May 17, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Washington Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz (20) hits an RBI single during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

Nationals Offense Has Much-Needed Explosion Against Orioles Struggling Veteran

Originally posted on Washington Nationals on SI
By Kenneth Teape | Last updated May 18, 2025 11:00 AM ET

The Washington Nationals have fallen on some tough times recently, with their offense going ice cold against some strong competition in the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals.

A win on May 6 got them within two games of the .500 mark with a 17-19 record. But they lost in eight out of their next nine games, struggling to consistently score runs and now have a 19-27 record entering play on May 17 with their playoff hopes being virutally non-existent.

But, there is nothing like a series against the woeful Baltimore Orioles starting rotation to get a struggling offense on track.

In their MLB Rivalry Weekend opener against their American League East foes, the Nationals scored just enough to come away with a 4-3 victory.

How Many Runs Did Nationals Score Against Orioles in First Inning?

For an encore on Saturday afternoon, Washington’s offense had a true breakout performance, taking full advantage of the struggling Kyle Gibson.

The righty entered the game with a 13.11 ERA across 11.2 innings, surrendering 17 earned runs.

Those numbers all increased on Saturday afternoon with the Nationals running Gibson out of the game before he even completed the first inning.

He now owns a 16.78 ERA and 2.92 WHIP after Washington tagged him for six hits and one walk, resulting in six earned runs.

As shared by Mark Zuckerman of Masn, it is the most runs that the team has scored in the first inning of a game since 2021.

Nats knock Kyle Gibson out with 6 runs on 6 hits and a walk before making the third out in the top of the 1st. It's their most runs scored in the 1st inning since 2021.
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) May 17, 2025

James Wood, Keibert Ruiz, Luis Garcia Jr., Jose Tena and Jacob Young all recorded RBIs in the onslaught. Ruiz hit his seventh double of the season and Young has his first triple as the biggest blows against Gibson.

They put the team in a great position to win their second game in a row, with Jake Irvin on the mound and performing at a very high level.

The Nationals aren’t going to jump out to 7-0 leads every night, but it is encouraging to see them take advantage of a club who is struggling as much as the Orioles are, after firing their manager hours before the game.

This article first appeared on Washington Nationals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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