WASHINGTON -- The Nationals were looking for a way to head into the All-Star break on a high note. They had dropped nine straight and won just one game the entire month of July, tumbling to the bottom of the National League standings.\n\nThe obstacles were stacked against them to get it done in the first-half finale: They were going with a bullpen game amid a shorthanded starting rotation against a heavy-hitting Braves squad they had not defeated since April 13.
Yet on a day when a multiple-innings reliever was tabbed to start and the top third of the order went quiet for most of the afternoon, the Nationals earned their first ‘W’ since July 6 with a 7-3 win over the Braves at Nationals Park.\n\n“I’m happy to go on the break with a big win,” manager Dave Martinez said in his office, where a celebratory playlist in the clubhouse could be heard in the background. “It’s awesome to see those guys smiling and playing music and jumping up and down. So let’s make it a habit.”\n\nWhile Juan Soto hammered his 20th home run of the season in the eighth inning, this win was powered by a cast of contributors.
**Starting pitching** \nRight-hander Erasmo Ramírez provided three scoreless innings with one hit, no walks and three strikeouts across 39 pitches (28 strikes). His one other start of the season coincidentally had come against the Braves on June 13, when Josiah Gray was scratched after a lengthy rain delay. Sunday’s outing was a notable turnaround from Ramírez’s three-inning, six-run outing last month.\n\n“From the first pitch to the last pitch you’re going to throw, just make it count,” Ramírez said. “Today was a good execution, good communication with the catcher \\[Keibert Ruiz\\]. We had good defense, good pitching and we got the win. At the end, it’s just a good job for everybody, not just me.”
**Bullpen** \nAfter Jordan Weems allowed a trio of runs in 1/3 of an inning,
**Bottom-of-the-order offense** \nSeventh, eighth and ninth hitters