Saturday, July 22, 2017 08:10 PM (ET)

Harper, Roark help Nationals defeat Diamondbacks

The Sports Xchange
Jul 22, 2017

PHOENIX -- Bryce Harper homered and doubled and Tanner Roark held Arizona to two runs in seven innings as the Washington Nationals edged the Diamondbacks 4-3 on Saturday night.

Roark (8-6) gave up three hits while striking out 11 and walking one.

The Diamondbacks threatened to pull the game out in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Jake Lamb led off by drawing a walk from closer Sean Doolittle. Third baseman Anthony Rendon, trying for a force play at second, made a throwing error on Chris Iannetta's ground ball, putting runners at first and third with nobody out.

Pinch-hitter Paul Goldschmidt's sacrifice fly to right drove in Lamb to make it 4-3. Doolittle got Chris Owings on a deep fly to right field for the second out and struck out Ketel Marte to end the game.

The major league debut for Arizona's Anthony Banda began well as he gave up only Harper's solo homer in the first during his first five innings. But when manager Torey Lovullo elected to have Banda try to pitch through Washington's potent batting order for a third time, the Nationals pounced.

With one out in the sixth, the Nationals broke a 1-1 tie when Chris Heisey tripled and Harper doubled him home. Ryan Zimmerman followed with a double to center to score Harper for a 3-1 lead.

With two outs, Rendon barely beat Lamb's one-hop throw to first from behind third base to score Zimmerman and make it 4-1.

Banda gave up four runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out five and did not walk a batter.

The Diamondbacks cut the lead to 4-2 in the sixth when A.J. Pollock tripled and scored on an infield groundout by Lamb.

Harper hit his 25th homer, a solo shot deep into the right-field pavilion in the first inning. The homer extended Harper's hitting streak to 15 games, the longest active run in the majors.

The Diamondbacks tied the score in the bottom of the first when Iannetta doubled to the left-field corner to drive in A.J. Pollock (2-for-4), who singled.

Defensively, David Peralta made a perfect throw from the right-field corner to third base to get the Washington's Brian Goodwin trying to stretch a double into a triple in the third inning.

Goodwin went 3-for-5 for the Nationals. Harper was 2-for-5 and Zimmerman 2-for-4.

NOTES: Diamondbacks 1B Paul Goldschmidt was not in the starting lineup on orders from manager Torey Lovullo. "I feel like it was the right thing, well timed for him," Lovullo said. "He went to the All-Star game. He didn't have the four days that everybody else had off."... Nationals OF Ryan Raburn will go on bereavement leave Sunday because of the death of his grandfather. He pinch hit in the ninth inning of Saturday night's game, grounding out. ... This series features nine National League All-Stars: Nationals OF Bryce Harper, 2B Daniel Murphy, RHP Max Scherzer, RPH Stephen Strasburg and 1B Ryan Zimmerman; and D-Backs' 1B Paul Goldschmidt, RHP Zack Greinke, 3B Jake Lamb and LHP Robbie Ray.
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