1-2 What a mess

Sometimes you win ugly. Sometimes you lose ugly. Guess which is uglier? The Nats lost ugly tonight, a 10-5 thumping by the Mets. Four Nats batters were hit by pitches, actually two, but Guillen and Johnson were each hit twice. It was the Nats who were penalized, however, when Rodriguez hit Lo Duca in the 8th. I think you could say it was the lone bright spot when Nick Johnson tied the game at 5 with a 3-run blast off Pedro, right after Guillen was plunked for the second time, but the Nats bullpen was tagged for 4 runs after Ramon Ortiz was roughed up for 6, and Joey Eischen couldn't hold the Mets in a bullpen letdown that one hopes is as rare this year as last.

Ryan Zimmerman struck out 4 times. Ramon Ortiz's starting performance makes this club look like a team in search of a number 3 starter. And maybe a number 4 and a number 5. Where is Hector Carrasco when you need him?

At least Alfonso Soriano ran the bases today. That's a low blow. Soriano is a joy to watch. He went 2 for 5 tonight, and at the plate he's the best looking player on the club: fluid, at ease, and tough. There are other good hitters, but Soriano is special.

It was an ugly game, but yesterday's comeback allows me to feel like the squad made the most of a bad opening. These clubs will face each other 19 times before the year is out, and we'll take the one rally and try to get them in Washington.