Werth’s HR, Ross’ start lead Nats past Cards

ST. LOUIS — For the second straight game, the Nationals parlayed a four-run inning into a road victory over the Cardinals, this time claiming a 6-1 win on Saturday at Busch Stadium behind another strong performance from starter Joe Ross and an early three-run home run by Jayson Werth. For the Cardinals, the loss wrapped up a month in which they went 1-7 against teams with winning records.

The Nationals did most of their damage off lefty Jaime Garcia during a 23-pitch first inning. An infield single off Garcia’s glove and a two-out walk to Ryan Zimmerman brought up Daniel Murphy, who delivered his second RBI single of the series. Werth followed with his three-run shot, his fourth long ball of the season.

Garcia rebounded and allowed only one other hit over the rest of his 6 1/3-inning performance, but it didn’t matter. The Cardinals couldn’t push across a run until the fifth, and even then, Ross limited them to one. The Nats right-hander, whose last start was cut short due to a right middle finger blister, scattered six hits and two walks.

MOMENTS THAT MATTEREDPicking up where he left off: This was Ross’ first start since April 20 after the blister forced the Nationals to skip his last turn through the rotation. But Ross picked up where he left off from his previous outings, spinning six strong innings of one-run ball. He has been one of the Nationals best pitchers to start the year, and owns a 0.79 ERA through his first four starts.

Missed opportunities: …

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