WASHINGTON -- By the time Danny Espinosa hit his two-run homer in the eighth inning, there were only a couple of hundred fans left in the ballpark, almost all of them congregated behind the two dugouts. A couple of times there was an ad hoc chant-off between the ones in red down the first base line and those in blue on the other side. "You can hear every word at that point," Espinosa said. "Its like a back-field spring training game." Anthony Rendon hit a two-run homer in the first inning Monday night, and -- thanks to an odd-moving storm that produced an interminable rain delay -- Espinosa and the Washington Nationals didnt finish off the Los Angeles Dodgers until some six hours later on Tuesday morning, holding on for a 4-0 victory and gaining sole possession of first place in the NL East. Jordan Zimmerman pitched four shutout innings before the game was halted, and five relievers threw an inning apiece after play resumed. In between, there was an interruption of 3 hours, 17 minutes while a narrow, cigar-shaped storm took its time soaking D.C. and not much else. "You certainly wait around that long, you want to win the game," Nationals manager Matt Williams said. Aaron Barrett (2-0) got the win mainly because he happened to be Washingtons first reliever when play resumed. Zack Greinke (5-1) got a hard-luck first loss of the season, and plate umpire John Tumpane became the MVP for calling strikes and getting the game done in a reasonable hurry once the tarp was removed. There were four strikeouts before the delay, 16 after it. "We dont get off to a good start, they get a couple quick runs, and then obviously a three-hour delay in there and lose Zack," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "Really, we had chances, we just didnt do anything." The rain limited Greinke to three innings, ending a streak that had been unmatched for a century. He had 18 consecutive regular-season starts of at least five innings while allowing two runs or fewer -- the longest such run in the majors since 1914. "Its not really like its an important streak; no one really cares about it anyway," Greinke said. "If it was like a consecutive win streak or something more important than that, it would mean a little more." Dodgers slugger Yasiel Puig sat out the marathon, still sore after crashing into an outfield wall in the ninth inning of Sundays 5-4 road loss to the Miami Marlins. Manager Don Mattingly said Puig remained day to day and declined to say directly whether a concussion has been ruled out. Nationals left fielder Nate McLouth had his own crash-into-wall injury in the eighth inning, when he made a sliding backhand catch of a foul ball. Both hands and both knees hit the wall hard, and his right hand was bleeding as he walked off the field. Williams said McLouth wasnt seriously hurt. The cut didnt require stitches, although a banged-up knee will almost certainly be sore for a while. Zimmermann held the fort until the middle of the fourth, when the dozens of bags of sands poured on the infield by the grounds crew were no longer a match for the weather. The fans who stayed behind were treated to a scoreboard broadcast of their city-sports-brethren Washington Wizards winning an NBA playoff game. Also shown during the delay was the Atlanta Braves loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, which helped the Nationals vault into first in the division. The fans who remained when play resumed had unusually good odds when it came to chasing a foul ball, or catching a T-shirt tossed into the stands as part of a standard promotion. "Fans are going crazy," Zimmermann said. "Its a game, you have to play no matter how many fans are out there. The place wasnt exactly rocking, but it was a game we had to play." NOTES: Greinke had been unbeaten in his previous 13 starts (9-0) vs. NL East teams. ... The Nationals plan to promote RHP Blake Treinen from Triple-A Syracuse to start Tuesdays game. RHP Ryan Mattheus will be optioned to Syracuse. ... Clayton Kershaw (strained back) is scheduled to come off the disabled list Tuesday and start for the Dodgers. ... Kershaw is expected to take the roster spot held for a day by RHP Pedro Baez, who was recalled Monday from Double-A Chattanooga and made his major league debut in the eighth inning. RHP Stephen Fife, who started Sundays game, was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque. ... Mattingly said LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu, who missed Sundays start with a sore shoulder, did not need an MRI and would resume throwing Tuesday. ... Washington reinstated OF Scott