"At one point Thursday night, Livan Hernandez was flat on his back on the mound at Petco Park, happy to still be alive. Chris Denorfia had crushed a line drive back at him in the third inning, directly at his face. He flashed his glove — brand new and not yet broken in — in front of his eyes. "I don't know how it got it in the glove," he said later. He stayed on the ground for a few moments, eyes closed. He removed his glove and shook his hand, which was still stinging.

"It was really, really scary," Hernandez said. "I opened my eyes again, and I'm thinking, 'I could be done.' I got lucky on that one. That might have been the end of my career right there."

So worse things could have happened to Hernandez than another Washington Nationals loss in a game he started, this one 7-3 at the hands of the San Diego Padres.

Hernandez notched his eighth loss of the season, tied for the most in the majors, but that black mark says more about the team around him than his own performance.

The Nationals failed to score more than three runs for the sixth time in eight games. Hernandez exited with one out and two on in the sixth inning, and two relievers issued consecutive walks and then a single to score both runners. They made two outs on the bases. They have played well and lost at times this season, but Thursday was not one of those games.

"It was not a good game," Manager Jim Riggleman said. "The effort and the intensity was there. It just was not a good game. Just was not a pretty game. I don't know how else to say it.""