Home plate umpire Alan Porter and the crew calling Game 2 of the Dodgers-Nationals doubleheader last night blew a call in the fourth inning that ultimately helped the Dodgers pull out a 7-6 win in the ninth inning on the road.

The play occurred when a Dodgers runner was called out at third base to end the top of the fourth inning. Los Angeles' Matt Kemp was trotting toward home from third when the out took place.

Porter and the crew got together to discuss whether Kemp had crossed the plate before the runner was tagged out and ultimately decided that the run should count.

Replays show, however, that Kemp was nowhere near the plate at the time the tag took place, nor did Kemp appear to be in any great hurry to even get to home plate, looking back at the play at third base as he jogged down the base line.

The run gave L.A. a 6-0 lead at the time, making the play seem harmless. But the Nationals stormed back with a 6-run eighth inning - which would have given Washington a 6-5 lead if the play in the fourth had been called correctly.

Ironically, Kemp hit a home run in the top of the ninth that ultimately gave the Dodgers a 7-6 win as -101 underdogs. The win prevented the Nationals from clinching the NL East division and keeps the Dodgers within two games of the wild card spot in the National League.

A look at Porter's numbers in Covers' umpire statistics show that Porter is actually the second-most prolific road team umpire in the major leagues among regular umps. The road team is 21-11 when he calls the balls and strikes and only Tom Halion has a more lopsided record with the road team at 21-10 in his games.