Espinosa homer pushed Nats past Cards
WASHINGTON -- Danny Espinosa, batting .199 at game time, hit a solo homer to right with one out in the last of the seventh to break a tie and the Washington Nationals beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 on Thursday.
Bryce Harper, hitless in his previous 10 at-bats on the homestand, had tied the game at 1-1 with a long solo homer to right in the sixth. It was the 12th homer of the year for Harper but his first since May 13. One inning later Espinosa went deep for his fourth homer and first since May 11.
Both homers came off Reds starter Mike Leake (3-4), who gave up just the two runs in seven innings of work with one walk and five strikeouts.
The winner was Joe Ross (4-4), who yielded one run and six hits with four strikeouts in seven innings before Felipe Rivero threw a scoreless eighth. Jonathan Papelbon, pitching for the first time since Friday, tossed the ninth for his 13th save.
Anthony Rendon had two hits for the Nationals, and he has reached base 18 of his last 20 games.
The first-place Nationals (29-19) improved to 14-9 at home while St. Louis (24-24) slipped back to .500 for the first time since May 8.
Ross continues to struggle the second and third time through the opponent's order.
He got nine outs from the first 10 batters he faced before Aledmys Diaz led off the fourth with a solo homer to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. It was the seventh homer of the year for the rookie shortstop, who never hit more than 13 in one minor league season.
Leake entered the game with an ERA of 4.07 and had won his last three starts.
His manager from 2010-13 in Cincinnati was Dusty Baker, now in his first year as the Washington skipper. Leake allowed just three singles in the first five scoreless innings.
Ross tied a season high when he allowed eight hits in his last start, on Saturday at Miami. He had lost his previous four starts.
NOTES: Cardinals 1B Matt Adams left the game in the fifth inning with mid-back stiffness. He will be evaluated Friday. ... Virginia McLaurin was recognized before Friday's game on Black Heritage Night. She is 107 and gained internet fame when she danced with President Obama. Washington manager Dusty Baker presented her a Nationals jersey with the No. 107 on the back, and she did a little dance near the Washington dugout. She was born on March 12, 1909 in South Carolina, a few months before the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Detroit Tigers in the World Series.