Nats Drop Opener, Mikolas Struggles

0:00It's April 4th. This is Washington Nationals News Today, your AI-powered team coverage. The Washington Nationals kicked off their homestand with a sold-out opener at Nationals Park, drawing 41,161 fans on a perfect 70-degree day, but the vibe turned sour-fast as they dropped a 13-to-6 decision to the defending champ Los Angeles Dodgers. Things started hot for the Nats with a three-run homer from CJ Abrams in the first inning, putting them up three-nothing early. From there, though, starting pitcher Miles McCollus couldn't hold the line, coughing up eleven earned runs, his career worst, over four and a third, innings on eleven hits. Manager Blake Bluterra, the league's youngest at just 33 years old, came out swinging in his pressur by shouting out the electric crowd for, firing up the team. He quickly followed with an apology to fans, calling the game lopsided from the jump and hinting at lineup tweaks ahead.

1:00Bluterra gave props to the Dodgers' deep bats, but pointed to Mikolas setting a decent early tone before execution slipped. The Nats couldn't regroup after that explosive start, letting the visitors pile on. They bounced back today at four or five p.m. in game two of the three-game set, wrapping Sunday afternoon against these same Dodgers.