MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2010
KLMNO
BASEBALL
BREWERS 11, NATIONALS 7
Milwaukee
Weeks 2b Counsell ss Braun lf
Fielder 1b
McGehee 3b Edmonds rf Zaun c
Gomez cf D.Davis p C.Vargas p M.Parra p
Villanueva p
Totals
Washington
Taveras cf
C.Guzman ss-rf Zimmerman 3b A.Dunn 1b
Willingham lf I.Rodriguez c Maxwell rf Walker p
W.Harris ph Desmond ph English p Bruney p
A.Kennedy 2b Marquis p Batista p
AB R H BI BB SO AVG
4 2 2 0 1 1 .311 4 2 2 4 1 0 .176 5 1 1 1 0 2 .367 3 1 0 0 1 0 .244 4 2 3 1 1 0 .400 3 1 1 2 1 1 .273 5 1 1 1 0 0 .143 5 1 1 1 0 2 .242 2 0 0 1 0 1 .000 1 0 0 0 0 1 .000 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- 1 0 0 0 0 1 .000
37 11 11 11 5 9 — AB R H BI BB SO AVG
5 1 2 0 0 1 .200 5 1 2 1 0 1 .310 5 0 2 2 0 1 .310 5 0 1 0 0 1 .162 5 1 1 0 0 0 .359 5 2 3 1 0 1 .444 2 0 0 0 1 1 .143 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- 0 0 0 0 0 0 .150 1 0 1 2 0 0 .273 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- 4 1 3 1 0 0 .281 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 1 0 0 0 0 1 .000
Alb.Gonzalez ph-ss 3 1 1 0 0 0 .313
Totals
Milwaukee (10)00 000 010 — 11 11 0 Washington
LOB: Milwaukee 8, Washington 8. 2B: Weeks (3), McGehee (5), Edmonds (4), I.Rodriguez 2 (7), Des- mond (2), A.Kennedy (3). HR: Counsell (1), off Ba- tista. RBI: Counsell 4 (4), Braun (12), McGehee (10), Edmonds 2 (2), Zaun (2), Gomez (3), D.Davis (1), C.Guzman (5), Zimmerman 2 (8), I.Rodriguez (7), Desmond 2 (7), A.Kennedy (7). SF: D.Davis.
Milwaukee
D.Davis
C.Vargas (W, 1-0) M.Parra
Villanueva
Washington
IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
4C 11 5 5 1 5 107 11.2 2 2 2 2 0 1 25 10.3
B 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.00 2 1 0 0 0 1 27 0.00
IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
Marquis (L, 0-3) 0 4 7 7 1 0 28 20.5 Batista Walker English Bruney
Marquis pitched to 7 batters in the 1st. Inherited runners-scored: C.Vargas 3-0, M.Parra 2-2, Batista 3-3. HBP: by Batista (Weeks), by Marquis (Fielder, Edmonds). WP: English. T: 3:29. A: 18,789 (41,546).
HOW THEY SCORED
Brewers first: Weeks infield single. Counsell sin-
gled, Weeks to third. Braun singled, Weeks scored, Counsell to second. Fielder was hit by a pitch, Counsell to third, Braun to second. McGehee walked, Counsell scored, Braun to third, Fielder to second. Edmonds was hit by a pitch, Braun scored, Fielder to third, McGehee to second. Zaun singled, Fielder scored, McGehee to third, Edmonds to sec- ond. Batista pitching. Gomez infield single, McGe- hee scored, Edmonds to third, Zaun to second. D.Davis hit a sacrifice fly, Edmonds scored. Weeks walked, Zaun to third, Gomez to second. Counsell
homered to right, Zaun scored, Gomez scored,
Weeks scored. Braun struck out. Fielder walked. McGehee grounded out.
Brewers, 10-0.
Nationals second: Willingham flied out. I.Rodri- guez doubled. Maxwell lined out. A.Kennedy dou- bled, I.Rodriguez scored. Batista struck out.
Brewers, 10-1.
