Nationals vs Giants Recap: Wood, Lile pace 6-3 win

The Nationals stepped off the bus ready to fight back. They'd lost the night before to the Giants 4-3, and they wanted revenge. The Giants' pitcher Adrian Houser took the mound at Oracle Park in San Francisco. Luis Garcia Jr. came up swinging in the first inning with Wood on base. Houser threw an 81-mile-per-hour curve and Garcia Jr. launched it. The ball rocketed to right field and cleared the wall. Two runs scored instantly. The Nationals had the early lead 2-0 and the energy was all theirs. Washington's rebuild was starting to show real teeth. Young sluggers like Garcia Jr. were stepping up when it mattered most.

The Giants couldn't let Washington run away. In the fifth inning, things got tense. Sam Hentges pitched to James Wood. Wood singled to left and Jacob Young raced home. The Nationals pushed their lead to 3-0. But San Francisco answered right back in their half of the fifth. Brad Lord threw a fastball to Jung Hoo Lee. Lee's bat flicked and the ball sailed to right field. Two runners scored on the double. Suddenly the score was 3-2 and the Giants had momentum. The game was becoming a real battle. Both teams had weapons. Neither wanted to back down.

The seventh inning was pure chaos for San Francisco. With runners scattered around the bases, Erik Miller's pitches got away from him. A wild pitch meant Jacob Young sprinted home. Wood stayed at third. Washington added another run when Dylan Smith came in and walked Daylen Lile with the bases loaded. Wood scored again. The Nationals had stretched their lead to 5-2. In the ninth, Lile tripled to center and CJ Abrams scored to make it 6-2. The Giants fought back in their ninth with Bryce Eldridge smacking a 98-mile-per-hour fastball over the center field fence. His solo shot made it 6-3. But that was all San Francisco could manage. Washington took the game 6-3. The Nationals improved to 36-33 and won their third straight.