ATLANTA (AP) – Ryan Zimmerman has faced R.A. Dickey enough to know what to expect from his knuckleball.
“I don’t want to say it’s comfortable because when he’s got a good one going it’s not easy,” he said. “Having faced him a few times before, you at least know what to expect.”
Zimmerman hit a two-run homer, Stephen Strasburg struck out 10 and the Washington Nationals completed a three-game sweep with a 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Thursday night.
A night after they had 14 runs on 20 hits, the Nationals couldn’t solve Dickey until Zimmerman homered in the sixth to erase a 2-1 deficit.
Strasburg (2-0) allowed two runs, six hits and two walks in seven innings, winning his first start at SunTrust Park after going 4-3 with a 4.37 ERA in 10 outings at Turner Field. With the win, Strasburg earned his 71st career victory, the most in Nationals history.