WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals pitcher Mitchell Parker assumed that concluding eight innings on 99 pitches signaled the end of his evening on Tuesday. Accordingly, the left-handed pitcher saw no reason to negotiate with manager Dave Martinez to extend his stay on the mound during the longest game of his major league career.
Despite not returning for the ninth inning, Parker’s contribution was a cornerstone in Washington’s emphatic 7-0 triumph against the Baltimore Orioles. His impressive performance featured only a single hit by Cedric Mullins in the third inning, alongside two walks and four strikeouts.
“We were executing our strategy all night by forcing them to hit where we wanted,” commented Parker. “Securing early fly balls and some soft contact was what truly made it work.”
Parker (3-1) successfully retired the last 17 hitters he encountered, lowering his ERA from 1.85 to 1.39. Having pitched at least six innings in each of his five starts this year, he seems to have cemented his place in Washington’s starting rotation. This follows a rookie year where he finished with a 7-10 record and a 4.29 ERA over 29 games.
Surpassing his previous longest outing of seven innings from last year, Parker efficiently concluded the eighth inning with merely 10 pitches, dispatching Jackson Holliday with a called third strike to wrap up his night.
“When he’s painting in the strike zone, he’s formidable,” said manager Martinez. “Today, he was commanding the strike zone really well and got batters into swing mode, which led to some crucial chases.”
However, Parker’s night didn’t start seamlessly as he began by walking Mullins on four pitches. Nevertheless, he managed to focus and retire the next seven batters before encountering a slight hurdle. Holliday drew a full-count walk, advancing to second on Mullins’ hit before Parker managed to dismiss Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson with just two pitches each.
Baltimore’s manager Brandon Hyde reflected on Parker’s style, noting, “He pitched similarly against us last season. His high-release fastball is deceptive, particularly to our lefties who struggled with his breaking balls. We didn’t make it challenging for him by working the count.”
Just over a year since becoming the first National to win his major league debut since Stephen Strasburg in 2010, Parker has filled the rotation spot left by Josiah Gray, who had limited appearances in 2024 due to an elbow issue. Now in his sophomore season, Parker restricts his opponents to a humble .167 average following his masterful showing against Baltimore.
“Consistency has always been the name of the game,” Parker reflected. “We are in a solid place, but continuous improvement is essential. There’s always something to fine-tune and improve upon.”