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WASHINGTON -- Ryan Zimmerman came forward to make a head-high running catch on a slicing line drive off the bat of Chase Utley, a routine play that drew a disproportionately grand ovation from the home fans. "Thats almost the awkward part of it," Zimmerman said. "Yeah, I caught the ball. Yeah, like, I can catch a fly ball." He might have been embarrassed by all the fuss, but it was nevertheless a landmark moment in career of the player long considered the face of the Washington Nationals franchise. It was his first putout as an outfielder after more than 1,100 games as a third baseman, part of a good night all around for him and his club Tuesday in a 7-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Jordan Zimmermann rebounded from a mini-slump to throw eight scoreless innings, Zimmerman hit a pair of doubles and handled his two chances with aplomb in left field, and the Nationals moved back to .500 by taking the opener of the three-game series. "Theres nothing like getting into the first game and getting a couple of balls," Zimmerman said. "And getting a couple of hits helped, too." Zimmermann (4-2) allowed five hits and struck out four, recovering well from four middling starts that had raised his usually impeccable ERA to 4.07. He got all the support he needed when the Nationals scored three in the third inning off David Buchanan (1-2), making his third career start. "May was a pretty rough month for me, and hopefully June has better things to come," Zimmermann said. "I wanted to go nine, but eightll be good enough." Zimmerman went 2 for 4 with one RBI after being reinstated before the game following 44 games on the disabled list with a broken right thumb. Of greater interest was his move to the outfield, a switch necessitated by his throwing problems and the need for a strong hitter to play left field while Bryce Harper recovers from thumb surgery. Zimmerman said he was initially hesitant to try the outfield, but he realized his chronic shoulder problems mean his days as a regular third baseman are numbered. Ever the team player, he said he just wanted to help the club win -- even if theres likely not a Gold Glove in it for him, like the one he won playing third in 2009. "I feel like Im athletic enough to at least blend in," he said. "And not cause problems." Like many infielders-turned-outfielders before him, he learned the action isnt as fast and furious when stationed 300 feet from home plate. Playing deeper than a usual left fielder and using a glove borrowed from teammate Jayson Werth, he fielded only the liner from Utley and a shallow flyout by Marlon Byrd in the sixth before being removed for defensive replacement Nate McLouth after seven innings. There was no complaint about the lack of work. "That means our pitchers are doing a good job," Zimmerman said. "I just catch what comes to me." Its Zimmermans bat thats really needed by the Nationals, who slumped at the plate for most of last month and have been hovering around .500 in the NL East. They started hitting better in a weekend series against the Texas Rangers, however, and have scored 26 runs in their last four games. Zimmerman doubled to left in the second and to right in the fifth, and each time a black padded glove was brought to him to wear to protect his thumb as he ran the bases. Werth added a two-run double in the third, Denard Span had three hits, and Ian Desmond and Anthony Rendon homered for the Nationals. The Phillies lost their fourth straight and were shut out for the eighth time this season, failing to get any impetus from a pregame team meeting called by manager Ryne Sandberg. Sandberg addressed focus and fundamentals, but theres only so much the manager could do about Zimmermanns mid-90s fastball and debilitating slider. Philadelphia is 9-18 since May 4. "We werent able to get anything going offensively, got shut down by a good pitcher," Sandberg said. "He kind of set the tone for the game." NOTES: The Phillies optioned RHP Phillippe Aumont to Triple-A Lehigh Valley and recalled RHP Ethan Martin from Lehigh Valley. ... Philadelphia signed RHP Jason Marquis to a minor league contract. He will report to Class-A Clearwater for extended spring training. ... Nationals LHP Gio Gonzalez, on the 15-day disabled list with an inflamed pitching shoulder, will make a rehab start with Single-A Potomac on Friday. TreQuan Smith Youth Jersey .com) - Colorado forward P. Marshon Lattimore Saints Jersey . Jim Leyland, in his eighth playoffs, has never had a starting rotation he trusts as much as the grouping of Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Anibal Sanchez and Doug Fister. http://www.authenticsaintssportsonline.com/saints-drew-brees-gold-jersey/ . -- Houstons All-Star