DS Talk » Lacazette struck first from close range in the 33rd minute at

WASHINGTON -- Max Scherzer wasnt about to leave his start Monday afternoon any earlier than necessary.Scherzer pitched seven strong innings to earn his 16th victory of the season, and the well-traveled Washington Nationals beat the Atlanta Braves 6-4 in the opener of a three-game series.Hes full of determination, Nationals manager Dusty Baker said. We were going to take him out after the sixth because they had some dangerous hitters coming up and they were starting to hit the ball pretty well and Scherzer said, `Hey, man, I want to go back out there, and he had a great short inning.Scherzer (16-7) scattered seven hits and yielded two runs to win his fourth consecutive start. He needed only eight pitches to navigate his final inning.I just said two words: `Im good, Scherzer said. You just know where youre at physically. You know how the balls coming out of your hand. I just knew even at 98 pitches I was still strong. I knew I had 115 in the tank, so I knew I was good to go out there for the seventh.Washington maintained an 8 1/2-game lead in the NL East over the New York Mets, who won 5-0 at Cincinnati.Trea Turner and Chris Heisey both homered during a five-run third inning for the Nationals, who won for the 12th time in 14 meetings against Atlanta this season.That one inning got away from us real quick, Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said. It kind of happened before you knew it happened a little bit.Ryan Weber (1-1) lost in his first start of the season for Atlanta. Weber allowed five runs in three innings as the Braves had a six-game winning streak snapped.Washington created problems for Weber the second time he went through the order. Turner smacked a two-run homer to left with an out in the third to give the Nationals the lead. Weber put the next two men on and, after a pop out, Heisey blasted his ninth home run to left to make it 5-1.I left one just middle-in, right in (Turners) wheelhouse and after that my ability to limit the damage was not that good, Weber said. I made another bad pitch to Heisey and then it was really out of hand.Turner, who finished a triple shy of the cycle, added an RBI single in the fourth.Atlanta scored twice in the ninth off closer Mark Melancon to pull within 6-4, but the right-hander ended the threat by getting catcher Anthony Recker to fly out with a man on first.RESTING REGULARSThe Nationals fielded a lineup that did not include OFs Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth, 2B Daniel Murphy, C Wilson Ramos and 1B Ryan Zimmerman. Washington arrived home early Monday morning after a Sunday night loss at the New York Mets.Some of my guys are walking around like zombies, and thats the reason why, Baker said. Im not overlooking the Braves at all. Im just trying to preserve and take care of my guys. Who I feel sorry for are the fans who came out today to see their favorite players play. I cant help it. You have to blame the schedule-makers and the TV-makers for that.INCIARTE STREAK TO 16Atlanta CF Ender Inciarte extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a pair of singles in five at-bats. He is 30 for 70 (.429) since Aug. 19 and owns the longest active hitting streak in the majors.TRAINERS ROOMBraves: Snitker said he hopes RHP Matt Wisler (sore side) can return to the rotation next week. Atlanta skipped his turn Monday. Id like to get him back out there, obviously, Snitker said. I want him to finish the season.Nationals: RHP Joe Ross allowed one run and three hits in three innings during a rehab start for Triple-A Syracuse. Ross, on the DL since July 3 with right shoulder inflammation, struck out two and walked none. ... IF Stephen Drew (vertigo-like symptoms) went 1 for 2 during a rehab appearance at Class A Potomac.UP NEXTBraves: RHP Williams Perez (2-2, 4.62), who has not appeared in the majors since June 6 because of a rotator cuff strain, returns to the rotation and will face Washington for the first time this season. Snitker said Perez is unlikely to throw more than 100 pitches Tuesday.Nationals: LHP Gio Gonzalez (10-9, 4.14) looks for his first win against the Braves this season. He has a 2.31 ERA in two starts against Atlanta. Stitched Custom Shirts . Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. Cheap Custom Jerseys Free Shipping . The 31-year-old Spain midfielder hasnt played since Madrid lost in the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid in May due to back and foot injuries. http://www.customcheapshirts.com/ . Anthony Davis had 31 points and 17 rebounds in his seventh straight game with more than 20 points, but that was only enough to keep the Pelicans competitive into the final minutes. Andrew Bogut had 10 points and 15 rebounds for Golden State, which rebounded from a loss a night earlier in Oklahoma City and snapped a two-game skid. Custom Shirts Discount . JOHNS, N. Custom Soccer Shirts Black Friday . -- Canadian Andrew Wiggins got the ball on the wing, made a nifty spin move and then let go with a soft floater from about 10 feet that swished through the net in Allen Fieldhouse. This story is part of ESPN The Magazines Oct. 12 Owners Issue. Subscribe today!Anaheim DucksOverall: 23 Title track: 28 Ownership: 30 Coaching: 87 Players: 74 Fan relations: 29 Affordability: 31 Stadium experience: 49 Bang for the buck: 10 Change from?last year: -19Heres the recipe for falling from a top-five franchise in these standings to scraping the top 25: Lose a fourth-straight Game 7, fire your head coach and trade away your top goalie. Anaheim is still among the best franchises in sports, but the Ducks laid an egg in the past Stanley Cup playoffs and look like a team in transition.Whats goodAnaheim churns out wins -- during the regular season, anyway -- and its average ticket price is the fourth-lowest in the NHL, which means fans get some good value when they go to games (that No. 10 bang for the buck ranking is third best in hockey). The Pacific Division champions led the league in goals against average and won more games (51) than all but the New York Rangers. Even with their roster changes, the Ducks are mighty. ESPN predicts theyll finish fifth in a tight Pacific Division race this season, which would mean fewer wins and no playoff berth. On the bright side, though, it would make for a much more intriguing final stretch to the regular season.Whats badThe Ducks fired Bruce Boudreau two days after yet another Game 7 playoff loss, and they brought back Randy Carlyle, the teams all-time winningest coach. Carlyle led Anaheim to its first and only Stanley Cup title in 2007, but he was fired in 2011 following a 7-13-4 start to the season.dddddddddddd Now -- after being fired by Toronto -- hes a Duck again. Nostalgia aside, the legacy hire isnt necessarily an improvement. Carlyle went 91-78 in four seasons with the Maple Leafs, and fans arent convinced (coaching rank dropped 34 spots this year, all the way to 87th). Four players from Carlyles last Ducks roster remain in Anaheim, which speaks to the teams age: This group is experienced, sure, but talent can only fight time for so long.Whats newAnaheim is still one of the better NHL values, at about $45 per ticket, but the Ducks fell 23 spots in the affordability rankings (still at 31 -- seventh in the NHL) thanks to a league whose prices are reasonable almost across the board. The franchises stadium experience also fell 23 spots, but that has to do with other teams doing more than the Ducks doing less. Anaheims biggest project to improve amenities since its 2012 grand terrace? Adding a state-of-the-art scoreboard for the 2015-16 season. Fancy, but not exactly groundbreaking. That said, the front office has put nearly $100 million into renovations since 2005, an effort that keeps the Ducks in the top 50.Next: St. Louis Blues?| Full rankings ' ' '