WASHINGTON -- Washingtons Ian Desmond took a substantial lead off third base in the seventh inning of a tie game, wondering whether St. Louis pitcher Michael Wacha might leave a changeup in the dirt. "I was just kind of anticipating," Desmond explained later. Sure enough, Wacha threw a wild pitch that bounced away from catcher Yadier Molina, who compounded the problem with a throwing error as Desmond charged home, leading to a second unearned run on the play. That was enough to propel Gio Gonzalez and the Nationals to a 3-1 victory Friday night, ending their eight-game losing streak against the Cardinals. "I saw it bounce off a little bit. I said, Weve got to take a chance here," Desmond said. "And fortunately for us, it worked out." Said Nationals manager Matt Williams: "You never see a ball get away from Yadi. Ever." Thats because Molina has won six consecutive NL Gold Glove awards. But his miscue fit, somehow, with this series so far. A night after the Nationals made three errors -- they initially were charged with four, but one was changed to a hit Friday -- in an 8-0 loss, it was the Cardinals turn to be sloppy. St. Louis finished with three errors, two coming in the pivotal seventh inning. A pair of singles and an error by third baseman Matt Carpenter -- who dropped Wachas throw of Danny Espinosas bunt -- loaded the bases with no outs. "I stretched before I saw where it was going and ended up missing it. It was a good throw. I should have caught it," Carpenter said. "But it tipped off my glove and ended up being the difference in the game." Wacha struck out Nate McLouth and got Jose Lobaton to hit a roller that led to a forceout at home. But with pinch hitter Zach Walters up, Wachas pitch darted to his catchers right. "Just spiked a changeup," Wacha said. Molina tried to make an underhand toss to Wacha, but the throw -- which did not appear in time to beat Desmond, anyway -- was off-target. It went into the Cardinals dugout, allowing Espinosa to score, too. "Im just trying to make a play," Molina said. "I threw it away. My fault." Desmond shouted and punched the air, a 1-1 game suddenly 3-1. "Desi made the decision instantly to get toward the plate," Williams said. "He read it correctly." Wacha (2-1) gave up five hits and one earned run. On Sept. 24, in his ninth career start, Wacha no-hit the Nationals until there were two outs in the ninth inning, when Ryan Zimmermans infield single ended the bid. This time, Washington had three hits by the third, when Anthony Rendons solo shot came off a first-pitch 74 mph curveball. Gonzalez (3-1) allowed one run and four hits in seven innings, retiring the last 11 batters he faced. He had seven strikeouts and one walk as Washington beat St. Louis for the first time since Game 4 of the teams 2012 NL division series. "It was one of those games that we needed. We needed to bounce back," Gonzalez said about Friday. "We needed something like this. It put us back together. Now we go from here, one game at a time." Nationals reliever Tyler Clippard came on for the eighth and needed 26 pitches just to get one out. With runners on second and third, and No. 3-4 batters Matt Holliday and Allen Craig coming up, Clippard was replaced by Drew Storen. "Youve got two great hitters right there, guys in scoring position," Storen said. He was the closer back in October 2012, when he let the Cardinals erase a 7-5 deficit with two outs in the top of the ninth of Game 5 to win 9-7. But this time, Storen got Holliday on a popup in foul territory, then Craig on a groundout, before Rafael Soriano shook off a comebacker that hit his leg and a walk in the ninth to earn his fourth save. "A good win. Theyre a tremendous team. Theyve gotten the best of us in the past," Rendon said. "But were trying to change that." NOTES: Nationals CF Denard Span (7-day DL, concussion) is expected to be in Washington for Saturdays game. ... In the third game of the four-game series, Nationals RHP Jordan Zimmermann (1-0, 5.27 ERA) will start against Cardinals RHP Lance Lynn (3-0, 4.00). Jannik Hansen Jersey .Mihajlovic was sent off minutes from the end of Thursdays 2-0 win over Brescia and has been punished for using a disrespectful expression toward the fourth official and throwing the contents of a bottle of water at him, thus assuming an intimidating attitude. Tomas Hertl Jersey . -- Zach Johnson asked his short-iron approach on the par-4 18th to "Do something right, baby. http://www.officialsharksnhlshop.com/customized/.ca. Kerry, In the first period of Saturdays Montreal-Ottawa game, Brendan Gallagher is called for goaltender