Nationals fifth: A.Kennedy singled. Alb.Gonzalez pinch-hitting for Batista. Alb.Gonzalez singled, A.Kennedy to second. Taveras infield single, A.Kennedy to third, Alb.Gonzalez to second. Guz- man singled, A.Kennedy scored, Alb.Gonzalez to third, Taveras to second. Zimmerman singled,
Alb.Gonzalez scored, Taveras scored, Guzman to
second. Dunn grounded out, Guzman to third, Zimmerman to second. Willingham popped out. I.Rodriguez singled, Guzman scored, Zimmerman to third. Maxwell walked, I.Rodriguez to second. C.Vargas pitching. A.Kennedy flied out.
Brewers, 10-5.
Nationals seventh: Zimmerman struck out. Dunn lined out. Willingham singled. I.Rodriguez dou- bled, Willingham to third. W.Harris pinch-hitting for Walker. M.Parra pitching. Desmond pinch-hitting for W.Harris. Desmond doubled, Willingham
scored, I.Rodriguez scored. A.Kennedy singled,
Desmond to third. Desmond was out advancing.
Brewers, 10-7.
Brewers eighth: English pitching. Braun flied
out. Fielder popped out. McGehee doubled. On English’s wild pitch, McGehee to third. Edmonds doubled, McGehee scored. Zaun popped out.
Final Score: Brewers, 11-7.
NATIONALS ON DECK
VS. COLORADO
Monday, 7:05 (MASN) Tuesday, 7:05 (MASN) Wednesday, 7:05 (MASN) Thursday, 4:35 (MASN)
VS. L.A. DODGERS
Friday, 7:05 (MASN2) Saturday, 1:05 (MASN) Sunday, 1:35 (WDCW-50, MASN2)
AT CHI. CUBS
April 26, 8:05 (MASN) April 27, 8:05 (MASN2) April 28, 2:20 (MASN)
RADIO: WFED (820 AM, 1500 AM)
5 3 3 3 4 4 78 7.15 2 2 0 0 0 3 31 3.86 1 2 1 1 0 0 25 4.50 1 0 0 0 0 2 20 8.44
41 7 16 7 1 7 — 0 10 040 200 — 7 16 0
Marquis retires no one, giving Nats little chance
Sixteen hits are wasted after Brewers score 10 in the first inning
by Adam Kilgore
Brought here to provide the
Washington Nationals’ pitching rotation legitimacy, Jason Mar- quis tumbled into absurdity Sun- day afternoon. Fourteen minutes after he had walked out of the first base dugout, Marquis slowly trudged back into it, head down and embarrassed. Four of the bat- ters he faced singled, one of them walked and two were hit by a pitch. That was it. The day after Liván Hernández recorded 27 outs, Marquis accounted for zero. A three-game Nationals win- ning streak built on quality start- ing pitching unraveled as Mar- quis, the veteran signed this past offseason to solidify the top of their rotation, submitted one of the worst starts in the dense an- nals of wretched Nationals pitch- ing and raised questions about his next start. In an 11-7 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, Marquis be- came the first ever Nationals starter who failed to retire a sin- gle batter. The Brewers used Marquis’s meltdown to score 10 runs in the first inning, making the 16 hits from the Nationals offense mostly moot. Marquis became the 15th starting pitcher in baseball his- tory, and the first since Philadel- phia’s J.D. Durbin in 2007, to al- low seven or more runs without recording an out. After Marquis walked off the mound, having thrown 13 strikes in 28 pitches, the first thing Man- ager Jim Riggleman did was ask if is he was healthy. Marquis imme- diately and indirectly gave an an- swer. “Let me go throw some more down in the cage,” Marquis said. “I’ve got to figure this out.” Riggleman knew Marquis was
healthy. Now, the Nationals need to figure out how to fix their big- gest offseason pitching acquisi- tion. “It’s an embarrassment, what
I’m doing out there right now,” Marquis said. “I’ve got to find that answer quick. It’s just not hap- pening right now.” Two weeks into his Nationals tenure, Marquis has been perhaps the worst starter in the major leagues. His ERA is 20.52, which is not formally the highest in base- ball because Marquis, despite making three starts, has only
pitched 81
⁄3
innings, not enough
