DENVER — In a dramatic face-off, the Washington Nationals narrowly clutched a victory over the Colorado Rockies, concluding a high-scoring affair at 12-11 on Saturday. With tensions running high and a runner poised on third, Jordan Beck was caught on a called third strike delivered by Kyle Finnegan, sealing the Nationals’ win after almost squandering a significant 10-run advantage.
Dylan Crews delivered a standout performance, knocking two homers, gathering three hits, and crossing home plate four times. His aggressive offensive campaign was bolstered by James Wood, who drove in four runs with three hits, including a home run. Josh Bell also launched a homer, contributing to Washington’s commanding 12-2 lead by the seventh inning. The Nationals’ fleet of home runs all came at the expense of Rockies pitcher Chase Dollander.
In contrast, the Rockies have been grappling with a seven-game losing streak, plummeting to a league-worst 3-16 standing. However, they mounted a formidable comeback, rallying for an eight-run seventh inning that Beck crowned with a three-run triple off Washington reliever Jose A. Ferrer.
The ninth inning saw Finnegan work to preserve the Nationals’ lead, despite issuing a walk to Hunter Goodman and conceding a two-out RBI triple to Mickey Moniak, who ended the day with four RBIs. Nonetheless, Finnegan nailed the save – his seventh in as many chances – with Beck unable to swing, looking at a 1-2 fastball on the low, outside corner of the plate.
Starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore was instrumental for the Nationals, equaling his career-best with 13 strikeouts and yielding just two runs over six innings through four hits. Conversely, Colorado’s Chase Dollander struggled significantly, surrendering nine runs — six of which were earned — along with nine hits over four innings pitched.
A noteworthy moment in the contest occurred when Crews executed a spectacular head-first diving catch against Sean Bouchard to record the first out in the eighth inning.
For the Nationals, this prolific offensive outing marked their highest scoring game of the season, a notable recovery from a recent slump where they averaged just 2.8 runs over a six-game stretch prior to arriving in Denver.
Looking ahead, the series continues on Sunday with Nationals’ righty Jake Irvin (1-0, 3.91 ERA) set to face Rockies’ left-hander Kyle Freeland (0-3, 4.88) in the first game of a doubleheader. The second matchup will feature Washington’s right-handed pitcher Brad Lord (0-1, 4.82) against Colorado’s Antonio Senzatela (0-3, 5.89).