"For the better part of the last two seasons, the Washington Nationals have given the Braves fits, in general, and Derek Lowe in particular.

Lowe had lost four in a row and six of seven starts to the pesky Nationals since he joined the Braves rotation last year.

But hanging onto a one-game deficit in the NL East behind the Phillies, with 17 games left in the season, Lowe went looking for an overhaul. He met with pitching coach Roger McDowell for 30 minutes before Monday's game and came out with a new strategy that he used for a career-high 12-strikeouts and eight shutout innings in a 4-0 win.

The Braves remained one game behind the Phillies, who beat the Marlins 11-4.

"I didn't want to sound defeated when I told Roger, 'I need help,'" Lowe said. "(But) my game plan over the last three years isn't working."

Lowe had the finer points boiled down to a "cheat sheet," from a Braves memo pad which was still sitting in his locker after the game. Without revealing exactly what it said, since he'll be facing the Nationals again in less than two weeks, Lowe said it had to do with mixing up what he threw to whom and giving them all a much steadier diet of breaking balls.

For a sinkerball pitcher, who likes to say the hitter will dictate how good his "stuff" is, the Nationals batters told him they were baffled by what was coming. Five of his 12 strikeouts were looking. The Nationals managed only an occasional hit - six in all - and didn't get one for extra bases until Nyjer Morgan doubled down the line to lead off the eighth inning.

Lowe followed that up by striking out Wilson Ramos for his 12th of the game, one better than his previous career-high of 11 strikeouts June 15, 2007, against the Angels while with the Dodgers. He had reached 1,500 strikeouts for his career in the fourth inning on one of four strikeouts by Ian Desmond."