Nationals 11, Dodgers 4

Yhency Brazoban, who left after facing three batters and failing to retire any of them, will have an MRI tomorrow to determine the cause of pain in the back of his right shoulder. The good news is, it isn’t his elbow. The bad news is, it still doesn’t look good. And neither does the rest of the Dodgers’ bullpen, which got hammered tonight. The interesting thing was that the only relievers who didn’t get into the game were Takashi Saito, who would never be used in a game like this anyway, and Chad Billingsley. Could that mean Billingsley is the guy for the fifth spot? Quite possibly, because now, the Dodgers might need to add a 12th pitcher just to bolster the pen after tonight’s game. That wouldn’t be Hong-Chih Kuo, because he is starting at Las Vegas. Dodgers fall to 31-22. Arizona was off, so the D-back pull even. San Diego scored two in the ninth to tie the Pirates. If the Pods win, it will be a three-way tie for first.