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After an encouraging homestand, the Washington Nationals once again looked like the worst team in the National League.
The Nationals will look to avoid their longest road losing streak in more than 30 years Tuesday when they continue a four-game series with the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park.
Washington (16-29) blew a six-run lead Monday, falling 8-7 in the series opener. The Nationals, who have not won away from home since April 30 at San Diego, have dropped nine in a row on the road for the first time since May 2-17, 2002.
They have not lost 10 consecutive road games since an 11-game slide Aug. 2-27, 1976, when the franchise was still based in Montreal.
Washington came into this series on the heels of a 7-3 homestand that included a three-game sweep of Florida and three wins in four games over Atlanta. Monday's game was especially frustrating as the Nationals led 6-0 after two innings -- an impressive outburst for a team that had not scored more than seven runs in any game this season.
Austin Kearns, who was acquired along with shortstop Felipe Lopez from the Reds in an eight-player deal on July 13, homered in the second inning in the first meeting between the teams since the trade. The Reds filed a grievance this month claiming that Washington general manager Jim Bowden -- who was fired in Cincinnati in 2003 -- failed to fully inform them about Gary Majewski's sore pitching shoulder before the trade.
Javier Valentin hit a pinch-hit homer in the eighth and Scott Hatteberg went 3-for-4 with a homer and four RBIs for Cincinnati (18-27), which won for just the fifth time in 19 games. The win boosted the Reds into a virtual tie with St. Louis for last place in the NL Central.
"The way we started the game, we thought it was going to be ugly," said Valentin, who won it with the fifth pinch-hit homer of his career.
Ken Griffey Jr. added his 572nd career homer, moving him one behind Harmon Killebrew for eighth place on the all-time list. Second baseman Brandon Phillips went 0-for-4, though, ending his hitting streak at 22 games. It was the longest streak in the NL this season.
Kirk Saarloos (0-3, 5.09 ERA) will start Tuesday for Cincinnati after making 20 relief appearances. Saarloos lost out to Matt Belisle for the No. 5 spot in the rotation in spring training, but was promoted to fill in for the injured Eric Milton, and said he hopes to remain in the rotation.
"Definitely -- I'll take the ball and kind of run with it and go where it goes," he told the Reds' official Web site. "If you do good, you'll get more opportunities."
Saarloos, in his first season with the Reds, owns a 2.19 ERA in 13 outings at home -- as opposed to an 11.89 mark on the road.
He has made 69 career starts for Houston and Oakland, going 24-23 with a 5.04 ERA in those outings, and went 6-6 with a 4.88 ERA in 16 starts last season for the A's. Saarloos started in his only previous appearance against the Nationals franchise, allowing one run in 5 1-3 innings of a 5-4 win for the Astros in Montreal.
Washington will counter with Matt Chico (3-4, 5.44), who gave up three runs in six innings of Thursday's 4-3 win over Atlanta. The rookie left-hander, who is making his first start against the Reds, has allowed seven runs in 17 1-3 total innings in his last three starts, lowering his ERA from 6.59 over that span.
"He is not going to back down. That's what we like about him. We like his mental makeup," Acta told the Nationals' official Web site.
Chico, though, is 0-4 in as many road starts with a 6.30 ERA.
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