interference. Craig Anderson is outside the blue paint trying to make the save. Justin Braun Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla. Joe Thornton Jersey . Viewers in the Canadiens region can watch the game on TSN at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt and listen on TSN 690. The Canadiens have won three in a row and four of their last five games and recently put the finishing touches on a 3-1-0 road trip.OAKLAND, Calif. -- As if Tommy Milone needed any more pressure on him after the Oakland Athletics lost his first five starts, the team sent struggling Dan Straily to Triple-A Sacramento before the game -- sending a message that he could be next one bumped from the rotation. Milone responded with one of the best outings of his young career. The lefty tossed eight innings of two-hit ball for his first win of the season, and three teammates homered to power the As past the Washington Nationals 8-0 on Friday night. "I think maybe a little bit of a vote of confidence that it wasnt him (sent down)," As manager Bob Melvin said. Brandon Moss homered and had three RBIs, and Yoenis Cespedes and John Jaso each hit a solo shot to back Milones gem. Milone (1-3) struck out seven and walked three, leaving after 108 pitches. Milone said he didnt look at the clubs move to demote Straily instead of him as any kind of boost. Instead, he said he embraced the chance to pitch under pressure. "I think just the energy level, I felt lifted -- just grab the ball, get on the mound and throw it," Milone said. Fernando Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth in his first appearance in the majors since October 2012 after rehabbing from elbow ligament replacement surgery. Moss and Cespedes homered on consecutive pitches in the fifth as the AL West-leading As foiled Doug Fisters season debut. Fister (0-1) allowed nine hits and seven runs in 4 1-3 innings. He struck out two and walked none. "Physically, I felt like I was in the right place," Fister said. "I felt strong. It was lack of execution." The biggest trouble Milone faced came in the seventh, when he struck out Danny Espinosa with runners on first and second to end the inning. It was the first time Milone, who made his major league debut for the Nationals in 2011, completed at least seven innings this season. Milones teammates credited his ability to pitch inside and low in the strike zone. "He was awesome. Thats pretty much all I got," Mooss said.dddddddddddd. "Weve definitely seen that all before from him." Nationals manager Matt Williams was all smiles before the game with Fister back and his rotation finally at full strength. Washington acquired Fister from Detroit during the off-season for left-handers Robbie Ray and Ian Krol and utility man Steve Lombardozzi. The Nationals entered the spring expecting Fister to help fill out the back end of the rotation. But he dealt with elbow inflammation in March and sat out the start of the season because of a strained back muscle. The native of nearby Merced in Californias Central Valley made his Nationals debut in front of several family members at the Coliseum -- though the free-swinging As hitters never allowed him to feel at home. Fister put himself in a jam in the first by overthrowing first baseman Kevin Frandsen on a grounder by Josh Donaldson, who advanced to third on the play -- one of three errors by the Nationals. Moss followed with an RBI single to give the As a 1-0 lead. "When you give them extra outs, youre asking for trouble," Williams said. Most of Oaklands runs, though, came via the long ball: Jaso hit his second home run of the season in the third, Moss hit his sixth homer in the fifth and Cespedes followed with his seventh homer on the next pitch to put the As up 7-0. It was the first time the As hit back-to-back home runs this season. NOTES: An MRI confirmed As CF Coco Crisp has a strained neck, Melvin said. Crisp, who was injured when he crashed into the wall to make a leaping catch in the opener of Wednesdays doubleheader, is day to day. ... The As placed reliever Ryan Cook on the 15-day disabled with a strained right forearm. Cook and Melvin said they dont believe the injury is serious. ... Nationals OF Nate McLouth is expected to start Saturday after cutting his right hand while making a diving catch in foul territory Monday. ... RHP Sonny Gray (4-1, 1.91 ERA) goes for the As on Saturday against Nationals RHP Tanner Roark (2-1, 4.17 ERA). Cheap Jerseys Online Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Youth NFL Jerseys Wholesale Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping ' ' '