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Nationals slugger James Wood breaks home run drought with massive bomb vs. Giants
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- Nationals slugger James Wood breaks home run drought with massive bomb vs. Giants
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James Wood wasted no time getting the Nationals on the board Sunday afternoon , launching an opposite-field leadoff homer for his first long ball since July 9. It was just his second game hitting out of the leadoff spot under interim manager Miguel Cairo, but Wood looked right at home, adding an RBI double later to fuel Washington's 4-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park.
The Nationals jumped on Giants top pitching prospect Carson Whisenhunt early. After Wood's first-inning blast, Paul DeJong and Josh Bell went back-to-back in the third inning with solo homers, pushing the lead to 3-0. All three long balls came off Whisenhunt's sinker — a pitch opponents had gone just 1-for-18 against in his first two starts. This time, the Nationals tagged him for four hits on the pitch and six batted balls at 103 mph or harder, including Bell's 107.8 mph shot. Whisenhunt lasted four innings, allowing three runs on five hits with three walks and five strikeouts.
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Brad Lord , meanwhile, delivered another quality outing for Washington . The rookie right-hander worked six strong innings, scattering four hits and two walks while striking out five. Lord navigated traffic in the middle innings but held San Francisco scoreless until Rafael Devers opened the bottom of the sixth with a solo homer — his 22nd of the season.
Nationals take Game 2 vs Giants
Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Washington answered back in the top of the frame when Wood roped a line-drive RBI double off reliever Carson Seymour , scoring Daylen Lile to make it 4-1.
The Giants had multiple chances to close the gap, loading the bases in both the third and eighth innings, but went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position. Their only other run came on Wilmer Flores ' sacrifice fly in the eighth, which cut the deficit to 4-2.
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That inning nearly unraveled the Nationals' bullpen. Cole Henry loaded the bases with one out, prompting Cairo to call on left-hander Jose A. Ferrer for a five-out save. Ferrer allowed Flores' sac fly but struck out Matt Chapman on a 99 mph sinker to escape further damage. He returned for the ninth, working around two baserunners to lock down his second career save.
"It was a good team win," Cairo said postgame. "Today they played together and made good plays. They hit well, and pitched well. … [Lord] is going to be a good starter for a long long time. … I put them in their best position to succeed."
Offensively, Wood, DeJong, and Bell did all the damage — combining for three homers, three multi-hit games, and all four RBIs.
The win sets up a rubber match on Monday afternoon, with MacKenzie Gore (4-12, 4.29 ERA) looking to rebound against veteran Justin Verlander (1-8, 4.29 ERA) in a duel of struggling aces. Washington will hope Gore can find his early-season form and help secure a series win on the road.
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