SAN FRANCISCO — Pitching the way he did Monday night made it that much easier for Erick Fedde to forget how poorly it went his last time out.
Fedde tossed six strong innings to win for the first time in eight starts and Anthony Rendon’s early run-scoring single held up as the Washington Nationals beat the San Francisco Giants 4-0.
Rendon’s single in the third put the Nationals ahead, with Adam Eaton starting the two-out effort with a single and scoring from first with aggressive baserunning. Rendon showed off his own snazzy footwork with a steal of home in the ninth.
Fedde (2-2) allowed six hits, struck out two and didn’t walk a batter facing the Giants for the first time in his career. He got his first victory since May 26 against Miami, moving past his awful start against Atlanta last week in which he was tagged for nine earned runs on nine hits - two homers - in 3 2/3 innings.
“Today makes it a lot easier,” Fedde said. “Baseball’s a game where it’s going to happen. You’ve just got to brush it off as fast as you can. That’s what I tried to do.”
San Francisco returned from a 4-5 road trip and couldn’t capitalize on the few scoring chances it had to support Jeff Samardzija (8-9).
“We had some hard luck. We hit a lot of at them balls tonight,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “Their guy did a nice job on us.”
The right-hander, who lost at Washington on April 17, gave up a run on three hits in four innings, struck out three and walked three to match his shortest outing of the year following a 4-1 July. He threw 98 pitches.
Center fielder Kevin Pillar made a running and diving catch in left-center to rob Kurt Suzuki of an extra-base hit in the second, and Samardzija escaped unscathed after starting the inning with back-to-back walks.
In the fifth, Pillar lost track of a high fly by Matt Adams that landed for an RBI double. Washington also scored on a balk by Trevor Gott that inning.
New Giants second baseman Scooter Gennett went 1 for 3 in his home debut as San Francisco lost for the seventh time in 11 games.
The Nationals have won five of their last seven games at San Francisco and are 7-4 since the start of the 2016 season, outscoring the Giants 48-25.
HELP ON THE WAY?
While the Nationals hadn’t formally acquired versatile infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, manager Dave Martinez didn’t want to offer specifics on how Cabrera might fit into the club’s injury-depleted lineup.
“Until he’s here, my concerns are the 25 guys I’ve got for today,” Martinez said. “As he arrives and when he arrives then we can talk about that.”
BOWMAN REMEMBERED
Ernie Bowman, who played parts of three major league seasons for the Giants and was diagnosed in summer 2011 with Stage IV prostate cancer and given two months to live, died Sunday at age 84.
Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry got the Baseball Assistance Team to help cover the costs of Bowman’s treatment for prostate cancer, which he fought with a wonderful spirit.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Nationals: Ace RHP Max Scherzer, nursing a strained muscle below his pitching shoulder in the upper back, made 40 throws, and the Nationals will determine the next step based on how he responds Tuesday. “Same thing, just strengthening,” Martinez said. “We’ll see how he feels tomorrow and go from there.”
Giants: RHP Johnny Cueto, working back from Tommy John surgery, threw 21 pitches while throwing two scoreless innings Sunday beginning his rehab assignment for the rookie-level Arizona League Giants. “He feels great,” Bochy said. “Really excited about where he’s at and how he feels.” … LF Alex Dickerson (right oblique strain) has begun to resume baseball activities such as playing catch but “we’re taking it easy,” Bochy said, noting Dickerson should be OK to return when eligible Aug. 11 after his 10-day stint on the injured list. “We think it will be cleared up by then,” Bochy said.
MOMENT OF SILENCE
A moment of silence was held for three people who died in the nearby Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting as well as victims from mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, over the weekend.
ROSTER MOVE
The Giants claimed RHP Ryan Dull off waivers from the Athletics and sent him to Triple-A Sacramento. San Francisco traded three key relievers last week so Dull provides depth.
UP NEXT
RHP Anibal Sanchez (6-6, 3.80 ERA) has a 2.05 ERA over seven previous starts vs. San Francisco.
Taxi squad LHP Conner Menez (0-0, 3.60) will start Tuesday night for the Giants in his second career appearance after he started and struck out six over five innings against the Mets on July 21.
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