to qualify for the title. (Javier Váz- quez of the New York Yankees, with a 9.82 ERA, is the official worst.) Marquis also became the first pitcher to reach three losses. The Nationals will not drop
Marquis from their rotation — “We made a commitment to him
S
D5
Nationals Journal
6washingtonpost.com/ nationalsjournal
Rodríguez shows
he still can hit
When the Nationals
acquired Iván Rodríguez this offseason, the generally accepted line of thinking was that he would be a nice complement to Jesús Flores. He could mentor Flores while sharing time and give the Nationals a future Hall of Famer to serve as a clubhouse presence. He would play great defense, and any offense would be found money. Two weeks into the season. Rodríguez has slugged that conventional wisdom aside. Rodríguez, 38 and in his 20th season, leads the National League in hitting with a .444 average.He went 3 for 5with two doubles in the Nationals’ 11-7 loss to the Brewers on Sunday, raising his on-base average to .487 and giving him a .639 slugging percentage. “Just seeing the ball, stay
CLIFF OWEN/ASSOCIATED PRESS
“It’s an embarrassment, what I’m doing out there right now,” Jason Marquis said after surrendering seven runs and falling to 0-3.
this offseason,” Riggleman said. But, in an effort to change his for- tune by changing his routine, the Nationals may move Marquis’s next start back. “Sometimes you get out there and you want to do so well,” pitch- ing coach Steve McCatty said. “You’re coming over here, want- ing to be that competitive guy. He’s really pressing.” The Nationals this offseason fo-
cused on finding a reliable vet- eran to place atop their starting rotation. Their search stopped on Marquis, who signed for $15 mil- lion over two years. “As consistent a performer as there is in major league baseball,” General Manag- er Mike Rizzo called him at the time. Marquis’s disastrous outing
Sunday pushed him further adrift from his prior track record. Mar- quis entered the season with a ca- reer 4.48 ERA. In order for Mar- quis to reduce his 2010 ERA to 4.48, he would have to throw 30 consecutive scoreless innings. “I just don’t feel like there’s any- thing behind the ball,” Marquis said. “I don’t feel any power, any feel of a release point to get the ball where I want it right now. I’ve got to find a way to get it done.” Marquis relies on keeping his
sinker low in the strike zone, throwing pitches that will induce groundballs. Since spring train- ing, he has been unable to find a comfortable delivery that will al- low him proper location. Sunday, his sinker sailed high and inside.
“I’ve tried to use other pitches with him, and it doesn’t work,” catcher Iván Rodríguez said. “It’s tough. Right now, he’s going through a tough time. He needs to get ahead in the count, throw strikes, don’t think too much. I think he’s a little bit over-thinking right now. But he’s going to be okay. We need to keep him posi- tive.”
On Sunday, the Nationals
trailed by double-digit runs be- fore they had a chance to bat. Mi- guel Batista, Marquis’s replace- ment, surrendered a grand slam to Craig Counsell, and with one out, the Brewers had scored 10 runs. Batista escaped without sur- rendering an 11th, but in a 28- minute half inning the Brewers scored 10 runs in the first for the first time in their history. Batista threw five innings and
didn’t allow another run, which allowed for a glimmer of a Nation- als comeback. The bullpen shut out the Brewers for the last eight innings. The Nationals scored four runs in the fifth and two more in the seventh to cut the def- icit to three, but couldn’t come any closer. Marquis had walked off the mound hours earlier, most of the 18,789 in attendance hurling boos. Marquis had never left a game so early, but this time didn’t seem much different than other times he has left his team without a chance to win. “It’s not a good feeling,” he said.
