Four home runs from the Reds weren't enough. The Nationals matched the power with two long balls of their own at the right moments, and that was the difference in a 5-3 win over Cincinnati at Nationals Park.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIN | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
| WSH | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 5 | 7 | 0 |
Daylen Lile was at the center of it, going 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and three RBI. His blast set the tone before the Reds could even settle in, and it stood as the biggest offensive contribution of the night for either side.
Washington broke it open immediately. Lile homered to right in the first inning, with Abrams and House scoring ahead of him, and the Nationals never trailed. Cincinnati answered with solo shots from Suarez in the second and McLain in the third, and Elly De La Cruz tied it at 3-3 with a homer to left later in the third. But Washington reclaimed the lead for good in the fourth when Harry Ford homered to center and Lile scored ahead of him, making it 5-3.
Chase Petty didn't factor into the decision after allowing 3 runs (2 earned) in 1.2 innings, and the Reds bullpen worked 6.1 innings behind him, allowing 2 runs. Julian Robert Garcia took the loss, charged with 2 runs on 2 hits over 2.1 innings, falling to 2-3 on the season with a 2.74 ERA. Cade Cavalli went 6.0 innings for Washington, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits with 8 strikeouts, improving to 9-5 with a 3.57 ERA, and Clayton Beeter closed it out with a scoreless inning for his 12th save.
Eugenio Suarez went deep for Cincinnati and sits at 1,495 career hits, 5 shy of 1,500, and at 990 career RBI, 10 shy of 1,000. Washington improved to 57-61, snapping into a one-game winning streak, while Cincinnati fell to 56-59 with a one-game losing skid.