DENVER -- Early on, Stephen Strasburg didnt have his best stuff and yet the powerful right-hander tried to bear down to keep his team close. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson Saints Jersey . Almost paid off, too. The Washington Nationals loaded the bases in the ninth before falling 6-4 to Jorge De La Rosa and the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday. Strasburg (7-8) settled in after a shaky start, giving up four runs -- three of which were in the first -- and nine hits over 5 1-3 innings. "Giving up three runs early, I couldve easily shut it down," Strasburg said. "I didnt want to do that. I wanted to keep it as close as possible. Give the guys a chance to come back -- anything can happen here." And almost did. Closer LaTroy Hawkins got the first two outs in the ninth, before allowing RBI singles to Jayson Werth and Anthony Rendon to make it a 6-4 game. With the bases loaded, Hawkins struck out Ian Desmond to end the rally. "You have to tip your cap sometimes. He did a good job," Desmond said. "He made some pitches on me. "We did a good job battling back right there. We kept on grinding away. Ill take us in that situation a lot of times." Denard Span had four hits for the Nationals, who finished the season series 5-1 against Colorado. He was one of the few to have success against De La Rosa, who gave the Rockies a badly needed boost as they snapped a seven-game skid. "Jorge, another great outing. He did it again," manager Walt Weiss said. "Were scuffling like crazy and he takes the ball and gives us a great performance and wins the game." The Rockies tried a little bit of everything to break out of their funk. They wore their socks high and even engaged in a pregame staring contest. Turns out, the best cure for their slump was simply the left arm of De La Rosa. De La Rosa (11-6) struck out a season-high 11 as he pitched efficiently into the eighth inning. He kept the Nationals guessing by effectively mixing in a changeup with his 89-mph cutter. "All my pitches were working really good today," said De La Rosa, who allowed two runs -- one earned -- before being lifted for a reliever with one out in the eighth. "My command of all my pitches was really good today." The Rockies decided as a team to wear their socks high, just to try something new. Even Weiss followed the trend. This helped ease the tension, too: Prior to the first pitch, Rockies outfielder Brandon Barnes and Nationals reliever Aaron Barrett engaged in quite a stare-down, with both players standing near the dugout holding their hats over their chest to see who would blink first. After several minutes, Barnes finally gestured toward Barrett that they settle it with a game of rock-paper-scissor. Right after De La Rosas warmup pitches, home plate umpire Paul Emmel told Barnes go into the dugout, with Barrett throwing his hands up in triumph. "Well do any stare-down to win games, for sure," joked Nolan Arenado. Once again, De La Rosa mastered a park that typically isnt friendly to pitchers. Hes 42-14 lifetime at Coors Field. "This is the perfect park for me," he said. Usually, its the hitters saying that. De La Rosa had his pitches dancing all day. He struck out Bryce Harper three times. The Nationals were just 1 of 14 with runners in scoring position off De La Rosa. "He knows how to pitch here," Nationals manager Matt Williams said. "Hes got a surprising fast ball when he needs it, but he relies on his changeup a lot. Thats a great strategy here. "Hes a good pitcher. He pitches well." The Nationals were without infielder Ryan Zimmerman, who went on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday with a strained right hamstring. "Its a pretty substantial strain of the hamstring," Williams said. "You never know how its going to react, so well just take it day by day. Its going to be a couple of weeks at least. Well see where he is at the end of that and go from there. He pulled it good." NOTES: Werth wasnt in the starting lineup because of a tender right knee. ... The Nationals are off Thursday before opening a three-game series in Cincinnati. Sheldon Rankins Saints Jersey . They have watched it from afar. And now they have seen it for themselves. Alvin Kamara Jersey . The 57-year-old Tietjens has coached New Zealand to nine IRB World Sevens titles and to four Commonwealth Games gold medals as its only coach in the professional era. New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Steve Tew said the re-signing was made with a focus on 2016 when sevens will be in the Olympics. http://www.saintsrookiestore.com/Saints-Sam-Mills-Jersey/ .S. international midfielder Michael Bradley is complete.HOUSTON - Houston rookie George Springer, who has been out since July 20 with a left quadriceps injury, wont play again this season. There was some hope that Springer might return for the last few games of the season, but interim manager Tom Lawless said on Tuesday that they decided to shut him down. Lawless said that team officials and Springer came to the decision together and decided that getting a few more at-bats this season wasnt worth the risk of having a setback. "Hes going to go about (things) and take BP and rehab and keep doing his things here," Lawless said. "When the season is over hes going to leave here healthy and when he comes to spring training hell be ready to go." That doesnt mean that Springer wasnt taking it hard. "For me its tough and being a player and a competitor I want to play," he said. "But at the same time you have too protect yourself and sometimes you have to do things you dont want to do. Drew Brees Youth Jersey. " He was asked if hes surprised that hes been out for so long with what the team called a strained quadriceps. "Ive never had this before so I cant really say if its surprising," he said. "I dont know. Its a part of me that I use all the time so its tough. But I just have to go with it and get healthy." Springer, who was the 11th overall pick in the 2011 draft, hit .231 with 20 homers and 51 RBIs in 78 games. Hes disappointed that his season was cut so short, but is encouraged by what he was able to do during his time in the lineup. "Its been a great experience so far," he said. "I obviously have a lot more to learn. I could have done better overall but in my 300 at-bats Ive learned and Ive grown and I think I can go off of that into 2015." ' ' '