WASHINGTON -- Edwin Jackson, a 15-year major league veteran, knew what was at stake Sunday night when he took the mound for the Washington Nationals in the second game of a doubleheader against the Colorado Rockies.

The Nationals used four relievers while losing the opener.

Jackson delivered the length needed to protect the pitching staff, throwing seven strong innings as the Nationals defeated the Rockies 3-1 to salvage a split of the twin-bill.

"I knew today after a tough first game where the bullpen came in and picked up a lot of slack that it was imperative that I go out and eat innings and come out aggressive from the start and pick the bullpen up because we definitely needed it," Jackson said. "It was one of those days where as a starter -- I mean you want to go deep into games anyway, but it was a do-or-die kind of start to go out and eat up innings and save the bullpen."

Adam Lind and Brian Goodwin both homered in the fifth inning as the Nationals avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of Colorado.

The Rockies nonetheless earned their first road series victory since taking three of four from the Chicago Cubs on June 8-11. Colorado had dropped its previous six road series.

The Rockies won the first game of the doubleheader 10-6, as Ryan Zimmerman hit two home runs. Nationals starter Erick Fedde made his major league debut in that game but allowed seven runs (five earned) in four innings.

"We had a tough series in St. Louis, and to win a series in Washington against a really good team, it feels good," Colorado third baseman Nolan Arenado said. "We have a long ways to go -- August, September. We have a lot of baseball games to start playing the baseball we know we can play."

Jackson (2-1) matched his longest outing of the season, allowing a run on four hits and two walks while throwing 112 pitches. He struck out six and lowered his ERA to 2.84 in three starts for the Nationals.

Ryan Madson pitched a perfect eighth inning, and Sean Doolittle retired the Rockies in order in the ninth to earn his third save in as many opportunities with the Nationals.

"Not only we won the game today, but it put my bullpen back into relative shape tomorrow and the ensuing days," said Washington manager Dusty Baker, whose team begins a three-game series at Miami on Monday. "That was big. Now we can pitch and play three days to the next off day on Thursday."

During the game, Colorado announced it had acquired catcher Jonathan Lucroy in a trade from Texas for a player to be named. Lucroy, who played his entire career with Milwaukee prior to an Aug. 1 trade to the Rangers last year, was hitting .242 with four homers and 27 RBIs in 77 games this season.

"Getting Jonathan gives us a guy with some veteran presence behind the plate, just like Ryan Hanigan, as our young starters go into uncharted territory in the next two months," Colorado manager Bud Black said. "His track record is pretty good. The guy's an All-Star. He's had success in the major leagues both offensively and defensively, so we should feel good about this one. ... To get this type of player, it's going to pick everybody up."

Rockies right-hander Jon Gray (3-2) turned in his longest outing of 2017, giving up four hits and one walk over seven innings while striking out eight. However, he encountered trouble in one inning, and the Nationals' three-run fifth proved costly.

Lind gave Washington its first lead of the three-game series, belting a two-run homer to left off Gray in the fifth. Goodwin followed two hitters later with a solo shot to left to make it 3-1.

"I think I just got behind, not using the curveball well and not throwing it for strikes early in the count," Gray said. "It limited me to one pitch, and I think guys were able to sit on that and look for a fastball away. If I get ahead, I have more options and I don't have to go to that necessarily. But they put a good swing on that, both of them, and took care of it."

The homers were enough to back Jackson, who signed with the Washington organization on June 16 and made his Nationals debut July 18.

"He did great tonight," Lind said. "I think any team, that's every team over the course of the summer, there's so many games, especially being bit of an older roster, you need a lot of depth and need to rely on waiver claims and your minor league system. It's nice that this system has that type of depth."

Both teams rested key regulars in the nightcap. Outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, second baseman DJ LeMahieu and shortstop Trevor Story were out of the Rockies' lineup, while outfielder Bryce Harper and first baseman Zimmerman got breathers for the Nationals. Both Story and Harper were used as pinch hitters in the night game.

Gray became the second Colorado pitcher in as many nights to take a perfect game beyond the fourth inning, after German Marquez set down the first 16 hitters in the Rockies' 4-2 victory over Washington on Saturday. However, third baseman Anthony Rendon led off the fifth with a single to left to give the Nationals their first baserunner of the game and set up Lind's homer a batter later.

"He pitched six no-hit innings, and one inning they got the four hits against him," Black said. "It just looked as though the fastball got out over the plate to both those fellas."

In the opener, Arenado and LeMahieu both had three hits and two RBIs, Charlie Blackmon had four hits and Kyle Freeland (11-7) pitched five innings in the Colorado win.

Zimmerman drove in four runs during his fourth multi-homer game this season. He has hit 24 homers this year.

NOTES: Colorado placed LHP Jake McGee (mid-back strain) on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to July 27. To replace McGee on the active roster, the Rockies recalled LHP Zac Rosscup from Triple-A Albuquerque. ... Colorado added RHP Carlos Estevez as its 26th man for the doubleheader. Estevez, who was optioned to Albuquerque on Saturday, is 4-0 with an 8.10 ERA in five stints with the Rockies this season. ... Washington recalled C Pedro Severino from Triple-A Syracuse as its 26th man. ... The Nationals released OF Chris Heisey, who was on the DL with a left groin strain, to open a spot on the 40-man roster for RHP Erick Fedde, who started the opener. ... Nationals 2B Daniel Murphy was out of the lineup for the opener of the doubleheader, the first game he didn't start since July 14. Murphy pinch-hit in the sixth and remained in the game, then started the nightcap and went 0-for-3.