Ross rattled by Tigers, but Zimmerman blasts bode well for Nats

12:18 AM ET

WASHINGTON — The Nationals and Joe Ross got a heaping helping of reality from the Tigers, but Ryan Zimmerman helped it go down a little easier.

Tuesday night’s 5-4 loss to Detroit marked the first time this season that Ross looked mortal. The 22-year-old right-hander came in sporting a 3-1 record and a tidy 1.23 ERA. In five previous outings — including his most recent effort against the juggernaut that is the Chicago Cubs — he had yet to allow more than two earned runs. Against a struggling Tigers team, though, it was a different story.

Facing a Bengals bunch that had dropped seven straight while averaging just 2.9 runs per game in the process, Ross allowed a career-high eight hits in six innings, including a two-run homer to Nick Castellanos. The round-tripper was the first one he’d allowed since August 22 of last season, a span of 48-plus innings. By the time Ross was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the sixth, he’d given up five earned runs, tying a career high.

Granted, it’s been a brief career so far for Ross, who debuted last June, was shut down early after hitting the rookie wall and has only 19 starts to his credit. Still, he’s been good enough often enough that the rocky outing against Detroit was a bit of a shock — especially given that it came against a scuffling offense whose best hitter (Miguel Cabrera) wasn’t even in the starting lineup.

“Fastball command just wasn’t there, which …

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