Runs!: Giants 11, Nationals 7

I guess the Nats pathetic pitching is worse than the Giant pathetic offense. At least for one game, there's no other explanation for what happened in the opener of the 3-game set at Mays Field. Not only did the Giants score 11 runs, but at one point the team which draws less walks than any team around actually drew 5 in a row -- the last 3 driving in runs. And that came after 2 runs scored when LF Josh Willingham whiffed on a can of corn off the bat of Fred Lewis in one of the most embarrassing efforts you'll see in the outfield. They also got clutch hits, including one from a reliever. So, there's that.

The only downside of the long inning was that The Unit seemed to stiffen up. Up to that point, Johnson had allowed 2 runs (both on solo HR's) through 5 innings, striking out 9 and not walking anybody. Afterwards, he couldn't record another out, going HR, single, wild pitch, double before being pulled. He won -- #298 lifetime -- kept his streak of dominant pitching (yes, he allowed 4 runs in 5 innings, but 9 K's/0 BB's is dominant) at home --to off-set his terrible pitching on the road. It also kept alive the possibility of The Unit going for win #300 at Seattle, which would be pretty damn cool. For that to happen, he'll have to beat Johan Santana and the Mets this weekend, so I wouldn't hold my breath. On the other hand, it is at home.

The bullpen made it interesting in the 9th, and Brian Wilson had to come in for the save after pitching 2 innings yesterday in LA, but he only had to throw 3 pitches -- Strike 1, Strike 2, and Strike 3 to Willingham. Wilson seemed a little more deliberate in doing his post-game crossed-arm salute to the sky, possibly due to the Casey Blake incident yesterday.

Don't look now, but the Giants have crept to 3 games over .500, and are just 4 games behind the Dodgers, and just a half-game behind Cincy for the NL Wild Card lead.

TOMORROW: Matt Cain takes his fast start (3-1, 2.61) to the mound against Nats rookie Jordan Zimmermann, who has a very nice K/BB rate (18/6), but has given up a lot of hits (26) and HR's (5) so far (23 innings), resulting in a 5.48 ERA.