CJ Abrams hit a go-ahead three-run home run, Keibert Ruiz homered among his three hits and the Washington Nationals beat the visiting San Francisco Giants 11-5 on Tuesday night in the second game of a four-game series.
The Nationals, who won for the third time in four contests, got to Giants rookie starter Hayden Birdsong in a five-run second inning and finished with 15 hits. Washington’s Alex Call had two RBI doubles, and James Wood tripled, homered, walked twice, scored four runs and stole two bases.
With Washington down 4-0, Wood started the second-inning charge with a triple. Travis Blankenhorn and Jacob Young got RBIs, and Abrams capped the surge by depositing a high, 96 mph fastball from Birdsong beyond the right field wall with two on and one out.
“I wanted to get on top of it, and I did,” Abrams said.
Birdsong (3-1) allowed seven runs on five hits and three walks in two-plus innings. He struck out one. Michael Conforto smashed a three-run homer for San Francisco and Heliot Ramos had a solo shot, both in the first inning against Nationals starter MacKenzie Gore.
After beating the Nationals 4-1 on Monday, San Francisco was seeking its ninth win in 11 contests to move above .500 for the first time since May 29, but Gore got the win, helped by a proficient Nationals offense.
Gore (7-9) went five innings, struck out six, walked two, and allowed five runs, four earned, on eight hits. Derek Law didn’t permit a runner in two innings of relief, Robert Garcia tossed a scoreless eighth, and Tanner Rainey threw the ninth with a six-run lead.
Ruiz’s leadoff shot to right in the third gave Washington a 6-4 edge. Wood then walked, ending Birdsong’s outing, and Call hit an RBI double off reliever Randy Rodriguez.
The Giants scored an unearned run in the top of the fourth, but the Nationals replied in the bottom of the frame when Blankenhorn drove in Luis Garcia Jr. from third on a groundout for an 8-5 edge.
Call doubled again in the sixth against Giants 6-foot-11 right-hander Sean Hjelle to score Wood again, bumping the lead to 9-5. Wood added a two-run shot against Hjelle in the eighth.
Jerar Encarnacion, Tyler Fitzgerald, Ramos and Conforto each had two hits for the Giants. Matt Chapman went 0-for-4 with a walk and had his three-game homer streak end.