kilgorea@washpost.com
PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL
Gasol, Bynum power Lakers to opening win
Associated Press
los angeles — Pau Gasol
scored 19 points, Andrew By- num added 13 and the Los An- geles Lakers used their twin 7- footers to dominate inside against the Oklahoma City Thunder, winning, 87-79, Sun- day in the opener of their play- off series. Kobe Bryant added 21 points
on 6-of-19 shooting after miss- ing four of the final five regular season games to rest his swol- len right knee and broken right index finger. Kevin Durant led the Thun- der with 24 points — less than the 30.1 points per game aver- age of the NBA’s youngest-ever scoring champion. Former UCLA star Russell Westbrook added 23. Bynum returned from a 13- game absence because of a strained right Achilles’ tendon, teaming with Gasol to pull down a combined 25 rebounds and deny the Thunder key sec- ond-chance baskets. Game 2 in the best-of-7 series
is Tuesday at Staples Center. History is on the Lakers’ side against the NBA’s youngest team, with an average age of 25 years and 42 days. When Coach Phil Jackson wins Game 1 of any series, his teams are 45-0. That includes a 24-0 mark with Chi- cago and 23-0 with the Lakers. The Lakers came out blazing against the overwhelmed Thun- der, pounding the ball inside to
Bynum and Gasol while shoot- ing 54 percent and taking a 27- 13 lead in the first quarter. In the playoffs for the first time since moving from Seattle two years ago, the Thunder shot 26 percent, leading to their few- est points in an opening period all season.
Oklahoma City settled down the rest of the way, but never got closer than six points against the defending champi- ons, who are seeking a third consecutive trip to the NBA Fi- nals.
With Bryant, Gasol, Derek Fisher and Ron Artest on the bench to start the fourth, Jor- dan Farmar scored the Lakers’ first five points despite a strained left hamstring to stretch a six-point lead to 11. Bryant and Lamar Odom hit
consecutive three-pointers, ex- tending the lead the Lakers held the entire game to 77-66. A pair of free throws by Du-
rant got the Thunder to 79-73
with 31
⁄2
minutes remaining.
They never got any closer. Fish- er hit a three-pointer that pushed the Lakers’ lead to 84-74 before Bryant picked up his fifth foul. Westbrook carried the Thun- der early in the third, and Du- rant scored their final five points to leave them trailing 64- 56 going into the final 12 min- utes. Fisher, Artest and Odom were in foul trouble and Bryant scored a single point on a free throw as they played to a draw in the third.
SCHEDULE AND BOX SCORES
Late Saturday
NBA Playoff Schedule
FIRST ROUND (Best-of-seven) (x-if necessary)
Eastern Conference
Cleveland leads Chicago, 1-0
Saturday: at Cleveland 96, Chicago 83 Monday: Chicago at Cleveland, 8 Thursday: Cleveland at Chicago, 7 Sunday, April 25: Cleveland at Chicago, 3:30 x-Tuesday, April 27: Chicago at Cleveland, TBD x-Thursday, April 29: Cleveland at Chicago, TBD x-Saturday, May 1: Chicago at Cleveland, TBD
Orlando leads Charlotte, 1-0
Sunday:at Orlando 98, Charlotte 89 Wednesday: Charlotte at Orlando, 7 Saturday, April 24: Orlando at Charlotte, 2 Monday, April 26: Orlando at Charlotte, TBD x-Wednesday, April 28: Charlotte at Orlando, TBD x-Friday, April 30: Orlando at Charlotte, TBD x-Sunday, May 2: Charlotte at Orlando, TBD
