Washington Nationals bullpen cracks again as they drop three out of four to the Braves
James Wood and CJ Abrams homered, while Cade Cavalli had his best start of the season, but it was not enough to win
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 23: Ozzie Albies #1 of the Atlanta Braves slide safely into home to score a run in the seventh inning during the game between the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on Thursday, April 23, 2026 in Washington, District of Columbia. (Photo by Alyssa Piazza/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images For the Nats big name players, today was a productive game. However, it did not come in a winning effort, with the Nats dropping this one 7-2.
In a surprise to absolutely nobody, the bullpen could not hold down the fort. Cionel Perez and Gus Varland did not have it in a damaging 7th inning for the Nats. The Nats were facing JR Ritchie, who was making his MLB debut.
James Wood gave him quite the rude introduction by sending Ritchie’s first ever MLB pitch over the wall. The wide eyed 22 year old managed to shake that off and cool off this red hot Nats offense though. Ritchie went 7 innings, only allowing two runs in an impressive performance.
James Wood slugs a first-pitch leadoff homer! He's hit 5 home runs in his last 7 games 💪 pic. twitter.