Nationals’ league-worst bullpen welcomes similarly struggling Orioles

The Nationals entered the bottom of the seventh on Saturday with a commanding 12-2 lead against the Colorado Rockies. Then, the recurring nightmare started.

Washington’s relievers allowed nine runs, nearly squandering the double-digit lead and a pristine performance by ace MacKenzie Gore, who led the majors in strikeouts through Sunday.

The bullpen struggles have become so common that some Nationals fans are setting their clocks to the inevitable disappointments.

A meme in the fan base’s Reddit community claims to show the flowchart for “the average 2025 Nationals game.” It features a stellar starting pitching performance, an offensive explosion and a subsequent pitching breakdown.

“The Nats’ bullpen sadly cannot maintain a staggering lead, walking the entire 26-man roster and giving up a 17-run home run,” the chart jokes.

The 9-13 Nationals are still rebuilding. Up-and-comers like outfielders James Wood and Dylan Crews have flashed potential alongside pitchers Gore and Jake Irvin. But through the first month of the season, that potential hasn’t been able to carry a league-worst bullpen to a winning record.

Washington’s relievers have a combined 7.19 ERA through the first 22 games, easily the ugliest of any bullpen in the league. The Philadelphia Phillies have the second-worst bullpen by that metric with a 5.81 ERA.

Colin Poche and Lucas Sims joined the Nationals as free agents this offseason, ostensibly to add veteran stability to a young organization.

They’ve struggled. The veterans are a microcosm of a Washington bullpen that has issued an unsustainable amount of walks while recording a combined 2-8 record.

Both Sims and Poche have an ERA above 15, as they’ve failed to establish command. Both pitchers have allowed opposing batters to reach base on more than 50% of their plate appearances.

Sims has pitched in 12 games, tied for the league high ahead of Monday’s games. The other six pitchers with as many appearances had an ERA below 4, leagues better than Sims’ mark.

He’s walked nine batters and hit four with pitches — the highest total in the majors this season — in 7 2/3 innings.

Poche hasn’t been any better. The 31-year-old has issued more walks than strikeouts while recording a pair of losses.

Closer Kyle Finnegan, an All-Star last year, has been a rare bright spot for the Nationals. His eight saves ranked second in the league ahead of Monday’s games, and his 1.86 ERA is a clear outlier on Washington’s stat sheets.

There’s reason for optimism within the organization. The Nationals’ system has been decimated by injuries to its pitchers throughout the major league and Triple-A ranks. Ahead of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Rockies, the Nationals called up reliever Andry Lara as the 27th man, despite his 9.26 ERA in 11 innings of minor-league ball this season.

Washington didn’t have many other options.

Michael Soroka, an offseason addition who started one game this season, has been sidelined with a bicep strain since April 1. Reliever Orlando Ribalta is sidelined with a similar injury.

DJ Herz, Derek Law, Josiah Gray and Mason Thompson all have major-league experience and would likely provide a boost to Washington’s pitching staff. Injuries ranging from UCL tears to forearm strains have kept them off the mound this season.

Even prospects like Travis Sykora — the top-ranked player in Washington’s farm system — and Cade Cavelli have been sidelined with injuries. Cavelli is rehabbing with the Single-A affiliate in Fredericksburg while Sykora continues recovering from an offseason surgery that kept him from joining the major league squad in spring training.

Young teams have growing pains — just ask the Orioles.

The Orioles’ highly touted core entered the season with expectations after back-to-back postseason berths in 2023 and 2024. While developing stars Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschmann have looked like franchise cornerstones, Baltimore’s pitchers have not.

The Orioles’ 5.43 team ERA is the worst in the league, even trailing the 29th-ranked Nationals.

Baltimore let ace Corbin Burnes walk in free agency and failed to replace him. This season, the Orioles have sent 20 different pitchers to the mound — anything to string together 27 outs.

The pitching woes reached a boiling point on Sunday when the Cincinnati Reds plated 24 runs in a rout. For reference, the Baltimore Ravens held teams to fewer points in nine of their 17 games last regular season.

“That’s embarrassing,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said of Sunday’s performance.

The 9-12 Orioles head to the District on Tuesday for a three-game series against the Nationals.

If both squads’ pitching struggles continue, fans could be treated to a final score that looks more like a Ravens-Commanders matchup than an MLB game.