Atlanta leads Milwaukee, 1-0
Saturday: at Atlanta 102, Milwaukee 92 Tuesday: Milwaukee at Atlanta, 7 Saturday, April 24: Atlanta at Milwaukee, 7 Monday, April 26: Atlanta at Milwaukee, TBD x-Wednesday, April 28: Milwaukee at Atlanta, TBD x-Friday, April 30: Atlanta at Milwaukee, TBD x-Sunday, May 2: Milwaukee at Atlanta, TBD
Boston leads Miami, 1-0
Saturday: at Boston 85, Miami 76 Tuesday: Miami at Boston, 8 Friday, April 23: Boston at Miami, 7 Sunday, April 25: Boston at Miami, 1 x-Tuesday, April 27: Miami at Boston, TBD x-Thursday, April 29: Boston at Miami, TBD x-Saturday, May 1: Miami at Boston, TBD
Western Conference
L.A. Lakers lead Oklahoma City, 1-0
Sunday: at L.A. Lakers 79, Oklahoma City 87 Tuesday: Okla. City at L.A. Lakers, 10:30 Thursday: L.A. Lakers at Okla. City, 9:30 Saturday, April 24: L.A. Lakers at Okla. City, 9:30 x-Tuesday, April 27: Okla. City at L.A. Lakers, TBD x-Friday, April 30: L.A. Lakers at Okla. City, TBD x-Sunday, May 2: Okla. City at L.A. Lakers, TBD
Dallas leads San Antonio, 1-0
Sunday: at Dallas 100, San Antonio 94 Wednesday: San Antonio at Dallas, 9:30 Friday, April 23: Dallas at San Antonio, 9:30 Sunday, April 25: Dallas at San Antonio, 7 x-Tuesday, April 27: San Antonio at Dallas, TBD x-Thursday, April 29: Dallas at San Antonio, TBD x-Saturday, May 1: San Antonio at Dallas, TBD
Phoenix vs. Portland
Sunday: Portland at Phoenix , Late Tuesday: Portland at Phoenix, 10 Thursday: Phoenix at Portland, 10 Saturday, April 24: Phoenix at Portland, 4:30 x-Monday, April 26: Portland at Phoenix, TBD x-Thursday, April 29: Phoenix at Portland, TBD x-Saturday, May 1: Portland at Phoenix, TBD
Denver leads Utah, 1-0
Saturday: at Denver 126, Utah 113 Monday: Utah at Denver, 10:30 Friday, April 23: Denver at Utah, 10:30 Sunday, April 25: Denver at Utah, 9:30 x-Wednesday, April 28: Utah at Denver, TBD x-Friday, April 30: Denver at Utah, TBD x-Sunday, May 2: Utah at Denver, TBD
PLAYOFF LEADERS
Entering Sunday’s Games
SCORING AVERAGE
Player,Team .................... G FG FT Pts. Avg.
Anthony, DEN .................. 1 18 4 42 42.0 Jennings, MIL ................... 1 14 2 34 34.0 Rose, CHI .......................... 1 13 2 28 28.0 Williams, UTA .................. 1 8 9 26 26.0 Wade, MIA ........................ 1 11 4 26 26.0 James, CLE ....................... 1 9 6 24 24.0 Johnson, ATL .................... 1 10 2 22 22.0 Smith, DEN ....................... 1 6 4 20 20.0 Boozer, UTA ..................... 1 9 1 19 19.0 Bibby, ATL ........................ 1 8 0 19 19.0 Hilario, DEN ...................... 1 7 5 19 19.0 M. Williams, CLE ............. 1 8 0 19 19.0 Crawford, ATL ................. 1 4 6 17 17.0 Miles, UTA ........................ 1 4 7 17 17.0 Pierce, BOS ...................... 1 4 7 16 16.0 Salmons, MIL ................... 1 6 4 16 16.0
LAKERS 87, THUNDER 79
SCORING
Oklahoma City L.A. Lakers
Oklahoma City Min
13 26 17 23 — 79 27 20 17 23 — 87
FG FT O-T A PF Pts.
Green 41:52 4-12 1-2 0-3 0 3 10 Durant 42:23 7-24 9-11 2-6 2 2 24 Krstic 20:50 3-5 2-2 1-7 1 1 8 Westbrook 37:48 10-16 3-4 2-4 8 3 23 Sefolosha 21:24 0-4 2-2 0-3 0 2 2 Collison 27:04 2-3 1-1 3-8 0 4 5 Harden 16:20 0-3 0-0 0-0 0 4 0 Maynor 10:12 1-3 0-0 0-0 2 0 2 Ibaka 22:08 2-2 1-2 1-5 1 2 5
Totals 240:01 29-72 19-24 9-36 14 21 79
Percentages: FG .403, FT .792. 3-Point Goals: 2-16, .125 (Green 1-3, Durant 1-8, Sefolosha 0-2, Harden 0-3).
