Houston Astros at Washington Nationals

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
HOU	1	3	2	0	0	1	0	4	0	11	12	2
WSH	1	0	5	0	6	0	0	0	—	12	13	0

Miles Mikolas and Mike Burrows both took the mound carrying ERAs pushing 6.00, and neither one made it look better in this one. Mikolas is fresh off a beating in Boston where he gave up 6 earned runs in 7 innings, and Burrows has been just as hittable all year at 4-8 with a 5.98 ERA. Add in that Mikolas is serving a 5-game suspension stemming from last week's benches-clearing scrum with the Red Sox, and Washington's rotation picture is messier than the record suggests.

Show fees

FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Astros(45-47)

WWLLW

11

+1.5-182+106o9.5-113

Nationals(46-45)

LLWWW

12

-1.5+178-108u9.5+113

Best BetNationals -123

Postgame

The home-side pick hit as the Nationals held on 12-11, with the offense's two big innings outweighing the shaky bullpen bear case.

Pregame

The Nationals were the play here even with Mikolas fresh off a rough Boston start, because Washington's lineup had shown it could put up crooked numbers in bunches against Boston and Pittsburgh alike. Houston's offense minus Correa and Pena has been streaky, not steady, and that made the home side the sturdier outright bet. It cashed, and it wasn't particularly close down the stretch.

Houston's lineup has holes it can't paper over. Carlos Correa is done for the year after ankle surgery, and Jeremy Pena, who was filling that shortstop void, is only now starting a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sugar Land. Lance McCullers Jr. has looked sharp in his own rehab starts, which is at least a flicker of good news for a rotation that's been stretched thin, but none of that helps Espada's lineup on a night like this one.

Mike Burrows

(4-9)·5.99 ERA

Jun 30 vs Twins

W

5.0IP

4ER

3K

2BB

90P

07/06 Lineup

Miles Mikolas

(3-7)·5.53 ERA

Jun 29 @ Red Sox

L

7.0IP

6ER

3K

0BB

97P

07/06 Lineup

The Nationals, meanwhile, are dealing with a bullpen that's been living dangerously — they blew a late lead against Pittsburgh just a day earlier, coughing up 7 runs over the final two innings in an 11-5 loss with manager Blake Butera pointing to a D.C. heat wave zapping his relievers. None of that got fixed overnight, and it showed.

Washington built this game with two knockout innings — a 5-spot in the 3rd and a 6-spot in the 5th — and needed every bit of that cushion. Houston kept clawing, including a 4-run 8th that made it a one-run game before the Nationals shut the door. 13 hits and zero errors for Washington against 12 hits and 2 errors for Houston tells you which side was cleaner when it mattered, even if neither bullpen made anyone comfortable.

Houston Astros

(45-47)

Jul 5Wvs Rays2-0

Jul 4Wvs Rays10-8

Jul 4Lvs Rays1-3

Jul 2Lvs Twins3-8

Jul 1Wvs Twins6-4

Washington Nationals

(46-45)

Jul 5Lvs Pirates5-11

Jul 4Lvs Pirates1-7

Jul 3Wvs Pirates9-5

Jul 1W@ Red Sox10-2

Jun 30W@ Red Sox8-1

Both clubs sit basically even in the standings, 46-45 and 45-47, and both have been streaky rather than steady — the Nationals took two blowouts off Boston before dropping 2 of 3 to Pittsburgh, while the Astros split with Minnesota before beating Tampa Bay twice, one of those a walk-off. That kind of inconsistency is exactly why a game like this turns into batting practice.

Houston Astros

(8)

• 10-Day-ILJeremy Pena (SS) — Pena (calf) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sugar Land on Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.07/06
• 15-Day-ILLance McCullers Jr. (SP) — McCullers (shoulder) struck out three and allowed one earned run on four hits and one walk across four innings Wednesday in a rehab start with Triple-A Sugar Land.07/02
• 15-Day-ILKai-Wei Teng (RP) — The Astros rescinded Teng's option and placed him on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with a right knee sprain, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.07/01
• 60-Day-ILBennett Sousa (RP) — Sousa (elbow) will throw a simulated game at Daikin Park on Wednesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.07/03
• 60-Day-ILRonel Blanco (SP) — Blanco (elbow) struck out four and allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and one walk across 4.1 innings Wednesday in a rehab start with Double-A Corpus Christi.07/02
• 60-Day-ILHayden Wesneski (SP) — Wesneski (elbow) began a rehab assignment at the rookie-level Florida Complex League on Tuesday, tossing three scoreless innings with one strikeout.07/01
• 60-Day-ILBrandon Walter (SP) — The Astros announced Friday that Walter (elbow) is in the midst of a throwing progression at the team's complex in West Palm Beach, Fla., Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.06/04
• 60-Day-ILCarlos Correa (SS) — Correa is scheduled to undergo surgery Monday in Houston to repair the tendon in his left ankle, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.06/02

Washington Nationals

(9)

• 15-Day-ILJake Irvin (SP) — Irvin (shoulder) is slated to face live hitters in batting practice Wednesday, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.07/06
• 15-Day-ILRichard Lovelady (RP) — The Nationals placed Lovelady on the 15-day injured list Monday with a left triceps strain.06/29
• SuspensionCade Cavalli (SP) — Cavalli's suspension for his actions during the benches-clearing incident Tuesday versus the Red Sox has been reduced from seven games to five games, Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reports.07/06
• 60-Day-ILTrevor Williams (SP) — Williams (elbow) is slated to make his third rehab start Wednesday at Triple-A Rochester, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.07/06
• 60-Day-ILMitchell Parker (RP) — The Nationals transferred Parker (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Wednesday.07/02
• 60-Day-ILDJ Herz (SP) — Herz (elbow) was diagnosed Monday with a left flexor strain, Kyle Williams of TheBanner.com reports.06/22
• 60-Day-ILMax Kranick (RP) — Kranick (elbow) began a rehab assignment with Single-A Fredericksburg on Sunday, striking out two over 1.2 perfect innings.06/22
• 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
• 60-Day-ILJosiah Gray (SP) — Gray (elbow) has resumed a throwing program, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.05/08

Neither team is whole right now, and it's fair to wonder how many more slugfests either pitching staff can survive before something breaks. For one night, Washington had just enough offense — and just enough bullpen — to get out ahead.