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Nationals continue to roll with win over Cardinals

May 26, 2007 - 5:30 AM ST. LOUIS (Ticker) -- The Washington Nationals continue to play their best baseball of the season.

Brian Schneider hit a two-run homer and Nook Logan drove in a pair of runs as the Nationals defeated the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-4, in Friday's opener of a three-game series.

Cristian Guzman also drove in a run for the Nationals, who have won four in a row and 11 of 15 after winning just nine of their first 34 games.

"It was an all-around good baseball game," Schneider said. "The fans got their money's worth tonight. It wasn't just on our side. They made some great plays too. It was just an exciting game tonight. We said that we need to play team baseball and tonight was a fun game."

Schneider cracked a 1-1 pitch from St. Louis starter Anthony Reyes over the wall in right for his third home run of the year and a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Logan kept the inning going with a double and moved to third on a single by pitcher Micah Bowie. Felipe Lopez walked before Guzman hit a sacrifice fly for the third run of the frame. Reyes struck out Ryan Zimmerman to end the inning.

Bowie (1-2) picked up his first victory of the season, allowing two runs, four hits and a walk while striking out two in five innings. It was just the second start of the season for the lefthander after 20 appearances out of the Nationals' bullpen this year.

Five relievers bridged the way to Chad Cordero, who pitched the ninth for his seventh save of the season.

Reyes (0-8) continued to struggle, allowing five runs, eight hits and five walks while striking out four in 5 2/3 innings. The Cardinals have lost all nine games started by the righthander, whose last win came in Game One of the World Series in October.

"I can't be walking guys," Reyes said. "That's one of the things that has hurt me. They get on base and then they get those hits. It's stuff that I have to fix. On the home run pitch I was trying to throw a sinker and it just didn't do anything and just stayed in the middle."

Albert Pujols and Jim Edmonds each hit a solo homer for St.Louis in the fourth to cut the lead to 3-2. It was the eighth longball of the season for Pujols, who had 23 home runs through May 25 last season.

A two-out, two-run, ground-rule double by Logan in the sixth inning padded the Nationals' lead.

The Cardinals threatened in the sixth with runners on first and second and one out, but Austin Kearns turned in the defensive play of the game to end the threat. The right fielder made a spectacular diving catch to rob Edmonds of a hit and then threw to first base to double off Scott Rolen and end the inning.

"That's the way it goes," Pujols said. "That's why this game is so interesting. Every day you come you learn something new. How many times is Austin Kearns going to make that play?"

Bowie said the Nationals' defense was key in the win.

"It's an incredible feeling," Bowie said. "The guys played hard and did a great job defensively. I'm glad that we could pick up a win out of it. It fires you up. It pumps you up on the mound. When guys are going out there making plays like that and doing things like that. I don't know if you can go any harder than you already go but you definitely want to make pitches because your teammates are going hard."

The Nationals escaped trouble again in the eighth.

Rolen's RBI single off Jon Rauch with no outs cut the lead to 5-4 and put runners on first and second. However, Jesus Colome entered and prevented further damage by striking out Edmonds and getting Yadier Molina to ground into a double play.

"What (Colome) just did tonight, amazing man," Schneider said. "Exactly what we need him to do. To strike out Edmonds was huge. That set the tone and allowed for the double play to happen. That might be player of the game, honestly."

Molina was held hitless, bringing his 15-game hitting streak to an end. It was the team's longest hitting streak since Pujols' 17-game run in 2005.