Kearns Saves the Day! Amazingly, the Nationals just keep winning. The streak is now 11 wins in the last 15 games. Dmitri Young is putting up "softball numbers," batting at an almost .600 clip over the last week. Brian Schneider has homered twice on this road trip, and has been a .300 hitter in May. Felipe Lopez is piling up the hits on the road trip, after a prolonged slump earlier. The patchwork pitching staff is doing amazing work. And Nook Logan is hitting, including two doubles in Friday night's game.

The big news out of Friday's game is, however, the catch made by Austin Kearns. Perhaps a speedier rightfielder would've made the play in less spectacular fashion, but that doesn't take away from the spectacular qualities of this play, Kearns saved two runs, when he tracked down a line drive just shy of the right-field wall. Kearns, running towards the corner, dove towards the concrete and brick wall. He stretched his right glove as far as possible, and gloved the ball no more than a few inches off the ground. He slid to a stop just inches from the concrete barrier, pushed himeslf upright and threw to Dmitri Young to double the runner off first.

In a game that the Nationals ended up winning by one run, Kearns' play was the biggest -- a game-saver. It will be remembered as one of the finest defensive plays in team history, along with Ryan Zimmerman's highlight film, diving, over-the-head catch in short left field, last year.

Meanwhile, the team has already guaranteed that this will be a winning road trip. If they win one of the two games scheduled for this weekend, they will have won three straight series. Let's Go Nats!