Baltimore — The Washington Nationals suffered their fourth consecutive loss Friday, falling 3-1 to the Baltimore Orioles in the opening game of the Beltway Series. Despite the defeat, the Nationals’ bullpen continued its recent trend of holding opponents in check, although the team’s offense was unable to capitalize on scoring opportunities against Orioles left-hander Trevor Rogers.
Washington’s hitters managed just five total hits and went 2 for 9 with runners in scoring position, failing to overcome Rogers’ effective pitching. Nationals Manager Blake Butera acknowledged Rogers’ strong performance, noting that the left-hander’s fastball showed more life than expected. “I thought Rogers threw the ball really well for them,” Butera said. “It’s a blip, uncharacteristic with the way we’ve been scoring runs. Expect these guys to be ready to go tomorrow.”
The loss follows a challenging stretch for the Nationals, who dropped three winnable games at home against the Philadelphia Phillies after late-inning collapses. The team has expressed frustration and disbelief over the setbacks. Between Thursday night and Friday morning, Butera met with players in small groups and individually, addressing the team’s struggles with a mix of encouragement and tough messages. He emphasized to the bullpen that despite the recent difficulties, he would continue to rely on them, urging the pitchers to seize their opportunities.
“There’s been guys who had a lot of failures earlier in their career who were able to, after getting multiple opportunities and figuring things out, ended up being really good pitchers,” Butera said. “I think we have some here that have an opportunity in front of them. What they do with that opportunity is 100 percent up to them.”
Starting pitcher Andrew Alvarez worked into the fifth inning, allowing two runs in the fourth on an RBI single from Blaze Alexander. Alvarez, who struggled with efficiency, reached 88 pitches with one out in the fifth. Butera chose to remove him rather than have him face Pete Alonso for a third time. “Just got to keep battling,” Alvarez said. “Wanted to get back in the win column tonight, but we’re grinding.”
Reliever Brad Lord, making his first appearance since surrendering six runs in the ninth inning earlier this week, took over and pitched 2 2/3 innings. He allowed a run in the seventh on a double by Coby Mayo but was otherwise steady. “I didn’t want to put too much stock into that one bad outing. He’s been so good for us all year,” Butera said. “Thought he threw the ball great, picked us up in a big spot.”
In the eighth inning, newly called-up Zak Kent relieved Lord. Kent, who was promoted from Class AAA Rochester to replace Gus Varland after Varland’s poor outing Thursday, walked Alexander and allowed a fielding error but escaped without allowing any runs.
The Nationals’ offense failed to mount a rally in the ninth against Orioles closer Ryan Helsley, who retired the side in order. CJ Abrams, still battling left side tightness, went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts. James Wood recorded one hit in four at-bats, striking out twice. The Nationals now look to regroup as they prepare for the next game of the series.