The Washington Nationals have evened the series against the Texas Rangers, ended a four game losing streak, picked up the first road win since Aug. 5 and second shutout win of the month after downing the Texas Rangers, 6-0, on Wednesday night.
Cade Cavalli picked up his 11th win of the season after tossing 11 strikeouts, the second consecutive start and fifth in his career that he has eclipsed double digit strikeouts in a game. His 73 strikeouts since June 30 are now tied with two players for the most across all of baseball.
Andres Chaparro led the way in the win after going 3-for-4 with three RBIs in the win, while Jose Tena went 2-for-3 with a solo home run.
That home run came in the top of the third inning with two outs to kick off the game's scoring before Keibert Ruiz drove in the second consecutive hit to start the fourth inning after his single into right field brought in Andres Chaparro.
Cavalli would then retire the side in the fourth inning courtesy of a pair of strikeouts, then end the fifth inning thanks to three consecutive groundouts.
The Nationals would then add to their lead in the sixth inning after Chaparro then Ruiz reached base, setting Jacob Young up for a sac bunt that loaded the bases. A groundout back to the pitcher was enough to drive in Chaparro, making it a 3-0 contest, before the Nationals doubled their lead the following inning.
After CJ Abrams opened the seventh with a groundout, Abimelec Ortiz then Jose Tena drew walks before a Daylen Lile groundout notched the second out of the inning. But Chaparro would then clear the bases after taking an 88 mph slider 397 feet over the left field wall for the game's final runs and extend the lead to 6-0.
Will Dion would then come in to replace Cavalli in the seventh inning before Max Kranick stepped in during the eighth, combining to allow just one hit across 24 pitches in two innings. Jake Bird then came out to record a clean ninth inning to cement the drama-free win, setting up the rubber match for Thursday.
With the win moving the Nationals to 61-67 overall this season, Andrew Alvarez is set to take the mound on Thursday with first pitch set for 8:05 PM.
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