Washington Nationals at Miami Marlins

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
WSH	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	2	9	1
MIA	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	3	6	0

Brad Lord (5-2, 3.88 ERA) took the mound five days removed from the worst outing of his season — 0.2 innings and 4 walks against the Mets on Aug 15, the shortest start of his career. Ryan Gusto (0-3, 4.37) came in still hunting his first big-league win, though his last time out he'd punched out 6 Reds over 4.2 innings. Neither arm had much margin for error against a lineup missing pieces, and for most of the night both found it anyway.

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FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Nationals(61-68)

LWLLL

2

+1.5-156+138o8.5+133

Marlins(64-64)

LLLWW

3

-1.5+150-138u8.5-130

Best BetMarlins -138

Postgame

The moneyline pick cashed — Miami found enough offense late even with Gusto laboring for a win and the pen shorthanded, exactly the risk the bear case flagged. Sanoja's two RBI singles, capped by the walk-off, were the difference the healthier roster was supposed to provide.

Pregame

Miami's price here leans on more than the standings — Gusto's last outing had real swing-and-miss even if the record still reads 0-3, and Washington keeps bleeding position players with Abrams now added to the injury log. The Nationals are live enough to spring an upset behind Lord, but this profiles as a game Miami should control if its bullpen holds.

Washington took the field without CJ Abrams (ankle) and James Wood (oblique) — its shortstop and a middle-of-the-order bat both out, gutting an offense that was already thin. Miami had its own holes: Kyle Stowers still working back from a hamstring strain, and the bullpen down Anthony Bender and William Kempner to season-ending injuries. Two rosters missing pieces made for a game that stayed close and low-scoring, exactly the kind neither club could really afford to give away.

Brad Lord

(5-2)·3.88 ERA

Aug 15 @ Mets

ND

0.2IP

2ER

1K

4BB

44P

08/21 Lineup

Ryan Gusto

(0-3)·4.37 ERA

Aug 15 @ Reds

ND

4.2IP

2ER

6K

0BB

70P

08/21 Lineup

That tension carried into the late innings. Nobody had cracked more than a run at a time through seven, and the two thinned-out bullpens were about to decide it.

Keibert Ruiz put Washington up 1-0 with a solo homer in the 6th, and it held until the 8th, when Javier Sanoja's RBI single tied it and an RBI single from Oscar Lopez put Miami ahead 2-1. Washington answered right back in the 9th — Derek Lile's RBI single tied it at 2-2 — but Sanoja delivered again in the bottom half, a walk-off single that scored the winning run and sent loanDepot park home happy, 3-2.

Washington Nationals

(61-68)

Aug 21L@ Rangers0-2

Aug 20W@ Rangers6-0

Aug 19L@ Rangers0-5

Aug 16L@ Mets3-4

Aug 15L@ Mets4-5

Miami Marlins

(64-64)

Aug 19L@ Phillies1-4

Aug 18L@ Phillies4-6

Aug 17L@ Phillies5-6

Aug 16W@ Reds7-1

Aug 15W@ Reds8-4

Washington Nationals

(10)

• Day-To-DayCJ Abrams (SS) — Abrams (ankle) remains out of the lineup for Friday's game in Miami.08/21
• 10-Day-ILJames Wood (RF) — Nationals manager Blake Butera said Sunday that Wood has been progressing more slowly than the team hoped from his left oblique strain, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.08/16
• 10-Day-ILDrew Millas (C) — Millas (finger) completed throwing from 90 feet, took dry swings on each side of the plate and hit off a tee approximately 20 times from each side during a comprehensive workout Friday, MLB.com reports.08/16
• 15-Day-ILConnelly Early (SP) — Early (elbow) will not be sent for an MRI after he felt some minor forearm tightness during a live batting practice session Tuesday, Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reports.08/07
• 60-Day-ILDJ Herz (SP) — Herz (elbow) struck out two and allowed one hit and two walks over two scoreless innings in a rehab start Thursday with Double-A Harrisburg.08/21
• 60-Day-ILJosiah Gray (SP) — Gray (elbow) will begin a rehab assignment with Single-A Fredericksburg on Tuesday, Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reports.08/18
• 60-Day-ILRichard Lovelady (RP) — Lovelady (triceps) threw a light bullpen session Friday, MLB.com reports.08/08
• 60-Day-ILPJ Poulin (RP) — The Nationals transferred Poulin (forearm) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Sunday.08/02
• 60-Day-ILMitchell Parker (RP) — Parker underwent elbow ligament repair surgery with an internal brace Wednesday, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.07/30
• 60-Day-ILKen Waldichuk (RP) — Waldichuk (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery and an internal brace procedure April 21 and is hopeful to return to game action at some point early in the 2027 season, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.06/11

Miami Marlins

(8)

• 10-Day-ILKyle Stowers (1B) — Stowers (hamstring) is in the middle of a return-to-play running progression, Stephen Strom of Marlins Radio Network reports.08/17
• 15-Day-ILAnthony Bender (RP) — Bender's rehab assignment has been paused after he reported soreness in his right shin during his first rehab appearance with Triple-A Jacksonville, Kevin Barral of FishonFirst.com reports.08/21
• 15-Day-ILMax Meyer (SP) — Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said Wednesday that Meyer (neck) received a cortisone shot to relieve discomfort in the rib area, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.08/12
• 60-Day-ILWilliam Kempner (RP) — The Marlins transferred Kempner (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Friday.08/21
• 60-Day-ILAndrew Nardi (RP) — The Marlins announced Monday that Nardi (rib) is scheduled to undergo surgery on his left elbow in the near future, Daniel Alvarez-Montes of ElExtraBase.com reports.08/17
• 60-Day-ILRobby Snelling (SP) — Snelling (elbow) is expected to begin a throwing program in September, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.08/07
• 60-Day-ILAdam Mazur (SP) — Mazur (elbow) is expected to begin a throwing program sometime in September, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.08/07
• 60-Day-ILRonny Henriquez (RP) — Henriquez (elbow) began playing catch from 60 feet out Friday, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.07/18

It was a fitting way for both clubs to close out this stretch — Washington still buried in a lost season at 61-68, playing out the string with two regulars on the shelf, and Miami clawing to stay in the Wild Card picture at .500 after getting swept by the Phillies just two days earlier. Neither team looked whole. Miami just had the last at-bat.