Game Details

• San Francisco Giants (29-21) vs. Washington Nationals (23-27)

• Pitching Matchup: RHP Landen Roupp (2-3, 4.11 ERA) vs. LHP MacKenzie Gore (2-4, 3.67 ERA)

• Date: Friday, May 23rd, 2025 | 6:45 p.m. EDT | Game: #52 | Home Game: #26

• Location: Nationals Park | Washington, D.C.

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Game storylines and notes

The Washington Nationals kick off a three-game series against the San Francisco Giants tonight. The Nationals will send LHP Mackenzie Gore to the mound with a 2-3 record and a 3.67 ERA. The Giants will send right-handed pitcher Landen Roupp, who also has a 2-3 record and a 4.11 ERA.

Game Recap
LAST GAME RECAP

Last night, Washington secured their second consecutive series sweep by defeating the Atlanta Braves 8-7 in a thrilling 10-inning walk-off victory. Amed Rosario delivered his seventh career walk-off hit last night, singling to drive in Robert Hassell III for the win. Hassell III made an impressive Major League debut, collecting a single in his first at-bat and finishing the game 2-for-5 with a stolen base and two runs scored. He became the first player in Nationals history (since 2005) to notch both a multi-hit game and a stolen base in his big league debut.

Washington Nationals Schedule
Up Next…

On Deck…

The Washington Nationals will play game two of three tomorow afternoon against the Giants with the first pitch scheduled to be at 4:05 p.m. EDT. The Nationals will send RHP Jake Irvin with a 3-1 recrord and a 3.88 ERA to the mound. Jake Irvin earned his first Major League victory on May 8, 2023, against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park, pitching a career-high 6⅓ innings. He allowed four hits, issued three walks, and struck out five batters while keeping the Giants scoreless in a 5-1 Nationals win. The Giants will send LHP Kyle Harrison to the mound who has a 0-0 record and a 3.38 ERA.

Kyle Harrison has faced the Washington Nationals twice in regular season play, pitching a total of 10.2 innings without recording a win or loss and maintaining a 4.22 ERA. During these appearances, he struck out 11 batters and did not issue a walk, demonstrating strong control against the Nationals lineup. In the 2024 season, Harrison has been a key starter for the San Francisco Giants, compiling a 6-5 record with a 4.09 ERA and 94 strikeouts over 101⅓ innings pitched, including six quality starts and multiple outings of five or more innings. Against the Nationals specifically in 2024, he pitched six innings, allowing three earned runs on five hits while striking out eight, showing effectiveness despite the Nationals’ solid hitting performance overall. Harrison's command and strikeout ability make him a challenging opponent for Washington’s hitters, who have had mixed success against him in limited at-bats.

In the hole..

The Nationals will finish thier homestand and thier three-game series against the Giants on Sunday afternoon with the scheduled first pitch at 1:05 p.m. The probable starter for the Nationals will be RHP Michael Soroka (1-2, 5.95) and LHP Robbie Ray (6-0, 2.67) for the Giants.

Closing Time

The Nationals’ bullpen has been a strength over the past week, allowing just seven earned runs across 29.1 innings for a 2.15 ERA. During this stretch, relievers have struck out 20 and surrendered only five extra-base hits (three doubles, two home runs). Cole Henry has been especially effective, delivering scoreless relief in 14 of his 15 appearances this season. Opponents are hitting just .164 (10-for-61) against him, and he’s racked up 18 strikeouts with seven walks in 17.1 innings. Over his last nine outings, Henry has limited hitters to 2-for-32 (.063) and is currently riding a 7.0-inning hitless streak, last giving up a hit on May 7 against Cleveland.

Jackson Rutledge has also been a key contributor, posting a 1.72 ERA (three earned runs in 15.2 innings) with 15 strikeouts and five walks over his last 12 outings, while allowing just three extra-base hits (all doubles). Rutledge picked up his first win of the season last night, stranding the placed runner in the 10th inning. Closer Kyle Finnegan is tied for second in MLB with 15 saves, having worked 14 scoreless outings and converting 15 of 18 save opportunities

Put a CURLY W in the books

The Nationals are riding a season-high five-game winning streak, their longest since June 7-12, 2024, and have now won six of their last seven contests. Over this stretch, Washington’s offense has been on a tear, scoring 44 runs—an average of 6.29 per game—while slashing .280/.354/.475 as a team.