tandem of James Harden and Dwight Howard refused to let the Rockets give in to fatigue. Alvin Kamara Saints Jersey . - Young and old. TreQuan Smith Womens Jersey .The ruling takes effect on Jan. 1 and stems from the debate surrounding Paralympic champion Markus Rehm, an amputee who won the national long jump title competing with a carbon-fiber prosthesis.FORT WORTH, Texas -- Keenan Reynolds amazes so many people with how he directs Navys triple-option offence and keeps scoring touchdowns. As for the quarterback, he is in awe of the company he now keeps after joining the 30-touchdown rushing club in the Midshipmens 24-6 victory over Middle Tennessee State in the Armed Forces Bowl on Monday. "Its huge. You just say the name Barry Sanders and you can stop right there," Reynolds said. "He probably was the greatest college player there was. Just to be even in that conversation with guys like that is a humbling experience. I never thought I would be in that category." Reynolds had a 3-yard score to cap the opening drive for Navy (9-4) and added a 1-yarder in the fourth quarter. Already with the NCAA record for touchdowns rushing by a quarterback, Reynolds upped his total to 31 to match Colorado State running back Kapri Bibbs, also a sophomore, for the national lead this season. The only players with more rushing TDs in a season were Sanders (37) with Oklahoma State, and Wisconsins Montee Ball (33). Reynolds, playing 50 years after Hall of Fame quarterback and two-time Super Bowl champion Roger Staubach won the Heisman Trophy at Navy, still has two seasons left in college. The Midshipmen ran 10 consecutive times on the games opening drive, with Reynolds going 3 yards to put them ahead to stay. "Its hard to simulate on a scout team what Navy does," Blue Raiders coach Rick Stockstill said. Navy, which won for only the second time in its last seven bowl games, piled up 366 yards rushing and finished this season with five straight victories. The Blue Raiders (8-5) were held to a season low in points. They had finished the regular season with a five-game winning streak, averaging nearly 43 points a game in that stretch -- since a 34-7 loss on Oct. 12 at North Texas, about 40 miles away from the TCU campus where the bowl was played. "This was the first time we kept a team completely out of the end zone. It was huge to finish like this," senior linebacker Cody Peterson said. "Last two games, our defence has played phenomenal," coach Ken Niumatalolo said. "Middle Tennessee has been moving the ball against a lot of people." In itts previous game, just more than two weeks earlier, Navy beat Army 34-7 in the snow and freezing temperatures in Philadelphia.dddddddddddd It was 32 degrees at kickoff on Monday, but with sunny and clear skies. Reynolds lost two fumbles, matching his total during the regular season, Middle Tennessee failed to convert into points either of the miscues. Both fumbles were recovered by linebacker T.T. Barber, the games defensive MVP, after Navy drove inside the 20. Down 10-6 at halftime, the Blue Raiders moved to the Navy 7 on the opening drive of the second half. They went for it on fourth down instead of trying a short field goal. But fullback Corey Carmichael managed only a yard before getting taken down by Travis Bridges and George Jamison, who also had an interception. Middle Tennessee played in a bowl one year after getting snubbed with the same 8-4 record in the regular season. That was in the Sun Belt Conference before moving to Conference USA this season. "Well, last season we didnt get a bowl game. We had something to prove," Barber said. "Having another eight-win season this year was a great accomplishment." Barber forced the first fumble late in the first half, jumping over the quarterback to pounce on the ball. The other came late in the third quarter when the Midshipmen drove from their own 6 to the MTSU 14 after stopping Middle Tennessee short on a fourth-and-2. There was a scary moment in the final minute before halftime when Middle Tennessee receiver Marcus Henry and Navy cornerback Lonnie Richardson each crumpled after a hard tackle. Players from both teams quickly motioned to the sideline, and trainers sprinted to the players. Henry and Richardson were side-by-side on the ground surrounded by their teammates and medical personnel. They eventually sat up, then got up and walked gingerly off the field with help. Richardson was a second-teamer pressed into extra duty after the ejection of senior safety Wave Ryder for a borderline targeting penalty midway through the second quarter. Ryder appeared to make shoulder-to-shoulder contact on the hit of receiver Tavarres Jefferson at the end of a 22-yard gain, but officials upheld Ryders ejection after the automatic review of the play. ' ' '