Team Rebounds: 12. Team Turnovers: 15 (8 PTS).
Blocked Shots: 3 (Green, Ibaka, Sefolosha). Turn- overs: 12 (Durant 4, Collison 2, Green, Harden, Iba- ka, Maynor, Sefolosha, Westbrook). Steals: 6 (Col- lison 2, Westbrook 2, Durant, Krstic). Technical
Fouls: None.
L.A. Lakers Min FG FT O-T A PF Pts.
Artest 39:50 3-11 0-0 1-3 2 5 7 Gasol 39:00 7-14 5-5 3-13 3 1 19 Bynum 30:29 6-10 1-3 3-12 1 2 13 Fisher 35:20 4-12 0-0 0-2 1 3 11 Bryant 41:00 6-19 7-12 1-2 3 5 21 Odom 25:31 2-4 2-2 2-6 1 6 7 Farmar 9:56 2-3 0-0 0-1 0 2 5 Brown 12:57 2-4 0-0 2-2 2 2 4 Powell 1:01 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 Walton 4:57 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 1 0
Totals 240:01 32-78 15-22 12-41 14 27 87
Percentages: FG .410, FT .682. 3-Point Goals: 8-22, .364 (Fisher 3-6, Bryant 2-5, Farmar 1-1, Odom 1-2, Ar- test 1-8). Team Rebounds: 12. Team Turnovers: 14 (11 PTS). Blocked Shots: 9 (Bynum 4, Gasol 3, Bryant 2). Turnovers: 12 (Odom 3, Bryant 2, Fisher 2, Gasol 2, Artest, Farmar, Walton). Steals: 6 (Bryant 2, Artest, Brown, Farmar, Fisher). Technical Fouls: Defensive three second, 8:13 third.
A: 18,997 (18,997). T: 2:37.
MAGIC 98, BOBCATS 89
Jameer Nelson scored 24 of his 32 points in the first half, and Orlando nearly blew a 22-point lead before beating Charlotte in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series. Rashard Lewis added 19 points, and Dwight Howard had nine blocks but was limited offensively and in foul trouble for most of the second half. Howard had five points and seven
rebounds, and was 1 for 6 on free throws.
Gerald Wallace had 25 points, and Stephen Jackson played through a hyperextended left knee to finish with 18 points in the Bobcats’ first playoff game in franchise history.
SCORING
Charlotte Orlando
20 23 23 23 — 89 31 28 17 22 — 98
Charlotte Min FG FT O-T A PF Pts.
Wallace 42:32 8-13 9-13 1-17 2 2 25 Diaw 43:14 3-6 0-0 1-4 2 4 6 Ratliff 18:01 2-3 1-2 0-0 1 4 5 Felton 35:06 7-14 3-4 1-3 4 0 19 Jackson 33:46 6-18 6-7 3-9 3 2 18 Mohammed 8:01 1-4 0-0 1-1 1 3 2 Chandler 14:28 1-4 0-0 2-3 2 2 2 Thomas 8:01 2-2 0-0 1-1 0 0 4 Augustin 16:38 1-3 0-0 0-0 2 1 2 Hughes 20:14 2-4 1-2 0-3 2 4 6
Totals 240:01 33-71 20-28 10-41 19 22 89
Percentages: FG .465, FT .714. 3-Point Goals: 3-12, .250 (Felton 2-4, Hughes 1-2, Augustin 0-1, Diaw 0-2,
Jackson 0-3). Team Rebounds: 10. Team Turnovers: 16
(17 PTS). Blocked Shots: 5 (Diaw 2, Chandler, Jack- son, Wallace). Turnovers: 14 (Jackson 5, Diaw 2, Fel- ton 2, Hughes 2, Augustin, Chandler, Ratliff). Steals: 3 (Chandler 2, Ratliff). Technical Fouls: Jack- son, 0:44.2 first.
