Pirates spoil Nats’ home opener

Pittsburgh goes to 5-0 for first time in 41 years

WASHINGTON — The Pittsburgh Pirates improved to 5-0 for the first time since 1983, beating the Washington Nationals 8-4 Monday with two run-scoring hits from Connor Joe, including a tiebreaking RBI double in the eighth inning.

Michael A. Taylor, a former member of the Nationals, had three hits, and Bryan Reynolds, Andrew McCutchen, Alika Williams and Henry Davis delivered two apiece. Reynolds stretched his on-base streak to 33 games, dating to last season, with a first-inning single and tacked on a two-run double in the ninth.

Pittsburgh remained unbeaten in 2024, all on the road, following a four-game sweep of the Miami Marlins to begin the season. The Pirates were 76-86 last year.

Pittsburgh led 3-1 entering the seventh, but backup catcher Riley Adams — playing for the first time this season — tied the game for Washington by depositing a fourseam fastball 427 feet to left-center off reliever Roansy Contreras for a two-run homer. Contreras (1-0), though, got the win.

That’s because his teammates produced a three-run eighth off relievers Robert Garcia (0-1) and Matt Barnes. The big hit was Joe’s double to left that scored Taylor, who reached on a bunt. Ke’Bryan Hayes and McCutchen also drove in runs.

Aroldis Chapman got Lane Thomas to pop up for the final out with two men on, earning his first save of the season.

Nationals manager Dave Martinez had used his top two relievers, Kyle Finnegan and Hunter Harvey, in each of the past two games, so he stayed away from them in front of an announced sellout crowd of 40,405 for the club’s home opener on a gray, dreary afternoon with the temperature in the low 50s.