Hairston (strained side muscle) from the 15-day DL and optioned OF Steven Souza Jr. to Triple-A Syracuse. ... Washington C Wilson Ramos (hand) caught nine innings for Double-A Harrisburg on Monday and could rejoin the team later this week. Dorian ODaniel Jersey . -- DeMarcus Cousins had 25 points and 16 rebounds to help the Sacramento Kings snap a seven-game losing streak by defeating the Chicago Bulls 99-70 on Monday night. Breeland Speaks Jersey . I wondered how NHL coaches would feel about a playoff schedule that allowed them to open a best-of-seven series on the road, which many claim to favour, yet still gave them the precious home-ice edge for a seventh game. http://www.prochiefsauthentic.com/Youth-Chad-Henne-Elite-Jersey/. Rockhold." Known as an aggressive striker, Belfort (23-10) instead paced himself as the engaged in the early going and showed restraint by not overcommitting against the larger Rockhold (10-2). But when the opportunity presented itself, Belfort delivered an incredible spinning heel kick that landed flush on Rockholds chin and sent him toppling to the floor. Derrick Nnadi Chiefs Jersey . Locke overcame a shaky start to pitch seven innings and Josh Harrison had three hits to extend his hot streak as the Pirates beat the Miami Marlins 7-3 on Wednesday night. Chiefs Jerseys .Fiji striker Roy Krishna scored in the 14th minute to give Wellington its fourth win, along with a draw, from its past five matches, putting the Phoenix fourth but only a point behind third-placed Adelaide.Daniel Ricciardo has compared this seasons RB12 to the race-winning Red Bull of 2014 after making his best start to a Formula 1 campaign. Ricciardo has finished fourth in each of the first three races of the year and led early in last weekends Chinese GP, only for a puncture to force him into the pits. He had also beaten the Ferraris to the front row in qualifying.Team-mate Daniil Kvyat managed to earn a place on the podium and, in a season that was expected to be dominated by Mercedes and Ferrari, four-time constructors champions Red Bull have surprised many with their early-2016 pace. Every race live in 2016 Sky Sports F1 brings you every race live in 2016. Fast and easy online upgrade - click here. Team chief Christian Horner was not expecting Red Bull to challenge at the front until the latter half of the campaign, with upgrades to Renaults engine expected at Junes Canadian GP. But after a disappointing 2015, Ricciardo is optimistic he can roll back the years to his debut season with the team when he secured three race victories. Canopy test could be in Russia Christian Horner says Red Bull could test canopy concept Its really promising, for sure, Ricciardo, who is third in the Drivers Championship with 36 points, told Sky Sports F1. Three races in, every weekend weve shown a strength at some point. Its been a strength we didnt think we would have at this point of the year. It definitely feels more like 2014, where we have potential. Sky F1 pundit Martin Brundle has been similarly impressed by Red Bull, noting during commentary: If Mercedes are looking in one mirror at Ferrari behind them, in the other mirror they need to start thinking about Red Bull, too.Ricciardo surprisingly qualified on the front row in China and enjoyed a quick start, passing Nico Rosberg through turn one to take an early lead. However, a puncture soon followed due to the debris from the two Ferraris collision, while the Australian also lost time when a safety car was deployed shortly after his pitstop. Speaking on the F1 Report following the Chinese GP, Williams development driver Alex Lynn and former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley discuss Vettel v Kvyat But he rose up through the field from 18th, maximising his late pace on the soft tyre to overtake Lewis Hamilton.ddddddddddddThe 26-year-old added: The puncture and then the Safety Car, it was a double whammy which felt like getting punched in the stomach by a heavyweight. Daniel Ricciardo has been challenged to a race - not by Felipe Massa, but by his son Felipinho. Ricciardo has accepted, saying he felt bullied... But the second part of the race was probably one of the best races in my life. Also See: Canopy test could be in Russia Alonso: Why Im still No 1 Blackhawks Jerseys StoreCheap Wild JerseysCheap Red Wings JerseysCheap Maple Leafs JerseysPenguins Jerseys StoreCapitals Jerseys For SaleBlues Jerseys StoreCheap Kings JerseysAdidas Lightning JerseysStars Jerseys For SaleCheap Predators JerseysDucks StoreSharks Jerseys For SaleCheap Sabres JerseysRangers Jerseys For Sale ' ' '
