VIERA, Fla. - As he warmed up in the bullpen for his second spring training start, Stephen Strasburg felt strong. Perhaps a little too strong.
The right-hander overcame a shaky first inning and the Washington Nationals' offense came up big again in an 11-1 victory Sunday against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Strasburg walked two and gave up an RBI single to his first three batters before settling down. He went three innings, allowing two hits while throwing 28-of-48 pitches for strikes.
"I got some good work in," Strasburg said. "I felt too good in the bullpen and then went out there and tried to paint the first pitch on (the black) instead of starting out with a little bit bigger zone and then working off the middle of the plate.
"I made a good adjustment and then I didn't see any problems."
Anthony Rendon homered and Wilson Ramos had two hits and three RBI for the Nationals, who have 27 runs in their last three games. Washington scored four runs in the third inning, three on infield singles.
Allen Craig had two of St. Louis' three hits, including an RBI single. Cardinals starter Joe Kelly gave up five runs and seven hits in 2 1/3 innings.
Starting Time
Cardinals: Kelly had a rough outing, but manager Mike Matheny wasn't entirely displeased.
"I thought he did a lot better job than what his line is going to look like," Matheny said. "It was just one of those days."
Nationals: Strasburg continued to work on his slider, which he is mixing in about as often as his curveball right now. He said he throws the slider to get contact, not for a strikeout.
"Before, I would kind of throw it easy, a little unsure," Strasburg said. "But in the "pen, it felt really good. Then I go out there and I was overthrowing it. It had a little too much movement. But then I took a step back and then I started to get some better results with it."
Trainer's Room
Cardinals: Outfield prospect Oscar Tavares made the trip to Viera, but his only action was shagging fly balls before the game. Matheny said Tavares felt tightness in his right hamstring during Saturday's game. Tavares is day-to-day.
Nationals: Manager Matt Williams said RHP Doug Fister (elbow inflammation) is feeling better, but there is still no timetable for his return.