Entering Friday night, the Washington Nationals’ starting nine had been shut out in three of their last five games. Of all the Nationals lineups to be penciled into the record books, this one was rather unlikely to set a franchise record for most runs in a game. The Nats did exactly that, delivering a 17-5 win over the Baltimore Orioles to kick off their first interleague series of the season.
Nationals Vs. Orioles: Nats Punish Geographical Rival With Record-Breaking 17-5 Win
The Nationals scored as many runs as they had in their previous six games combined to rout the Orioles and set a franchise record.
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Second baseman Danny Espinosa went 3-for-4 and led his team with five RBI, while right fielder Jayson Werth hit his seventh and eighth home runs of the season. When Nationals starter Jason Marquis left the game after the fourth inning, the Nats held a slim 6-5 lead, but the Orioles’ wheels fell off once their bullpen took stewardship of the game.
Jason Berken surrendered six runs in an awful fifth inning that saw the Nationals hit two home runs and a triple. All five pitchers who appeared for Baltimore -- starter Jake Arrieta, Berken, Clay Rapada, Mike Gonzalez, and Kevin Gregg -- gave up at least a run.
After this win, the Nationals improve to 21-23 on the year and sit six games out of the N.L. East-leading Phillies. The Orioles also remain in the cellar; at 19-24, Baltimore trails the Rays by five games in the A.L. East.
Nationals run record information via MASN’s Ben Goessling.
For more on these teams, check out SB Nation’s Nationals blog, Federal Baseball, and our Orioles blog, Camden Chat.
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