April 25th, 2008: Chicago Cubs 3 at Washington Nationals 5 F -- Catcher Wil Nieves has been in professional baseball for 13 years, but has played in only 70 big league games. Lack of hitting is the reason for his being limited to a cup of coffee in the big show. Entering the 2008 season, Nieves had a .161 batting average in the Majors. However, nobody questions what he does behind the plate. Nieves is an excellent catch-and-throw backstop, and he has proven it over and over since joining the Nationals on April 16. But Nieves' bat was still an issue. But his two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning on Friday night gave the Nationals a 5-3 win over the Cubs at Nationals Park. With Austin Kearns on first base and reliever Bob Howry on the mound, Nieves took an 0-2 pitch and hit the ball over the right-field wall for his first Major League home run. It was arguably the most exciting hit since Ryan Zimmerman's walk-off home run on Opening Day. watch
