ATLANTA (AP) -- Rookie Reynaldo Lopez struck out 11, Jayson Werth reached safely in his 46th straight game and the Washington Nationals pulled away from the Atlanta Braves 8-2 on Thursday night.
Werth hit an RBI double in the fifth inning to tie Rusty Staub on the Nationals-Expos franchise list for the longest streak of reaching base. Werth went 2 for 4 and has 43 hits and 32 walks during his string, the best in the majors this season.
After rain delayed the start for 1 hour, 16 minutes, Lopez (2-1) struck out eight of the first nine batters.