Instant Analysis: Nats 3, Orioles 2
Daylen Lile once again supplied the offense, and the pitching staff hung on despite a harrowing top of the ninth to beat Baltimore
In a quarter of a season defined by some unexpected results, the Nationals found a new unlikely pitching tandem tonight to lead them to victory: Zack Littell and Andrew Alvarez. Those two combined to hold the Orioles scoreless for eight innings before Gus Varland and Richard Lovelady hung on for dear life in the ninth to give a sellout crowd of 38,912 plenty of reason to celebrate beyond the tens of thousands of hot dogs they consumed.
Given the opportunity to start instead of following an opener, Littell gave the Nats his best outing of the season, tossing five scoreless innings on 87 pitches while pitching his way out of a couple of jams. And just as they planned from the outset of the day, the Nationals had Alvarez (just recalled from Triple-A Rochester) piggyback Littell and continue the lights-out pitching performance with three scoreless innings of his own.
Alvarez got the chance to take the mound for the ninth, but manager Blake Butera turned to Varland after the first two Baltimore batters reached. Varland issued a walk of his own to load the bases but immediately rebounded to retire the next two batters (allowing one inherited runner to score). Lovelady then entered to face Gunnar Henderson and surrendered an RBI single before walking Taylor Ward. With the bases loaded and two out, the lefty buckled down and struck out Adley Rutschmann to end the game.
Shane Baz didn’t have to work nearly as hard, the Orioles right-hander throwing a scant 55 pitches through his first five innings. But the Nationals manufactured a run off him in the fourth with singles by CJ Abrams and Daylen Lile and a sacrifice fly by Brady House. Lile then provided the big blast during a prolonged bottom of the sixth: a two-run homer to right (his third in four days) to extend the lead to 3-0.
That’s all the offense the Nats mustered on Hot Dog Night. But that’s all they needed thanks to their pitching staff.
HITTING HIGHLIGHT: For the third time in four days, Lile gets the honor. And why wouldn’t he, given what he’s done during that stretch. With a three-hit night, he’s now 10 for his last 21 with six extra-base hits. And he did it all tonight, doubling in the second, singling in the fourth and then homering in the sixth. He’s still seeking his first triple of the season, ironic given the fact he tied the club record with 11 of them in 2025 despite being in the big leagues only half the season. But nobody’s complaining about that right now, because Lile is more than contributing in the slugging department.
PITCHING HIGHLIGHT: It felt like Blake Butera was taking a gamble not using an opener in front of Littell, especially considering the Orioles’ struggles against left-handers. But the manager was rewarded for his show of faith in the veteran right-hander, who churned out five scoreless innings in his best start of the season. Littell threw way more four-seam fastballs than usual (43 percent vs. 25 percent) and his average velocity was up from 91 to 92 mph. He did give up some loud contact, with four drives to the warning track that were caught, but he got the job done and kept anybody from crossing the plate while he was on the mound. Is this a sign of more to come? Who knows. But on this night, Littell did exactly what the Nats needed.
NOTABLE: Alvarez has now pitched in seven MLB games since last September. He’s delivered a 2.05 ERA and 1.109 WHIP over 30 2/3 total innings.
UP NEXT: Game 2 of the weekend series will see Cade Cavalli on the mound for his 10th start of the season against Orioles right-hander Chris Bassitt. It’s also Alex Ovechkin bobblehead day. TV: Nationals TV/FS1 RADIO: 106.7 FM
Luck was a Lovelady tonight!
"That’s all the offense the Nats mustered on Hot Dog Night." But the Os couldn't catch up!