The Washington Nationals experienced a challenging outing on Sunday, falling 6-2 to the visiting Miami Marlins despite a promising performance from rookie Andrew Alvarez and a notable positional shift for CJ Abrams. The game marked Abrams’s first appearance at second base for Washington, an adjustment prompted by the Nationals’ decision to transition him away from shortstop.
Abrams, who had been the team’s starting shortstop this season and earned a spot in the All-Star Game, took over second base duties while Nasim Nunez assumed the shortstop role. The move, initially announced over two weeks ago, was expedited to give Abrams time to adapt during the offseason. Abrams had 19 errors and a minus-12 in fielding runs at shortstop this year, ranking among the lowest defensively at the position.
Despite the shift, Abrams performed competently at second base. He contributed to a double play in the second inning alongside Nunez and Andrés Chaparro and made several routine plays cleanly. Manager Blake Butera praised Abrams’s defensive efforts, particularly highlighting a difficult catch on a soft line drive by Estuery Ruiz in the sixth inning. Abrams remains optimistic about the switch but envisions shortstop as his long-term position. Meanwhile, the Nationals have two promising shortstop prospects—Seaver King at Triple-A Rochester and 18-year-old Eli Willits at High-A Wilmington—who could push for major league roles in the next couple of years. Nunez, considered one of the most reliable defenders on the team, continues to fill the shortstop spot.
On the mound, Alvarez delivered his best start yet, pitching six scoreless innings with six strikeouts and limiting Miami’s hard contact. Clayton Beeter followed with two scoreless innings, preserving a 2-0 lead for Washington. The Nationals’ offense produced two runs: an RBI double by Nunez in the fifth inning and a sacrifice fly by Daylen Lile in the eighth.
However, the bullpen collapsed in the ninth inning, allowing six runs and erasing the lead. Max Kranick entered and loaded the bases through a bunt single and two walks. Reliever Tom Cosgrove then allowed a run on a hit-by-pitch and a sacrifice fly, tying the game. Subsequently, a miscommunication on a fly ball threw the defense into disarray, leading to Miami taking the lead. Cosgrove admitted to misplaying the situation by failing to cover key bases and being slow to react. Additional miscues, including a double steal and a home run off a fastball by Otto Lopez into the bullpen, extended the Marlins' lead to 6-2.
The inning ended with the Nationals heavily booed by the remaining fans, and Cosgrove called the performance “just a straight-up embarrassing inning.”
In other team news, two-time All-Star James Wood returned to game action in a rehab assignment with Double-A Harrisburg. Wood played six innings in left field, marking his first appearance since an oblique strain landed him on the injured list earlier in August.
The Nationals now hold a 65-74 record and have yet to secure a four-game winning streak in more than two months. The bullpen’s ongoing struggles remain a hurdle as the team looks ahead to finishing the season.