Johnson, who has won his past three home starts, goes for No. 299 at home on Saturday against the New York Mets and their ace, Johan Santana.

"It's incredible," said Giants first baseman Travis Ishikawa, who helped Johnson's cause with three hits and flipped over the railing and into the first row of stands down the right-field line to catch a foul ball in the second inning. "For me especially, it's gratifying, just because as a kid (in the Seattle area) I grew up watching him. ... I'll just be very blessed and fortunate to be part of that when it happens."

No. 300 moved within striking distance on a night when the 6-foot-10 Johnson and Nationals

6-foot-9 right-hander Daniel Cabrera created the tallest starting pitching matchup in major league history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. But neither pitcher could avoid a short outing in a game that also saw Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman extended his hitting streak to 29 games.

Johnson (3-3) tied a season high with nine strikeouts in just five innings and didn't walk a batter, but he was less than pleased with his performance. Johnson allowed a season-high three home runs and was removed after the first three batters he faced in the sixth inning reached base. In all, Johnson was charged with four runs.

"I just want to pitch good games," said Johnson. "I'm not making a big thing about (reaching 300 wins) and my stance hasn't really changed. I came here to win games, and hopefully we'll win enough to win the West."

Johnson was most frustrated with the long balls. He's allowed five in the past two games and 10 in seven starts.

"I'm on pace to probably catch Barry (Bonds) in home runs giving them up, that is," Johnson said.

Washington, which has the worst record in Baseball, made things interesting by scoring three runs in the ninth on a three-run homer by Zimmerman and had two runners on with two out when closer Brian Wilson had to be called from the bullpen. Wilson, who had a two-inning win the previous day in L.A., earned his fifth save of the season by striking out Josh Willingham on three straight pitches.

"It's something that's great for him, it's great for the Giants ," Wilson said. "He's two away. It's fun doing the countdown and it'll be fun having the celebration for him."

The Giants chased Cabrera in the fifth inning after he walked four consecutive batters the final two with the bases loaded.

The 11 runs were the most since the Giants scored since beating the Milwaukee Brewers 10-6 on Opening Day, and came on a day when manager Bruce Bochy shook up the lineup for the opener of the seven-game homestand. Hot-hitting second baseman Emmanuel Burriss moved to the leadoff spot and slumping left fielder Fred Lewis went to the seven hole.

The new-look alignment clearly paid dividends, although Cabrera's erratic command and a wind-aided fielding gaffe by left fielder Willingham that sparked a five-run fifth inning certainly helped. The victory could have been even more lopsided the Giants left 11 runners on base and hit into one double play.

"We've talked about this, we need production from throughout the order," Bochy said. "We got that today."

The Giants had runners on base at seemingly every turn and managed to build on the momentum of a just-completed road series victory over the Dodgers (and winning trip).

Randy Winn, who hit .321 on the trip, sparked the first Giants rally with a one-out single in the second inning and scored on a wild pitch a preview of Cabrera's control issues. Lewis scored the go-ahead run on Ishikawa's RBI single later in the frame.

The hit snapped an 0-for-17 slump but wasn't Ishikawa's biggest contribution of the night. That came in the fifth, when he was intentionally walked starting a run of five straight walks that turned a 3-2 game into a blowout.

"I'm glad I could set the tone," Ishikawa joked. Giants 11,Nationals 7TODAY: Nationals (Jordan Zimmermann 2-1) at Giants (Matt Cain, 3-1), 7:15 p.m. TV: CSNBA. Radio: 680-AMINSIDE Brian Wilson won't forget Casey Blake's gesture. Page 3