The Washington Nationals didn’t just beat the Red Sox on Wednesday. They kept pressing, kept swinging, and kept making Boston pay after a fourth-inning fight turned the rest of the series into their show.
What started with the Red Sox leading 1-0 after the Contreras vs Cavalli dust-up ended with Washington completely taking over, outscoring Boston 18-0 after the brawl before the Red Sox added a couple runs in garbage time. By the end of this one, the Nationals had rolled to a 10-2 win and left no doubt about which team had the edge the rest of the way.
The tone was set early against Payton Tolle, the young Red Sox ace. Curtis Mead opened things up with a triple into the gap, and then Andres Chaparro delivered the kind of swing that can flip a player’s week - or maybe his whole month.
Chaparro came in with a batting average well below .200 and no home runs, and the pressure was building on the 27-year-old first baseman. He answered by crushing a Tolle heater over the Green Monster for his first homer.
Washington could have done even more damage in that opening inning, but two runs was enough to get them rolling. And even when the scoreboard stayed quiet in later innings, Tolle never really got a breather. The Nationals kept forcing him into work on a hot day in Boston, and the big left-hander eventually started to wear down.
One of the game’s biggest moments came in the bottom of the third, when Boston tried to rally against opener Brad Lord. With runners on first and third, Blake Butera made the move to Andrew Alvarez, and the bulk man bailed him out immediately by getting a double play on his first pitch.
Then the floodgates opened in the fourth.
If Chaparro’s homer was a surprise, Nasim Nunez going deep was the stunner. Nunez has already carved out value with his speed and defense, and he’d even been swinging the bat better lately, but he still had not homered all season despite playing most of the games. That changed in a hurry when he jumped on a first-pitch fastball and launched it over the Monster.
Tolle’s afternoon unraveled from there. He allowed a hit and issued a pair of walks before his day ended.
Washington didn’t let up after the pitching change, either. Luis Garcia Jr. and Jacob Young added knocks to push the lead to 7-0 and keep the inning rolling.
From there, the Nationals were in full control. Alvarez kept carving through Red Sox hitters with his breaking balls, and the offense stayed on schedule all afternoon. The at-bats were consistently strong, and eventually James Wood added another homer from one of the lineup’s familiar threats.
The series carried a clear emotional edge, and this win only sharpened that feeling. It was another sign, after the Phillies disaster, that the Nationals may be back on steadier ground. The way they turned the series after the brawl made the whole thing feel even bigger.
Washington gets a well-earned off day tomorrow before turning to the Pirates on July 4th weekend. The two clubs sit right next to each other in the standings, so that series should have plenty of heat. But for now, the Nationals can sit on a series win that felt like a statement.
In Other News...
Cade Cavalli Apologizes As Nationals Face An Ugly New Controversy
Cade Cavalli spent Sunday trying to put out a fire that had nothing to do with his pitching line, apologizing for a phrase he used during a game against the Red Sox that carried historically racist connotations. The Nationals right-hander said he did not intend to cause harm and said he would not use the phrase again, while club officials decided not to discipline him after concluding there was no intent to demean.
The aftermath still hung over the series, with Boston interim manager Chad Tracy describing the moment as immediately alarming and suggesting Major League Baseball should review it further given the camera angles available. Willson Contreras also addressed the incident, though he declined to elaborate publicly, leaving Washington to move on while the broader controversy remained very much unresolved. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals System Shakeup Raises New Questions About Health And Depth
The latest round of minor league action for the Nationals system came with the usual mix of box scores and lineup shuffling, but the movement between stops was just as notable as the results on the field. Rochester, Harrisburg, Wilmington, Fredericksburg, the FCL Nationals and DSL Nationals all factored into a busy stretch that also included rehab work, reassigned arms and a few fresh looks across the organization.
For a farm system that is often asked to absorb health-related detours and keep innings moving, the roster churn is the bigger storyline right now. Alex Youngs rehab path has taken him from Harrisburg to Rochester after he worked the opener, while Connor Van Scoyoc, Riley Maddox and others have shifted levels as the club tries to balance development with immediate coverage. Branden Boissieres rehab assignment moving to Fredericksburg adds another layer to that picture, and Harrisburgs mix has been altered again with Jhancarlos Lara landing on the Developmental List. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals May Already Be Leaning One Way On CJ Abrams
CJ Abrams has become one of the Nationals more important long-term questions, and for now the answer may be patience. He has been producing at a high level this season, giving Washington a legitimate centerpiece to build around while the front office sorts through what comes next.
Bob Nightengale recently suggested the Nationals are unlikely to trade Abrams this season, pointing to the public relations hit such a move could bring and the fact that the shortstop remains under club control through 2028. That gives Washington time to weigh a trade or a contract extension later on, with the decision potentially pushed toward the 2028 deadline or offseason. [Read more 🡒]