The Minnesota Twins suffered a tough 15-2 loss to the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night, a game that started promisingly but quickly unraveled. Starting pitcher Bailey Ober opened with three flawless innings, efficiently working through the Nationals' lineup. However, his command faltered in the fourth after a James Wood single, leading to a walk and a game-tying double from CJ Abrams. The fifth inning saw Drew Millas—who hadn't hit a home run all season—launch a two-run shot, and Ober exited in the sixth after allowing back-to-back doubles. In total, Ober surrendered five runs over five-plus innings.
"I feel like I started getting away from my release," Ober reflected. "I had trouble locating it as the game went on. Even in those first three quick innings, I wasn't locating as well as I have in recent starts. It might have been timing or mechanics—I just didn't feel great mechanically in the later frames."
The Nationals showcased a balanced attack, with CJ Abrams driving in five runs—four on a grand slam in the eighth—while Brady House added three RBIs, and both James Wood and Drew Millas chipped in two apiece. For the Twins, outfielder Matt Wallner was a bright spot, collecting two of the team's three hits, including an RBI single in the third to score Luke Keaschall and a solo home run in the fifth off starter Miles Mikolas.
"We need to get Wally going, so seeing him with two hits on Sunday and another two tonight is very encouraging," said manager Derek Shelton.
The game remained close until the sixth inning, when Washington pulled away with four extra-base hits. After Ober's pair of doubles, rookie Andrew Morris allowed another double and a triple, pushing the Nationals' lead to 6-2. From there, the bullpen struggled, surrendering 10 runs—including seven in the eighth inning alone.
"Tonight just wasn't our night," Shelton admitted. "It seemed like we couldn't execute a pitch or get anything to go right. We left too many balls over the middle of the plate."
Looking ahead, the Twins will turn to Simeon Woods Richardson (0-5, 6.49 ERA) in the series finale. Woods Richardson is aiming to rebound after allowing six runs (four earned) in a 7-3 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. The Twins have won just one game he's started this season. He'll face Jake Irvin (1-4, 4.93 ERA), a Bloomington, Minnesota native. Meanwhile, the team is encouraged by Joe Ryan's progress, as he remains on track for a return.