BALTIMORE (AP) — Luis Garcia Jr. had two RBIs to fuel a six-run first inning and the Washington Nationals defeated Baltimore 10-6 on Saturday, hours after the Orioles fired manager Brandon Hyde.
Soon after arriving at the ballpark, the Orioles learned the team dismissed Hyde and made third base coach Tony Mansolino the interim manager. Hyde guided Baltimore into the postseason in 2023 and 2024, but this year the Orioles started 15-28 and were mired in last place in the AL East when general manager Mike Elias decided to make a change.
It didn’t help Saturday. In the top of the first inning, Nationals leadoff hitter CJ Abrams hustled to second base on a routine single, Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins misjudged a flyball that soared over his head and Washington scored four runs before Baltimore recorded a single out.
The key blow was Garcia’s two-run single, but there were also two doubles and a triple. The first six players in the batting order scored in Washington’s first six-run first inning since May 14, 2021, at Arizona.
In the bottom half, Jackson Holliday hit a leadoff double and never advanced. It was typical of a team that came in with a major league-low .192 batting average with runners in scoring position.
Kyle Gibson (0-3) gave up six runs and six hits while getting just two outs.
Nationals starter Jake Irvin (3-1) had a shutout until the Orioles closed to 7-2 in the seventh. Center fielder Jacob Young left the game after crashing into the wall chasing an RBI double by Ramón Laureano.
Holliday homered in a four-run ninth that made the score less lopsided.
Key moment
Mullins has made some brilliant catches this season, but his poor read on Keibert Ruiz’s liner resulted in a double that kept the merry-go-round turning in Washington’s big first inning.
Key stat
Washington has won four of five against the Orioles this year, outscoring them 26-14 to clinch its first season series win in this rivalry since 2018.
Up next
Nationals RHP Michael Soroka (0-2, 6.43 ERA) seeks his first win since July 2023 in the series finale Sunday. Zach Eflin (3-1, 3.13) starts for the Orioles.
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