in. Matt Holliday homered as well for the Cardinals and drove in two runs.
Washington was led at the plate by Adam LaRoche, who hit his 24th home run of the season and drove in three runs, with Ryan Zimmerman and Bryce Harper each adding two hits apiece.
For more information on the Washington Nationals check out the SB Nation Blog Federal Baseball. For the perspective from the other dugout, check out Viva El Birdos. For more news, notes and information from around Major League Baseball, check out SB Nation's official MLB Hub Page.