WASHINGTON -- The Giants’ offense has struggled since arriving to Nationals Park, and Saturday’s doubleheader was no exception. The Giants were shut out for the third time this season in Game 1, with Game 2 looking like it was headed in a similar direction until extra innings in the 2-1 win over the Nationals.

LaMonte Wade Jr smacked home the first run of the game, a go-ahead RBI single driving in Curt Casali (the automatic runner on second to start the eighth inning). With the bases loaded, Wilmer Flores added a needed insurance run, recording just the third hit of the game for the Giants.

“Doubleheaders are tough,” said Wade. “Getting in early, you get out of a routine and everything like that, but that's not an excuse. I feel like we were prepared, just balls weren’t falling for us early today in that first game and in the second game until late. That just shows our resiliency and the way that we were able to hang in there and come up with the 'W' tonight.”

The three hits were the least needed to secure a win for the Giants all season -- the previous lowest was tied at four, last recorded in Friday’s game against the Nationals.

“I'm not going to dispute the fact that we're not having our best at-bats right now,” said manager Gabe Kapler. “On the offensive side of the ball today, it wasn't the prettiest win ever. It's hard to win in the big leagues, so it's nice to get that 'W.' At the same time, I think we've got some work to do on the offensive side.”

The Giants’ only hit in seven innings of regulation was inches away from changing the course of the game -- a double from pinch-hitter Mike Yastrzemski in the top of the third inning to the deepest part of center field that bounded off the top of the wall.

After Game 1, Kapler felt that his team was not as enthusiastic as they normally are, thinking fatigue could be to blame. He joked that the breakfast cereal in the clubhouse could provide a boost and wake up the offense. The treat was not their lucky charm(s) in terms of having a double-digit hit game; however, it did the trick in securing a win and avoiding a doubleheader sweep.

“Yeah, I think the energy message got to the relievers that we used,” joked Kapler, referring to the cereal comment he made before Game 2. “So, I thought from a pitching standpoint, we did bring it in.”

The Giants, who used seven pitchers in the eight-inning game, held the Nationals to four hits, only allowing the first run to score in the bottom of the eighth.

“Everyone pitched really well today,” said Caleb Baragar, who earned his first career save. “Everyone came up with good stuff. Conner [Menez] gave us two innings in the beginning and then we just handed it off to the rest of the guys. Everybody did their job today, I was really impressed with how we pitched.”

Kapler knows his offense needs to support the pitching staff, noting that some of his players are not hitting the way that they need to. However, he is impressed by the fight his team has shown, especially in Washington where it has managed to win two of three games despite recording just three runs.

“I feel like we never count ourselves out,” said Wade. “We know that we have a good lineup. We're playing pretty good defense and our pitchers are giving us great starts and the bullpen's been strong. I feel like we can never count ourselves down; we always stick with it and we're going to fight to the end.”