MIAMI, FLORIDA - APRIL 12 - The Washington Nationals scored seven unanswered runs last night to win the series opener in Miami, despite being down 4-0 entering the sixth inning. Mitchell Parker delivered yet another quality start, and the lineup rewarded him for it, even though he could not be credited for the win.

Parker took the mound for Washington, pitching six innings and allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits and two walks while striking out four. Through three starts, his ERA is at an amazing 1.96. He started incredibly strong but ran into some trouble in the fifth. The Marlins took a 4-0 lead when Xavier Edwards singled to center, driving in two runs, followed by a two-run double down the right-field line by Kyle Stowers.​ Parker buckled down, but the damage seemed huge, considering something like that would have done the Nationals in last year. Lucas Sims got the win with a scoreless inning, Jose A. Ferrer gave up zero in the eighth, and Finnegan earned the save for the fifth time thus far this season.

Offensively, the Nationals were quiet until the sixth, when they began their comeback. Keibert Ruiz singled, and with two outs, Josh Bell launched a two-run homer against his former team, cutting the deficit to 4-2. In the eighth, Ruiz walked, Luis García Jr. singled, and Alex Call walked to load the bases. Nathaniel Lowe, who was scratched from the starting lineup due to illness, pinch-hit for Paul DeJong and delivered a 10-pitch at-bat, which ended in a three-run double down the left-field line, giving Washington a 5-4 lead. James Wood added insurance in the ninth with a solo home run, his fifth of the season, and Call tripled to drive in another run, finalizing the score at 7-4.​

On the downside, CJ Abrams was removed from the game after re-aggravating his hip flexor. While the severity is unknown yet, it gave everybody a scare since there is so much more baseball to be played, and the Nationals can not afford to lose their all-star shortstop. However, many of these fears did not loom over fans considering the comeback, but it will be something to look out for.

Up next…

The Nationals and Marlins will continue the series on Saturday when Trevor Williams takes the mound against Sandy Alcantara. On Sunday, it will likely be MacKenzie Gore against Cal Quantrill. The Nationals sit at 6-7 and look to leave Miami above .500 before their four-game series in Pittsburgh this week.