Blue Jays edged in extras by Nationals

Blue Jays As 11 o'clock approached and the Blue Jays and Nationals trudged through the 11th inning of their marathon game, a group of fans seated in the upper reaches of Nationals Park took up a chant. "Let's go home!" Five minutes later Nationals left fielder Adam Dunn sent them there with a bases-loaded single that gave his squad a 2-1 win over the Jays . The loss snapped the Jays' winning streak at three. Heading into last night, Jays manager Cito Gaston had hoped reliever-turned-starter Brian Tallet could work deep into the game and spare the bullpen a few innings. Thursday in Philadelphia, Gaston used every available reliever to overcome the Phillies, even right-hander Jeremy Accardo, who had flown overnight from Nevada after being promoted from the minors. Gaston, though, entered last night's game confident most of his relievers could perform if needed. Southpaw B.J. Ryan had worked three straight games and didn't figure to pitch last night, and neither did right-hander Brandon League, who pitched each of the final two games in Philadelphia. Beyond those two, Gaston said his bullpen was well-rested. Still, season-long shuffling of pitchers, along with Scott Richmond's return to the rotation, has left the Jays without a reliable long reliever, a role Tallet used to play. "I still miss him in the bullpen but you can't have both," he said. "But we should be okay (in the bullpen). Hopefully Tallet will go out there and give us a good seven innings." He lasted five innings and 76 pitches before outfielder Joe Inglett pinch hit for him in the sixth. Through three innings neither pitcher had allowed a run, and each had given up just three hits. Nationals starter Ryan Zimmerman blazed his way through the opening innings, overpowering the Jays with a fastball that reached 96 m.p.h. He opened the second inning by striking out Adam Lind, who swung at but couldn't connect with another mid-90s fastball. Lyle Overbay's patience paid off with a walk, but the other two Blue Jay batters that inning could only manage weak pop-ups behind first base. The only Blue Jay batter to consistently solve Zimmerman was Vernon Wells, who singled in his first two at-bats. Wells now has eight hits in his last four games. Tallet, meanwhile, attacked the Nationals with finesse, rarely topping 90 m.p.h. but inducing outs anyway. But the Nationals rattled him briefly in the fourth. Tallet, who hates walks nearly as much as Gaston does, issued one to catcher Josh Bard. Centre fielder Willie Harris entered the game batting just .217, but belted a double in the next at-bat, compelling the Jays to intentionally walk second baseman Anderson Hernandez to load the bases. Zimmerman stepped to the plate next and tapped what looked like a double-play ball to second baseman Aaron Hill, who flipped the ball to Scutaro to nail the lead runner. But as Scutaro made the relay throw Zimmerman sprinted down the line and beat the ball to first base, driving in the game's first run and earning the first RBI of his career. Two innings later, though, the Jays got to him. After Scott Rolen singled to lead off the sixth, another Overbay walk put two runners on for catcher Rod Barajas. He lofted a single over Hernandez' outstretched hand, driving in Rolen and tying the game. mcampbell @ thestar.ca