Behind Parker's eight-inning gem, Nats blank Orioles

Mitchell Parker’s Tuesday night actually got off to a rough start.

He walked Orioles leadoff man Cedric Mullins on four pitches, then elicited some Bronx cheers when he finally threw a strike to Adley Rutschman. Little did anyone realize what was still to come.

“It definitely wasn’t ideal,” the Nationals left-hander said with a sheepish grin. “But it basically ended up working out, so I can’t be too upset about it. But maybe we’re going to try to not do it next time.”

Maybe Parker should try to do it again, especially if it leads to the same end result he got this evening: eight scoreless innings of one-hit ball to lead his team to a dominant 7-0 win.

Building off the four quality starts he already had authored to begin the season, Parker took things to another level tonight with the best performance of his young career. The 25-year-old became the Nats’ first starter to complete eight innings since Jake Irvin last July 4. He surrendered one single and two walks. He retired the final 17 batters he faced.

And he ends the night the proud owner of a 3-1 record and 1.39 ERA, fourth-lowest in the National League.

“When he pounds that strike zone, he’s been tough,” manager Davey Martinez said. “He was all over the strike zone today. It puts those guys in swing-mode. We played good defense behind him. All around, it was a good day for us.”

On the heels of a long and disappointing, 4-6 road trip through Miami, Pittsburgh and Colorado, the Nationals needed some positivity tonight. They got it not only from their starting pitcher but also from the unconventional duo atop their lineup, right from the start.

James Wood, leading off for only the sixth time, opened the night with a laser down the left field line for a double. Nathaniel Lowe, batting second for the first time since 2022 with the Rangers, followed up with a no-doubt homer to right-center and a quick 2-0 lead.

Two batters in, the Nats had two more extra-base hits than they totaled across 18 innings of baseball Sunday at Coors Field. And they were far from done.

By night’s end, they had racked up 10 extra-base hits, a list that included a triple and two doubles by José Tena, two doubles by Keibert Ruiz, another by Jacob Young and a home run by Dylan Crews (the rookie’s third blast in four games and further evidence he’s snapping out of his early season funk).

“When you see your teammates out there getting extra-base hits, it kind of gives you extra motivation, as well, to go out there and do your job,” Tena said, via interpreter Kenny Diaz. “I think for sure, it’s definitely contagious.”

The biggest offensive star was the guy whose oversized bobblehead was given out at the ballpark tonight. Wood didn’t just collect three hits; he murdered three baseballs. Each of those hits – the leadoff double in the first, a single in the second, another double off the wall in the fifth – featured an exit velocity over 107 mph, the big slugger clearly looking comfortable at the plate against Orioles starter Dean Kremer.

“Before the game, I got (a bobblehead), and I put it right in the middle of my desk, and I patted him on the head. I said: ‘Go get him, buddy,’” Martinez shared. “And he had a good day. Good for him.”

Who benefited most from all that run support? The young lefty on the mound who took the lead and ran with it, never giving the opposition reason to believe it was going to mount a rally.

Following the unfortunate leadoff walk in the first, Parker proceeded to retire seven in a row before issuing a one-out walk to Jackson Holliday followed by a single to Mullins. And that’s all the Orioles would get against him. He retired the side in the fourth, the fifth, the sixth and the seventh, trotting off the mound to an ovation from the crowd and only 89 pitches to his name.

And with his team now leading 7-0, Martinez let his young starter take the mound for the eighth, with Cole Henry loosening up in the bullpen just in case. Henry wasn’t needed until the ninth, because Parker mowed down the bottom third of the Baltimore order with ease, capping it off with a beautiful slider to get Holliday looking, his 99th and final pitch of the night.

“I saw it from the first inning,” Ruiz said. “His stuff was sharp. His fastball command. He was doing everything. Getting ahead in the count. Making pitches to put away. He was really good today. I’m really happy for him.”

As the crowd gave him a standing ovation, Parker retreated to the home dugout, where high-fives and hugs awaited. Could he have come back out for a shot at the Nationals’ first shutout since Patrick Corbin on May 25, 2019, only the 22nd in club history? Perhaps. But was there reason to push it on April 22, 2025? Probably not.

Parker certainly wasn’t complaining after the best night of his career.

“It’s awesome,” Parker said. “That’s the first time I’ve gone that deep into a game. It’s definitely something to hold onto.”