WASHINGTON -- As he made his way to the ballpark Friday afternoon, Nationals manager Dusty Baker acknowledged he felt a little extra excitement heading into the start of this three-game series against the Dodgers. This was a potential postseason preview between the teams with the top two records in the National League, with Washington trying to pull within striking distance for the NL's top seed.
But Los Angeles blanked the Nationals on Friday night, 7-0, led by one of left-hander Alex Wood's best performances of late. Justin Turner, Yasiel Puig and Corey Seager all hit homers off right-hander Edwin Jackson to take the air out of the 37,508 fans and increase the Dodgers' lead to six games over the Nationals for the best record in the NL.