WASHINGTON -- If it was up to Washington's Damian Jackson, he would have taken a personal day in the clubhouse instead of being involved in the Nationals' 3-1 loss to the Dodgers on Saturday at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium.

Jackson's rough day started in the seventh when he was called on to bunt. A sacrifice could, in theory, have moved Ryan Zimmerman and Nick Johnson to second and third, respectively, after they had led off the inning with singles.

Unfortunately for Jackson and the Nationals, the sacrifice was rendered theoretical when Jackson popped up his attempted bunt to Dodgers catcher Russell Martin.

"When you're not feeling well, you can't call in sick," said Jackson. "Not necessarily ill, but not feeling 100 percent. Not feeling well-rested or whatever the case may be, whatever excuse you might make to your boss and say, 'Hey, I'm not feeling well today.' "

Zimmerman was then picked off at second trying to steal, and Brian Schneider grounded back to the pitcher to end the threat.

"You've got to be able to do the little things, and we've been doing a lot of them," manager Frank Robinson said. "In that situation, you expect your players to execute that play."

Jackson believes that he should have handled the situation differently.

"As I replay it back in my mind, [the pitch] was kind of high," said Jackson(.) "But I felt like it was on the inner third part of the plate, and I had a good chance. I didn't have to reach to get it."

Jackson knows what a pivotal play the bunt was and how it set the tone for the end of Washington's four-game winning streak.

"It lets the air out of your balloons or your sail," said Jackson. "You have a golden opportunity to capitalize. Now, whether the guy behind me doesn't do his job, that's neither here nor there, but you totally anticipate him doing his job. So, therefore, if you don't get the bunt down, it looks like it's your fault. And right there, it was."

The Nationals' inability to execute wasted a solid performance from Shawn Hill, who was recently recalled from Triple-A New Orleans. Hill was able to keep Washington in the game, working seven innings while allowing only one run on five hits.

Hill's performance in Saturday's game was in stark contrast to his prior three Major League starts while Washington was still in Montreal. Hill was 1-2 in those starts with an ERA of 16.00.

The right-hander has spent the last two years recovering from Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery.

Saturday was a different script, as Hill kept the Dodgers hitless between a Rafael Furcal one-out single in the third and Russell Martin's two-out double in the seventh.

"[That was] just an outstanding performance by the kid," said Robinson. "No, we couldn't ask for any more than that. That's what we needed for him to give us, and that's what he gave us. We didn't look for it, but that's what we needed in this game with [Derek] Lowe pitching today. He kept us in the ballgame, and gave us an opportunity to win. Couldn't ask for any more."

Hill credits Schneider with the change in results.

"I actually wasn't that nervous going into today," said Hill. "Two years ago, [I] got that out of my system. I just threw strikes and kind of let Schneider guide me through the whole day. ... All of my pitches were working at certain points."

The other factor standing in the way of Hill's second career Major League win was Lowe. Lowe didn't rely on just his sinker and limited the same Nationals lineup that pounded Dodgers pitching on Friday -- to the tune of 16 hits -- to five hits and one run over seven innings.

"We kind of mixed in everything -- it wasn't a steady dose of anything -- to try and keep them off balance," Lowe said.

Johnson agreed.

"Sinker, cutter, curve, everything," said Johnson. "He had every pitch."

Those are the kinds of pitchers that will make you sick.