WASHINGTON -- Nick Markakis had a double and scored in the second inning before lining a solo homer to right in the seventh.

But the at-bat that impressed his manager, Brian Snitker, was the grind-it-out appearance that became a run-scoring single in the ninth as the Atlanta Braves crushed the first-place Washington Nationals 13-0 on Saturday. It was the first time this year the Nationals were shut out.

"He's a pro. He's a pro's pro," Snitker said of Markakis, who had three hits, scored four runs and made a diving catch in right field. "He does everything the right way, regardless of the situation. That was a really good at-bat."

Markakis also drove in two runs and owns a .287 average as the Braves beat All-Star pitcher Stephen Strasburg, who lasted just three innings.

"We know what type of pitcher (he is) and know what he has," Markakis said of Strasburg. "It is a battle up there every time. We have to play well together as a team to beat a team like that. We did today; probably the best defense we have played all year."

Markakis was also at the plate in the top of the third when he lined the ball off the hip of Strasburg, the All-Star right-hander for the Nationals.

Strasburg (9-3) stayed in the game but was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the last of the third inning after yielding seven hits, six runs (three earned) with two walks and no strikeouts. It was his shortest outing of the year and first time he did not record a punchout.

Washington manager Dusty Baker said Strasburg was taken out mostly since he was hit by the liner.

"Mainly because he was hurting," Baker said.

Strasburg insisted he could have remained in the contest.

"I feel fine. I definitely could've kept going, but I just got singled to death," said Strasburg, who said the hip won't affect his All-Star status.

"I know some guys want to lobby for it, but I feel like that's their decision. And I'm going to keep going until they take the ball out of my hands. And that's when they decided to take it out of my hands."

Starter Julio Teheran was 2-for-2 with three RBIs and pitched seven shutout innings while the Braves banged out 15 hits.

Teheran (7-6) is now 6-0 on the road this year and 1-6 at home after he gave up just four hits with two walks and five strikeouts.

"Everything was working today," he said. "Guys were making good plays behind me."

He had plenty of offensive support. Kurt Suzuki (two hits) had an RBI single in the second before Teheran followed with one of his own to give the Braves a 2-0 lead off Strasburg.

Nationals nemesis Freddie Freeman had an RBI double in the third to make it 3-0.

Two batters after Strasburg was hit by a comebacker, Suzuki had an RBI single and later in the inning Teheran slashed a two-run single to make it 6-0.

Strasburg allowed four runs (one earned) in the third and was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the inning.

Atlanta All-Star Ender Inciarte delivered an RBI single in the sixth off Tanner Roark for a 7-0 advantage.

Markakis lined that homer into the Nationals bullpen in right off Roark to make it 8-0 in the seventh. Inciarte drove in a run with a groundout in the eighth.

Markakis had that impressive RBI single in the ninth and Matt Adams crushed a 0-2 pitch from Sammy Solis for a three-run homer to make it 13-0.

Johan Camargo was 3-for-4 and Matt Kemp also had two hits for the Braves, who are 4-2 in Washington this year.

The Braves also got strong defensive play from second baseman Brandon Phillips.

"You know how he is. He showed it today," Markakis said. "Couple of big plays right there. We made some good defensive plays. Julio threw one of his best games this year."

Roark made his first relief outing of the year after 17 starts. He took over in the fourth and gave up three runs in five innings. The second-place Braves improved to 42-44 while the Nationals fell to 51-36.

"Everyone is good to go tomorrow," said Snitker, whose team has won two of three in the series. "It is good to see the guys bounce back after extra innings" on Friday.

NOTES: Washington manager Dusty Baker was drafted by the Braves in 1967 and played eight seasons in Atlanta. ... Braves LHP Ian Krol, the losing pitcher Friday, pitched for the Nationals in 2013. ... The Nationals were the last National League team that had not been shut out this year. They have scored one run eight times. ... Atlanta C Kurt Suzuki played for Washington in 2012-13. ... Atlanta RHP Jaime Garcia turned 31 Saturday.