Orlando Min FG FT O-T A PF Pts.
Barnes 21:05 0-2 2-2 1-3 0 1 2 Lewis 38:33 8-11 0-0 0-5 0 1 19 Howard 27:49 2-4 1-6 4-7 1 5 5 Nelson 37:15 10-18 8-8 0-4 6 3 32 Carter 29:59 4-19 4-5 0-3 1 6 12 Anderson 9:27 0-2 0-0 1-3 1 2 0 Williams 10:45 1-4 0-0 0-1 0 0 2 Gortat 20:11 1-2 0-0 2-5 1 1 2 Redick 19:03 3-5 2-2 0-2 1 2 10 Pietrus 25:53 4-7 2-4 0-1 2 3 14
Totals 240 33-74 19-27 8-34 13 24 98
Percentages: FG .446, FT .704. 3-Point Goals: 13-30, .433 (Pietrus 4-7, Nelson 4-8, Lewis 3-5, Redick 2-3, Williams 0-2, Carter 0-5). Team Rebounds: 10. Team Turnovers: 9 (11 PTS). Blocked Shots: 10 (Howard 9, Pietrus). Turnovers: 7 (Howard 2, Nelson 2, Barnes, Lewis, Redick). Steals: 6 (Barnes 2, Anderson, Howard, Lewis, Nelson). Technical Fouls: Carter, 4:02 third.
A: 17,461 (17,461). T: 2:36.
NUGGETS 126, JAZZ 113
Carmelo Anthony scored a playoff
career-high 42 points, and J.R. Smith’s fourth-quarter flurry of three- pointers helped Denver beat Utah in Game 1 of their playoff series. Anthony, whose previous playoff
high was 41 points against Dallas last year, benefited from the absence of Jazz F Andrei Kirilenko, who re-injured his strained left calf in practice Thurs- day and won’t play in the series. Car- los Boozer (rib) returned to Utah’s lineup and scored 19 points, but the Jazz lost C Mehmet Okur, who aggra- vated his Achilles’ tendon injury.
SCORING
Utah Denver
28 28 30 27 — 113 30273138 — 126
Utah Min FG FT O-T A PF Pts.
Miles 24:01 4-10 7-7 0-0 2 5 17 Boozer 41:24 9-16 1-2 1-8 5 3 19 Okur 11:00 2-2 2-2 1-2 0 0 7 Williams 40:03 8-15 9-13 0-2 11 3 26 Matthews 37:53 2-5 2-2 0-4 2 3 6 Millsap 35:40 7-13 1-2 2-10 2 3 15 Korver 27:56 5-8 1-1 0-4 1 3 13 Price 10:07 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 4 3 Koufos 2:40 0-0 0-0 0-1 0 0 0 Fesenko 5:16 0-0 1-2 0-0 1 1 1 Gaines 2:00 2-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 4 Jeffers 2:00 1-2 0-1 0-0 0 0 2
Totals 240 41-75 24-32 4-31 26 25 113
Percentages: FG .547, FT .750. 3-Point Goals: 7-17, .412 (Korver 2-3, Miles 2-7, Okur 1-1, Price 1-1, Wil- liams 1-4, Matthews 0-1). Team Rebounds: 5. Team Turnovers: 10 (15 PTS). Blocked Shots: 6 (Boozer 3, Millsap 3). Turnovers: 10 (Korver 3, Millsap 2, Wil- liams 2, Matthews, Miles, Okur). Steals: 4 (Boozer, Matthews, Miles, Williams). Technical Fouls: None.
Denver Min FG FT O-T A PF Pts.
