Cleveland Guardians @ Washington Nationals
Carlos Santana's 3-run homer helps Guardians beat Nationals 9-1 and split a doubleheader
WASHINGTON -- — Carlos Santana broke a scoreless tie with a three-run homer in the sixth inning and started a late onslaught by the Cleveland Guardians, who beat the Washington Nationals 9-1 on Tuesday night to split a doubleheader.
Daniel Schneemann and Austin Hedges also went deep for the Guardians, who scored 18 runs in the twinbill but lost the opener, 10-9. Cleveland has won six of eight.
Ben Lively (2-2) gave up a solo homer to Riley Adams, one of two hits he allowed over 5 1/3 innings.
Brad Lord (1-4) pitched a career-high six innings for Washington and was working on a shutout before Santana turned on an 0-2 fastball and sent it into the bullpen in right field with two outs in the sixth.
Steven Kwan's RBI double capped a three-run seventh, Schneemann hit a two-run homer in the eighth and Hedges added a solo shot in the ninth.
The Nationals threw four wild pitches, two by Eduardo Salazar and one each by Lucas Sims and Jackson Rutledge.
José Ramírez drew a two-out walk that moved Kwan to second base before Santana's 397-foot drive.
Washington's James Wood singled in the first inning to push his on-base streak to a career-high 16 games, although he didn't stay on base for long. He was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double.
Guardians left-hander Logan Allen (1-2, 4.02 ERA) is scheduled to start against the Nationals' Michael Soroka (0-1, 7.20) on Wednesday at 12:05 p.m. as the teams play their third game in a 24-hour span. Soroka hasn't pitched since he suffered a strained biceps in his Nationals debut on March 31.
------
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
CLE wins 2-1
Game Information
- Umpires:
- Home Plate Umpire - Tony Randazzo
- First Base Umpire - Jacob Metz
- Second Base Umpire - Dan Bellino
- Third Base Umpire - Derek Thomas
2026 American League Central Standings
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland | 32 | 23 | .582 | - | W1 |
| Chicago | 27 | 26 | .509 | 4 | W1 |
| Minnesota | 26 | 28 | .481 | 5.5 | L1 |
| Kansas City | 22 | 31 | .415 | 9 | W2 |
| Detroit | 21 | 33 | .389 | 10.5 | W1 |
2026 National League East Standings
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | 36 | 18 | .667 | - | L2 |
| Washington | 27 | 27 | .500 | 9 | W2 |
| Philadelphia | 26 | 27 | .491 | 9.5 | L1 |
| Miami | 25 | 29 | .463 | 11 | W3 |
| New York | 22 | 31 | .415 | 13.5 | L3 |

