It was a short stay out of last place for the Cincinnati Reds.
Just two days out of last place in the National League Central division, after spending 69 days at the bottom, the Reds retreated back to the cellar Saturday night in Nationals Park.
The Washington Nationals bombarded the Reds, 8-2, on Saturday, Aug. 8, while the Pittsburgh Pirates ripped the New York Mets, 9-0, to reclaim fourth place.
The Reds are 16-26 in games decided by five or more runs.
The Nationals wear a street directory map of downtown District of Columbia on their light blue City Connect jerseys, but the Reds haven’t been able to find their way around Nationals Park.
They took a four-game winning streak into Washington, but have lost two straight.
It was a rough evening for Reds starter Chase Burns. The National were in attack mode against Burns, swinging early in the count, and he was charged with five runs and six hits for his 5⅓ innings.
As a result, Burns absorbed the loss and his record dipped to 13-2 and his string of winning 12 straight decisions ended.
“They took some really good swings, they’re good hitters, and there were some positives,” Burns told reporters. “It’s a game of inches.”
There were some seeing-eye hits and bleeders, but there were some solid contact made by the free-swinging Nationals. And there were a couple of defensive lapses.
The Nats lead MLB in home runs, but didn’t hit one Saturday. Instead, they sprayed 10 hits, six singles and four doubles.
And they were 6 for 7 with runners in scoring position. The Reds were 0 for 3 and had only five hits, four singles and a Eugenio Suarez home run.
Cincinnati’s only runs came on a two-run home run Suarez as the Reds continue to live but mostly die via home runs.
The Nats took a 2-0 lead in the third on a leadoff single by Jose Tena, a one-out double by CJ Abrams and a two-run single by Abileymec Ortiz.
Washington lefthander Andrew Alvarez baffled the Reds for five innings and retired 11 straight. With one out in the sixth, Sal Stewart nubbed a slow roller up the third base line that hit the third base bag for an infield hit.
That was only the second hit off Alvarez and he had thrown only 73 pitches.
Cincinnati Reds’ Eugenio Suarez hits a two-run home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026, in Washington.
Nick Wass – FR67404 AP
Amazingly, Nats manager Blake Butera decided that was enough for Alvarez and he brought in Max Kranick.
And Suarez tied it, 2-2, with a home run that crash landed in the Reds bullpen in left field.
“Alvarez had a little bit of funk in his delivery,” Reds manager Tito Francona told reporters. “They got him out of there with 70-some (73) pitches and it looked like we were going to take advantage of it.
“We hopped right back into it with the home run (Suarez) and the hope is that Chase has a nice good inning to get us through six to keep it a tie game and then we’d go to our bullpen,” he added.
That didn’t happen and Francona ended up pulling Burns in the middle of the sixth as a safety and precautionary reason.
And that 2-2 tie only lasted long enough for Washington to come in and pick up their bats.
It began ominously.
Umpire Erich Bacchus called Dylan Crews out on strikes. Crews challenged and it was a ball, outside by an inch.
Crew then doubled. Daylen Lile singled him home for 3-2 lead, but the Nats didn’t stop there.
Keibert Ruiz doubled on a ball center fielder Dane Myers misjudged. With two outs Burns walked Nasi Nunez on a full count and Burns’ night was over.
Sam Moll replaced Burns and pinch-hitter Andrew Chaparro pulled one inside the third base bag, a ball Ke’Bryan Hayes usually stops.
But it went through for a two-run double and Jacob Young singled him hiom to complete the four-run inning and a 6-2 Nationals lead.
“It turned out to be a long inning,” said Francona of the four-run, five-hit Washington eruption. And he had to go get Burns after his 92nd pitch.
“He couldn’t get through it and I got uncomfortable. . .that’s my biggest concern for him. At the end of his outing, he might try to reach back for more when he’s near 100 pitches.
“That for me is where it starts to get a little iffy,” he added. “There’s more to it than just the sixth inning of today’s game. That’s a responsibility I take very seriously.”
Newly-acquired Reds pitcher Ron Marinaccio made his debut and pitched a 1-2-3 seventh, but gave up two runs in the eighth, including a run-scoring single to CJ Abrams.
That gave Abrams 89 RBIs, the most in MLB, increasing his lead over Sal Stewart by two.
The Reds did have a couple of chances when the game was still tight.
They had two on with two outs in he second, but Ke’Bryan Hayes grounded out.
They had two on with two outs in the seventh but Elly De La Cruz struck out.
Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona, left, pulls pitcher Chase Burns, right, during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026, in Washington.
Nick Wass – FR67404 AP