Anthony 38:20 18-25 4-4 1-4 5 3 42 Martin 34:40 3-7 1-2 3-12 2 4 7 Nene 36:18 7-10 5-9 3-6 3 3 19 Billups 29:49 6-12 2-2 0-1 8 4 15 Afflalo 25:35 5-7 0-0 0-3 2 1 12 Smith 26:54 6-14 4-4 2-6 2 4 20 Andersen 21:32 0-0 0-0 0-6 1 1 0 Lawson 21:37 3-8 3-4 1-3 6 3 11 Petro 1:45 0-0 0-0 0-1 0 1 0 Graham 1:45 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 Allen 1:45 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Totals 240 48-84 19-25 10-42 29 25 126
Percentages: FG .571, FT .760. 3-Point Goals: 11-26, .423 (Smith 4-10, Afflalo 2-3, Lawson 2-3, Anthony 2-5, Billups 1-4, Graham 0-1). Team Rebounds: 6. Team Turnovers: 8 (12 PTS). Blocked Shots: 3 (An- dersen 2, Martin). Turnovers: 8 (Billups 3, Martin 2, Smith 2, Nene). Steals: 6 (Billups 2, Nene, Lawson, Martin, Smith). Technical Fouls: Anthony, 2:16 sec- ond
A: 19,155 (19,155). T: 2:30.
back, try to use my hands, basically,” Rodríguez said. “I’m relaxed. I feel very well right now. I just want to stay right there. I just wait for a good pitch to hit and swing.” In a small sample size, Rodríguez has been nothing less than one of the league’s best offensive players. Rarely have his hits been cheap; Rodríguez has smacked line drives to all fields. Manager Jim Riggleman said he is pleased, not surprised, by Rodríguez’s fast start. But given Rodríguez’s recent history, his production materialized from thin air. From 2007 to 2009,
Rodríguez hit .269 with a .297
on-base percentage and a .401 slugging percentage. “I still have some quick
hands,” Rodríguez said. “Those things are working very good right now. I feel great.”
Finding time to rest
The Nationals are four games into a 15-game stretch with no break, meaning Riggleman will start looking to give certain players days off. Sunday, Nyjer Morgan sat against Brewers left-hander Doug Davis. “I’m not going to play him 162 games,” Riggleman said. “I’ve got to find him a day every now and then.” Riggleman said he wouldn’t want to sit Morgan against a right-hander, so the opposing starter had something to do with the timing. But Riggleman is happy with how Morgan has fared against lefties this year and that the day off is more to give him a rest in the middle of the 15-day, 15-game stretch than to have him miss a lefty. Left fielder Josh Willingham,
off to a scorching start, also may receive a day off soon. If he doesn’t sit once during the Nationals’ 15-game stretch, he’ll have played the first 22 games of the year without a rest.
Willingham’s 1.297 OPS
ranked second in the National League behind Chase Utley heading into Sunday’s games. Riggleman wants to keep Willingham fresh enough for him to continue hitting well while not disrupting his rhythm.
— Adam Kilgore
Orioles snap nine-game skid with victory against Athletics
Baltimore Sun
oakland, calif. — The
nine-game losing streak had ex- hausted Dave Trembley’s pa- tience, resulted in some sleep- less nights and called in ques- tion the security of his job, but it clearly hadn’t robbed the Ori- oles manager of his sense of hu- mor. After the Orioles finally got back in the win column Sunday with an 8-3 victory over the Oakland Athletics, backed by another solid start from rookie Brian Matusz, and four RBI from third baseman Ty Wiggin- ton, Trembley proclaimed, “We’re starting the pennant drive.”
Of course, Sunday’s streak- busting victory, their first against the A’s at the Oakland- Alameda County Coliseum in 10
games, only makes the Orioles 2-11, still the worst record in the American League by two games.
But for one day, that hardly
mattered to the Orioles, who for the first time since beating the Tampa Bay Rays on April 8, lis- tened to music in the visiting clubhouse after the game. Cen- ter fielder Adam Jones and re- liever Will Ohman jokingly shared a hug, and the rest of the Orioles ate the postgame spread with smiles on their faces. It had certainly been a while. “Hopefully, we can have a streak now in the other direc- tion,” said Wigginton before boarding a team charter to Se- attle, where the Orioles will start a three-game series Mon- day. “It’s definitely a lot more fun coming in this clubhouse after a win.”
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