Milwaukee Brewers welcomed the Washington Nationals to town on Monday night. Nationals are one of the most disappointing teams in baseball this season. They’re one game under .500 and far out of the playoff hunt at the moment. Nationals were coming off a win versus Atlanta on Sunday and could have seen an opportunity with the Brewers struggling of late. Jhoulys Chacin hoped to turn things around for Milwaukee, and he did just that with a strong performance striking out nine plus nearly going six innings. Brewers get off on the right foot winning the first game of the series for the first time since the Atlanta series.

Player of the Game: Jhoulys Chacin – Once again, David Stearns deserves a ton of credit for what he did with Chacin. I had some hesitation given how much he struggled against left-handers last season. He only allowed two hits with one mistake being a home run to Daniel Murphy. This is the second straight start where Chacin has allowed less than three hits. The more impressive thing for Chacin is he did not walk a batter.

Silver Star: Christian Yelich – The hot streak continues for Christian Yelich. He had a three-run triple in the eighth inning to break this game wide open. Yelich did it again versus a left-handed pitcher. He’s becoming one of the more difficult players to get out in baseball. He’s always been an issue, but recently, DJ Yella has been a monster at the plate. It’s truly fun to watch.

Honorable Mention: Erik Kratz – Here’s the thing about Erik Kratz’s evening at the plate. He did not have a hit. But what a productive night at the plate. Kratz had a groundball that scored a run. He also had a flyball that also scored a run. Kratz also got on base in the eighth before Yelich drove him with his big triple. Bravo, Mr. Kratz.

Next up: Junior Guerra returns to the mound after going on the disabled list after a very short stint there. Guerra has been pretty good this season, and if Chacin can get the strikeouts, maybe Guerra can as well. Nationals will trot on Jeremy Hellickson. He’s been very good this season minus one blow up start versus Miami. Ryan Braun and Yelich both have good career numbers against him.