PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 17 - ​The Washington Nationals lost game three in Pittsburgh last night by a score of 6-1, but not without some drama. Another great Mitchell Parker start was marred by a lack of offense, as well as a benches-clearing incident.​

Parker took the mound and continued his strong start to the season, allowing just one run on four hits over six innings while striking out six and walking one. The only mark was from the fifth inning when Pirates catcher Henry Davis launched his first home run of the season. It was a solo shot that hit off the left-field foul pole to give Pittsburgh a 1-0 lead, but Parker did not let it get to him. ​The game took a turn for the worse in the seventh inning. After Davis added to the Pirates' lead and put them up 2-0 with a groundout, Nationals reliever Jorge López hit Bryan Reynolds with a pitch. Almost immediately after, López threw a pitch near Andrew McCutchen's head. Pirates manager Derek Shelton, as well as Tommy Pham, jumped out from Pittsburgh’s dugout, and both benches cleared despite it being a pretty clear accident since López had been struggling to locate. López was ejected, and the Nationals' bullpen performed even worse from there. Dave Martinez did not seem to fight back with the umpires over the ejection, and ​Eduardo Salazar entered in relief and walked McCutchen to load the bases. Oneil Cruz then delivered the final blow, crushing a grand slam, a 385-foot shot to right field, that put the game out of reach at 6-0. ​

Offensively, the Nationals struggled and could not get anything going against Pirates starter Bailey Falter, who entered the game with a 7.20 ERA but delivered a pretty good performance. Falter faced the minimum over seven innings, allowing just two hits, walking one, and striking out two. Washington's only baserunner through the first four innings was James Wood, who singled in the first but was caught stealing. ​The Nationals avoided the shutout in the ninth inning when Dylan Crews reached base and eventually scored on Alex Call's sacrifice fly. However, the Nationals managed just three hits in total, with Wood, Nathaniel Lowe, and Crews each recording singles. ​

On the note of injuries, Paul DeJong returned to D.C. after being hit in the face with a pitch on Tuesday night. Trey Lipscomb joined the team as the corresponding move to DeJong being placed on the injured list. CJ Abrams has also been seen running as he recovers from his hip flexor injury. In perhaps the biggest update, DJ Herz underwent successful Tommy John surgery yesterday morning, ending his season.

Up next…

The Washington Nationals will send out Trevor Williams in today’s series finale, looking to get a split before heading to Colorado. MacKenzie Gore will likely get the start tomorrow to open the series against Chase Dollander.