Down five runs and looking overmatched, the Washington Nationals turned two innings into a demolition. They scored 5 in the third and 6 in the fifth, buried Houston under a 12-6 lead, and then held on as the Astros made it uncomfortable before Clayton Beeter closed it out. Final: Washington 12, Houston 11.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOU | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 12 | 2 |
| WSH | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 12 | 13 | 0 |
James Wood was the engine. He finished 1-for-2 with three walks, a home run, and 4 RBI. In the fifth, his grand slam to center — 446 feet — capped the decisive six-run burst and pushed the lead to 12-6. He has 24 home runs and 60 RBI on the season. Curtis Mead matched his energy: 3-for-5 with a double, a home run, and 3 RBI. His solo shot to left-center in the fifth — 404 feet — was the go-ahead run, breaking a 6-6 tie. C. J. Abrams added 3-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBI; his three-run shot to right in the third erased a 6-3 deficit and tied the game at 6-6.
The comeback began in the third. Houston had pushed the lead to 6-1 on Yainer Diaz's two-run homer in the top half. Washington answered with five runs. García Jr. doubled to score Nuñez, Mead singled to score Wood, and then Abrams homered to right to score García Jr. and Mead and tie it at 6-6. The fifth was the knockout. Mead's go-ahead homer made it 7-6, Drew Millas's sacrifice fly scored Abrams to make it 8-6, and Wood's grand slam finished the inning at 12-6.
Houston starter Mike Burrows lasted just 4.1 innings, allowing 10 runs — 7 earned — on 9 hits. He falls to 4-9 with a 5.99 ERA. The Astros did not go quietly: Brice Matthews hit a three-run homer in the eighth to pull within 12-11, but Beeter entered and recorded the final outs for his seventh save of the season. Miles Mikolas earned the win, going 6 innings and allowing 7 runs on 9 hits, improving to 3-7 with a 5.78 ERA.
Christian Walker, who went 2-for-5 with a double for Houston, is one double away from 200 career doubles. Washington improved to 47-45. Houston fell to 45-48.