The Nationals haven’t won six straight since their eight-game run from September 23-29, 2019. A key to their recent success has been fast starts: the Nationals have plated 23 runs in the first two innings over their last four games, including seven runs in each of the weekend games at Baltimore, four runs on Tuesday against Atlanta, and five more in Thursday’s series finale with the Braves.

The Best of the West

The Nationals have played three series against National League West opponents this season and have won two out of three games in each, posting a 6-3 overall record. They took two games from the Diamondbacks at home on April 5-6, extended their winning streak by defeating the Dodgers twice on April 7-8, and later claimed two victories over the Rockies at Coors Field on April 19-20..

On the mound for the Washington Nationals
MacKenzie Gore

In his most recent outing on May 16 at Baltimore, MacKenzie Gore struck out nine batters over 3.2 innings, allowing two runs on 10 hits but did not factor into the decision as Washington rallied for a 4-3 victory.

His curveball has been especially dominant, generating a 51.0% whiff rate, the highest among MLB starters and second-best overall, while opponents are batting just .207 (12-for-58) with a .362 slugging percentage against the pitch.

vs. the Giants

Gore is set to face the Giants for the fifth time in his career; in his previous four starts against San Francisco, he holds a 3-1 record with a 6.05 ERA (13 earned runs in 19.1 innings) and has tallied 22 strikeouts. This season, Gore leads all Major League pitchers with 84 strikeouts, averaging 13.42 strikeouts per nine innings and posting a 35.6% strikeout rate—both tops in MLB.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS BY THE NUMBERS

The Washington Nationals have the following records.

• Day: 10-14 | Night: 13-13 | Home Record: 12-12 | Road Record: 11-15 

• Month Record: 10-9 | Current Streak: W5 | Previous Month Record: 12-15

• A.L. Teams: 6-6 | N.L. Teams: 17-21 | N.L. West: 6-3

• vs. LHSP: | vs. RHSP:

• Series Opener: | Series Opener at Home: | By Series: 0-0-0

• Walk-off Wins: 3

• White Script Nationals: 3-4 | Red Curly W: 2-0| City Connect: 3-5 | Blue Jersey: | Road Gray: 6-10 | 42: 1-0

Opposition Research 
San Francisco Giants

The Giants come into today’s game with a 29-21 record through their first 50 games, marking their strongest start since 2021, when they went 30-20 over the same span and ultimately set a franchise record with 107 wins. In franchise history, San Francisco has reached at least 29 wins in their first 50 games seven times over the past few decades (1997, 2002-03, 2014-16, 2021), and in all but one of those seasons (2015), the team secured a postseason berth.

The Giants’ pitching staff has been a major factor in their early success, posting a 3.34 ERA that ranks fifth in the majors and second in the National League, trailing only the Mets (2.82). According to Stats, LLC, this is just the third time in the last 35 years that San Francisco has combined at least 29 wins with a sub-3.50 ERA through 50 games, a feat previously achieved in 2021 (30 wins, 3.28 ERA) and 2014 (32 wins, 3.07 ERA).

vs. The Washington Nationals

Each of the last 23 meetings between the Giants and Nationals, dating back to June 13, 2021, has been decided by multiple runs, making this the second-longest active streak of its kind between two MLB teams. Only the Mariners and Padres have a longer current streak, with 24 consecutive multi-run games. According to Stats, LLC, this is also the longest such streak the Giants have ever had against a single opponent in franchise history.

ON THE MOUND FOR THE VISITORS
Landen Roupp

Right-hander Landen Roupp will make his 10th start of the season for the Giants today. After posting a 5.10 ERA over six April outings, Roupp has rebounded with a 2.25 ERA (four earned runs in 16 innings) across three starts this month. He has opened his big league career with 13 consecutive starts featuring multiple strikeouts and no hit batters—a streak surpassed in franchise history only by Noah Lowry (17 starts in 2004-05) and Tim Lincecum (16 in 2007), according to Stats, LLC. Roupp relies heavily on his curveball, throwing it 42.1% of the time—the highest rate in the majors among pitchers with at least 500 total pitches. Opponents are batting just .176 (13-for-74) with a 43.3% whiff rate against his curve, while the Nationals have hit .209 against curveballs this season

vs. Washington Nationals

Landen Roupp has made two regular-season appearances against the Washington Nationals, pitching 1.2 innings. During these outings, he did not record a win or a loss and was not credited with a save. Roupp posted a 10.80 ERA, striking out one batter and issuing one walk in his limited action.