Game Thread #14: Milwaukee Brewers (8-5) vs. Washington Nationals (5-8)

Apr 5, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Kyle Harrison (52) delivers a pitch against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images On Friday evening, the Brewers dropped an ugly one, maybe their most painful loss of the young season. After Jake Bauers hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the first inning to respond to two early Nationals runs, it felt like Milwaukee might cruise.

But instead they were shut out for the next eight innings by the Nationals’ pitching staff—not exactly the ‘90s Braves over there—and fumbled the game away after a bit of a ninth-inning implosion. They’ll look to bounce back tonight behind Kyle Harrison, one of the brighter spots in what has been a mostly encouraging start to the season. Harrison is making his third start, and each of the first two have been good.

On March 30th, Harrison allowed one run to the Rays on four hits and one walk while striking out eight in five innings, though Milwaukee lost that game when the bullpen couldn’t hold the lead that Harrison left with. On April 5th, Harrison pitched 5 1/3 innings in Kansas City and allowed two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out six. He earned his first win of the season in that one, an 8-5 Brewers victory.

Washington counters with lefty Foster Griffin, who is back in the big leagues at age 30 after spending the last three seasons in Japan. Griffin came up through the Royals’ organization and made his brief major-league debut in 2020. But he was unable to nail down a spot in the majors, and after just nine big-league appearances across three seasons, he made the move to Japan, where he was a star for the Yomiuri Giants—in three seasons that covered 348 games, Griffin pitched to a 2.