Braves’ righty Derek Lowe pitched like he had when he was with the Dodgers (or maybe it was the Red Sox) last night, blanking the Washington Nationals in a 4-0 win at Turner Field in Atlanta. Lowe’s gem overawed the punchless Nats and Washington rookie Yunesky Maya, who balked twice in the second inning. While Maya snapped back to provide a solid outing, Lowe was the night’s story. Lowe scattered eight Nats’ hits over eight innings, striking out twelve. “That’s about the best game that I’ve pitched in a long time,” Lowe said after the victory. “It was just one of those days where kind of everything clicked.” But it didn’t click for the Nationals, who showed just how vulnerable they are to good pitching. The twelve strike outs included four by Ian Desmond and two each from Roger Bernadina, Ryan Zimmerman and Michael Morse.

Maya’s balks in the second inning showed that the Nats’ new Cuban righthander has yet to master the pressure of the major leagues, with Maya saying he “rushed” his pitches in order to keep himself out of a big inning. The Nats didn’t argue with the calls: “No explanation needed. He balked,” skipper Jim Riggleman told the press. “He just flinched a little bit. … There was a little indecision … and instead of stepping off, he balked.” Despite the problems, Maya pitched well — and set a pattern that began with his first outing against the Mets: after initial shakiness, Maya settles down and pitches steadily the rest of the way. As he did in Atlanta: after the second he pitched four complete innings, with his game totals showing a command on the strike zone (90 pitches, 58 strikes) and a certain yen for inducing ground balls (ten in all). In the end, the problem for the Nats in their sixth loss in a row wasn’t Maya, it was Lowe.

Pick Me Out A Winner Bobby: Back on this day in 2003 — when the Washington Nationals were the Montreal Expos and playing to non-existent crowds in Olympic Stadium –Vladimir Guerrero hit for the cycle (what was called “Le Carrousel” in Montreal). It should not have been a surprise. Guerrero has to be the best bad ball hitter in baseball, and perhaps the best ever if you don’t count Yogi Berra. But what was surprising about Guerrero’s feat was that it came at the hands of lefty Tom Glavine, then pitching for the Mets. After toiling away for the Angels for six seasons, Guerrero has had a revival in Texas, which signed him as a free agent in the off season. The 2004 MVP is having a banner year (.305, 26 HRs) for the Rangers, who now lead the White Elephants by eight in the A.L. East.

Despite his revival, you have to wonder just how many years Guerrero has left. He hit what looked like a sure double the other night against the Yankees, but it was a stretch — and as  he rounded first, grimacing, you could tell he wasn’t going to make it. Guerrero’s knees are gone and he struggles to stay in shape. If Guerrero had another four seasons he might reach the 500 home run mark, but it seems unlikely he’ll get the opportunity. While Guerrero has been relatively healthy this year, he was on the disabled list five times during the ’09 campaign. When he came into the league in 1993 (signed by Montreal as an amateur free agent), he didn’t have to worry too much about preparation: he was a natural athlete with a beautiful swing who didn’t need to stretch scratch hits into doubles. He loped. But not anymore. Now he spends an hour before every game icing whatever ails — this week it’s his shin. “I try to keep playing as best as I can and stay away from injuries,” he recently told a Dallas reporter.

Oddly, the key to Guerrero’s health may well be Josh Hamilton, who can sub for Vlad as the team’s DH. The problem is that Hamilton is suffering from his own aches and pains — and is still in-and-out of the line-up with some torn up ribs, the result of a meeting with an outfield fence in Minnesota. Maybe it’s not such a bad problem if you’re running away with your division, but having two great players with nearly chronic problems (Hamilton’s knee and his ribs, Guerrero’s knee and his shin) is causing headaches for Rangers’ skipper Ron Washington. While the Rangers began to pull away in the A.L West in August, they went the entire month without their full line-up, and Rangers’ fans are concerned that their team is an injury away from seeing their post-season slip away. They should stop whining: the toast of Arlington just swept the Yankees (6-5. 7-6, 4-1), with the gimpy and iced-up Guerrero going 16 for 31 over his last seven games.

That glazed and puzzled look that has appeared on the faces of so many other post season teams (the St. Louis Cardinals yesterday, and the Chicago Cubs last year, to name just two) is now being worn by the Boston Red Sox. The A.L.’s wild card entry was stunned by a ninth inning rally in Boston on Saturday, and swept in three games by the Los Angeles Angels to be eliminated from the playoffs. The Bosox appeared headed for a sure win in their head-to-head match-up against the Belinskis, leading the Halos 6-3 heading into the 9th inning at Fenway Park — with their ace closer, Jonathan Papelbon on the mound. But with two outs, Papelbon’s down-and-out or up-and-in stuff failed him: Erick Aybar singled, Chone Figgins walked and Bobby Abreu doubled to tighten the contest. Even then, the Red Sox remained a simple grounder or fly ball away from victory. To set up a force out at every base, Papelbon walked Torii Hunter intentionally. That brought Vladimir Guerrero to the plate. On the very first pitch to one of baseball’s beset bad-ball hitters, Papelbon gave up a single to center. Guerrero’s hit, a leaning over-the-plate smack of a low and outside fastball, scored Figgins and Abreu and gave the Angels the 7-6 victory.

Those Are The Details, Now For The Headlines: The elimination of the Redbirds and Bosox now sets the wheels in motion for the offseason in both Boston and St. Louis. There’s a lot to do. Fans of “the Nation” face some big questions: about the future of David Ortiz and the cost of Jason Bay. The team is hardly in need of a major overhaul, yet the horses that have consistently put it into the off season are aging or hobbled. The entire left side of the Boston infield is in question: Mike Lowell can’t play third forever and the team has no ready answer at shortstop. “Phtttt . . . c’mon” — fans of the Nation say: what about Jed Lowrie? Well, what about him? Maybe Baseball Reference is lying, but their stats show him hitting .147 in 32 games. Hell, there’s a shortstop in Washington who hits a damn sight better than that and he’s no damn good at all . . .   

The Redbirds are younger, but the questions might be more pertinent: whether to pony up the big bucks it will take to keep Matt Holliday in left and (just like the Red Sox) what to do at third. Mark DeRosa is a free agent and while he likes St. Louis he will test the free agent market. Then too, while shortstop seems set for the River City Nine, rookie phenom Brendan Ryan hit a scorching .083 in the playoffs and looked shaky in the field. Redbird fans have the same reaction to this negativity as their Bosox buddies: “Oh yeah, well what about Troy Glaus?” Okay, right. Troy Glaus: who left his right shoulder somewhere in Toronto and hasn’t been the same since. Maybe he’ll return to his 2008 form (.270, 27 home runs), but it’s a pretty big maybe. Then too, number three starter Joel Pineiro is a free agent and would be a number one starter on most major league teams: including the Nats (now there’s an idea). Oddly, whether Holliday or DeRosa or Pineiro decide to stay in St. Louis might hinge more on the fate of Tony LaRussa and Dave Duncan than on how much money Billy DeWitt puts on the table. LaRussa and Duncan’s contracts are up and both are rumored headed to Cincinnati, to team up with their old St. Louis G.M. pal Walt Jocketty . . .