Wilson Ramos’ double gives the Nationals a series sweep of Braves

Wilson Ramos hit an RBI double with two outs in the eighth inning to score Ryan Zimmerman and secure a 5-4 victory for the Washington Nationals against the Atlanta Braves. It was Ramos’ 12th RBI of the season.

THE RUNDOWN: Everything went according to plan for the Nationals in the first inning, with Jordan Zimmermann retiring the Braves in order and the offense following with three runs. Atlanta answered quickly, however, scoring two runs in the second, tying the game in the third and pulling ahead in the seventh, when Bryce Harper lost a fly ball in the sun and Alberto Callaspo followed with an RBI single. Sammy Solis pitched a scoreless eighth, continuing a string of impressive outings in the majors, before the Nationals reclaimed the lead. Zimmerman singled to bring home the tying run in the eighth, and Ramos doubled to score Zimmerman. Drew Storen pitched a spotless ninth to pick up his ninth save of the year.

THE HIGHLIGHT: Yunel Escobar exited the game to begin the fourth inning for an undisclosed reason, prompting the Nationals to shift Danny Espinosa to third base and put Dan Uggla in at second. It only took a few innings for Uggla to leave his mark in the field. With runners on first and second and no outs in the seventh, the veteran second baseman dove headfirst to his right to catch a line drive off the bat of Jace Peterson. Then, as soon as he hit the ground, Uggla flipped the ball to second base to complete an impressive — and important — double play. Matt Grace induced an inning-ending groundout in the following at-bat.

STAR OF THE GAME: Ramos has quietly put together a superb season, and he came through in a huge situation Sunday afternoon. With Zimmerman on first base and the score tied in the eighth inning, Ramos doubled to the right-field corner. Ramos took a hard turn around second base and was caught on the basepaths, but not before Zimmerman had touched the plate for the go-ahead run. It was Ramos’ second hit of the game, prolonging his hitting streak to 13 games.

THE TAKEAWAY: The Nationals picked up their first sweep of the season this weekend against the Braves. It was their first home sweep of Atlanta since August 2008. It’s no secret at this point, but Washington is on a roll. The Nationals have now won four series in a row dating back to their series in Atlanta last month, and they’ve won 10 of their past 12 games.