The Damage Report

CJ Abrams hit a two-run homer in the first and another in the third. James Wood drove in two more with a fourth-inning double. Washington scored seven runs on 10 hits, erased Colorado leads twice and also moved ahead 6-5.

The Nationals still lost 8-7 because the Rockies kept finding the next answer. Mickey Moniak broke a 6-6 tie with a sixth-inning homer. After Washington tied it again, Hunter Goodman broke the final tie with an eighth-inning homer.

Coors Field did not provide a calm evening. Colorado simply owned the last available piece of chaos.

Where the Wheels Came Off

The score reached 7-7 in the top of the seventh when Jorbit Vivas lifted a sacrifice fly that brought home Wood. Washington had erased another Colorado lead and forced the game back to zero.

Goodman opened the bottom of the eighth against Clayton Beeter. He drove the ball over the wall in left-center for his 31st homer and an 8-7 advantage.

This time, Washington had no reply. Jordan Romano struck out two in a perfect ninth and protected the first one-run lead that survived the next half-inning.

Credit Where It’s Annoyingly Due

Moniak went 2-for-4 with a homer, two RBIs and two runs. Cole Carrigg had three hits, while Jake McCarthy and Goodman added two each. Colorado collected 12 hits without relying on one huge inning.

The bullpen also stabilized a game that did not encourage stability. Brennan Bernardino, Victor Vodnik, Juan Mejia and Romano combined for four scoreless innings around Jimmy Herget’s seventh-inning run.

Abrams was excellent for Washington, going 2-for-3 with four RBIs. Wood added two hits and two RBIs. The Nationals lineup created enough offense to win most nights; it just kept handing Colorado another turn.

Do Not Open Social Media

Washington led 2-0, tied the game at 4-4, moved ahead 6-5, tied it at 6-6 and tied it again at 7-7. That is a full evening of emotional paperwork with no victory attached.

Carson Palmquist and Miles Mikolas allowed seven runs before the sixth inning ended. Beeter then allowed the last one, a solo shot in the only plate appearance that mattered after the final tie.

The Nationals can point to seven runs and Abrams’ two-homer performance. Colorado can point to the scoreboard, which is less nuanced and much harder to argue with.

Washington’s offense repeatedly completed the difficult part by catching Colorado. The Nationals never received the shutdown half-inning that would have allowed one of those comebacks to become control.

The Official Overreaction

The verified Tie-Breaking Power was two homers, both after Washington had pulled even.

Desk ruling: Colorado won because it never treated the latest tie as the end of the conversation. Moniak answered one reset, Goodman answered the next, and the Rockies finally found a lead that their bullpen could carry through the door.