The lead changed hands twice before Washington finally pulled away, riding the long ball at altitude to a 7-3 win over Colorado at Coors Field. Home runs by three different Nationals decided the shape of the game, and a shutout bullpen finished the job.

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Andres Chaparro set the tone in the first inning, launching a three-run homer to left center that gave Washington an early 3-0 lead. He finished 1-for-3 with the three RBIs, part of a season in which he carries a .215 average with 4 home runs and 18 RBIs. Jacob Young was the busiest bat in the lineup, going 3-for-4 with a home run and an RBI, while C. J. Abrams added a homer of his own and drove in two runs on a 1-for-5 night.

Colorado briefly tied the game in the third when Willi Castro doubled to center, scoring McCarthy, Rumfield and Carrigg all at once to level things at 3-3. The tie held only until the sixth, when Young's solo homer to left center put Washington back in front for good at 4-3. Abrams added insurance in the seventh with a two-run homer to right center that also brought home Lile, and Lile added another run himself in the ninth, tripling to right to score Wood and cap the scoring at 7-3.

Kyle Freeland took the loss for Colorado, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits over 6.0 innings with 2 walks and 4 strikeouts, dropping to 2-9 with a 7.28 ERA. Washington's bullpen was airtight behind him, with Riley Cornelio picking up the win after 1.2 scoreless innings and Tom Cosgrove closing it out with 2.0 perfect innings to earn the save. Colorado's own bullpen surrendered 3 runs over 3.0 innings, unable to slow the Nationals' offense once Freeland departed.

The result improved Washington to 51-50, extending its winning streak to two games and lifting the club to fourth in its division. Colorado fell to 40-62, its second straight loss, sitting fifth in the division.

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