Jayson Werth Sparks Nationals Rally
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Eliot Schechter/MLB Photos via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — Jayson Werth drew a pinch-hit walk in the ninth inning and scored the tying run, before ultimately scoring the winning run in the Washington Nationals 6-5 win over Pittsburgh in 11 innings.
It was the sixth straight win for Washington (69-53) while sweeping the Pirates (64-60).
Pittsburgh led 2-1 in the seventh inning when Nationals manager Matt Williams successfully challenged a call that put Michael Taylor on first base, starting a rally. Washington went on to score three runs in that inning to take a 4-2 lead.
However, the Pirates did not go away, scoring three runs of their own in the top of the ninth. Gregory Polanco drove in two runs off Washington closer Rafael Soriano, giving Pittsburgh a 5-4 advantage. The Nationals had another rally in them in the bottom of the inning. Asdrubal Cabrera singled off Matt Melancon to drive in Werth and force extra innings.
Werth, who missed the last give games with a sore right shoulder, came up in the bottom of the eleventh and doubled to lead things off. He advanced to third on Denard Span’s ground out before Scott Hairston’s sacrifice fly brought in the winning run.
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