You can see the effect that Nationals’ pitcher Stephen Strasburg is having on baseball: the Nationals are selling out the park, his presence increases road attendance by some 25 percent, the Anacostia Nine are gaining increased nationwide television attention, MLB Network and “Baseball Tonight” commentators are oohing and ahhing about his pitch selection and — oh yeah, opposing pitchers regularly throw way over their abilities when he’s the opponent. Case in point? Gavin Floyd, the otherwise substandard (2-7, 5.20 ERA) down-in-the-rotation starter for the A.L. South Siders, who matched St. Stephen in his recent Friday night outing, throwing baffling breaking balls and eyebrow level 95 mph heaters. The Express fanned ten (count ‘em) black-and-whites over seven innings, but Floyd lasted another inning and mastered Washington’s new hitless non-wonders. In the end, while the MLB Network did “look ins” of the Orioles-Friars tilt (and cameras snaps pics of Barack Obama watching his team), the Nats dropped a beautifully played (and pitched) game: 2-1.

In the game’s disappointing wake (disappointing for Nats fans who root for the home team ever as much as for “the Acela”) the talk was of Strasburg’s use of the change-up — and Floyd’s wizardry: “I just try to focus on what I can do,” Floyd said modestly. “You can’t control or think about what [Strasburg's] doing. You go out there and put up zeroes and give your team a chance to win.” Jim Riggleman, who is as concerned with wins and losses as he is with the development of the team’s “hope for the future” (a characteristic he shares with his youthful phenom, whose focus remains on helping the Nats win) gave Floyd his due, thereby qualifying for this week’s CFG award for understatement. “He [Floyd] was real tough,” Riggleman said. “He’s got a good arm. He was a real challenge and we couldn’t get much going against him.” That’s for sure.

While Floyd threw up-and-down and in-and-out (106 pitches, 70 strikes!), and St. Stephen matched him pitch-for-pitch (or was it the other way around?), the two Nats who seemed to get a bead on the ChiSox righty were Roger Bernadina and Adam Dunn, who battled Gavin through every at bat. But the Nats could never string together a rally that would give them a win. The difference in the game came in the 11th, when a diving Ryan Zimmerman lofted a ball just over the outstretched glove of Adam Dunn, plating Mark Kotsay from third with the winning run. The Nats went quietly in the bottom of the 11th.  “It was a tough play, tough game,” Zimmerman said. “Stras threw great. It was a good baseball game.” True enough. But another loss, alas, which brings the Nats solidly into last place in the NL East and looking desperately for a win to match the surging Phils, Braves and Mets.