Offseason acquisitions Doug Fister and Jerry Blevins made their Nats spring debuts as the DC nine bested the Miami Marlins, 10-3 on Sunday afternoon.
Fister gave up a run on two hits and a walk and struck out two over the first two innings. Blevins pitched a scoreless 9th, giving up a walk. The win went to Craig Stammen who was the pitcher of record when the Nats rallied for two in the bottom of the 5th to take a 5-3 lead, highlighted by Jeff Kobernus’s RBI triple which scored RF Nate McLouth.
Kobernus (1-for-3, R) was joined by Zach Walters in the triple space of the scorebook, as Walters remains perfect for the spring with a 2-for-2 mark that improved him to 5-for-5 in three games. Walters spelled Desmond at SS and made a couple of standout plays in the field.
Steve Souza (1-for-2, R) and Matt Skole (1-for-2, 2RBI) also went for extra as the two AFL teammates both connected for doubles, with Skole making his first appearance at third base in relief of Anthony Rendon.
A rundown of how the other notable minor-leaguers did:
• Michael Taylor connected for a sacrifice fly and played error-free in LF as the sub for Scott Hairston.
• Eury Perez started in CF and went 0-for-1 with a walk.
• Brian Goodwin took over for Perez but was 0-for-2 with a K.
• LHP Sammy Solis threw two scoreless innings, scattering three hits with no walks and no strikeouts.
The Nats hit the road for Tampa to visit the Yankees tomorrow afternoon. LHP Ross Detwiler is scheduled to start. The game will be televised on MLB Network.