​The Houston Astros (46-48) dropped their ace start a bit short of ideal, but they still rode a collective bullpen performance to a 6-3 victory over the Washington Nationals (47-46) in the second game of the series at Nationals Park. Tatsuya Imai departed after 3.2 innings due to a cut on the ring finger of his pitching hand that hindered his grip and overall command. Early in the second inning, a trainer rushed to the mound to apply a cold compress in an effort to restore his grip as his velocity dipped; once the treatment concluded, his fastball and efficiency returned to the pitcher’s typical levels. The cut clearly affected his control and pitch execution, and his pitch count climbed to 84 for the outing. Imai was charged with two earned runs, four hits, three walks, and three strikeouts on his 3.2 frames.
Steven Okert (W, 2-1) stepped in to finish the fourth inning and has effectively become the Astros’ game-management stopper whenever the bullpen is asked to escape a jam while holding a lead. Okert delivered 1.1 scoreless innings, yielding one hit and striking out three. From there, a crew of five relievers—Enyel De Los Santos, Bryan King, Bryan Abreu, Aliber Santa, and closer Josh Hader (S, 10)—held the Nationals’ powerful offense at bay for the rest of the night.
The Astros leaned on their bottom-of-the-order hitters to manufacture most of the offense, paced by timely two-out production. In the top of the second, Nick Allen delivered a sacrifice fly to center field, tying the game at 1-1 and setting the stage for a rally. Allen then delivered a crucial two-run single in the fourth inning that brought home Christian Walker and Zach Dezenzo, giving Houston a 3-2 lead. A Christian Vázquez sacrifice fly followed in the same frame, bringing Brice Matthews home and extending the cushion to 4-2.
Vázquez kept the pressure on in the sixth by lacing an RBI single to score Dezenzo, widening the Astros’ advantage to 5-2. The offense found another spark in the eighth when José Altuve belted a solo home run to left-center, pushing the lead to 6-2. The Nationals finally pushed across a run in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough, and Hader was summoned to close out the game.
Looking ahead, the Astros will send Spencer Arrighetti (7-4, 3.81 ERA) to the mound tomorrow as they aim to sweep the series and claim their seventh series win in eight meetings against Washington this season. Opposing Arrighetti will be left-hander Foster Griffin (9-2, 2.87 ERA) for the Nationals, who will be looking to slow Houston’s late-series surge. This matchup sets the stage for a potential weekend-closer feel as the Astros chase continued success on the road while trying to maintain momentum against a familiar league rival.