Mitchell Parker earned his first win in his debut in the major leagues, while Luis García Jr. smacked a three-run homer, his first of the season, helping the Washington Nationals secure a 6-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday night.
García’s homer came in the fifth inning against Tyler Glasnow (3-1), after Joey Gallo drew a two-out walk. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noted that Glasnow wasn’t feeling well during the game.
The Dodgers marked the 77th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier with a ceremony involving both teams at his statue in Centerfield Plaza earlier in the day. Every player across the league wore Robinson’s retired No. 42, and fittingly, the Dodger Stadium attendance was 42,677.
Parker (1-0) became the first Nationals pitcher to win his MLB debut since Stephen Strasburg in 2010. “Speechless,” Parker said. “That’s awesome.”
Parker allowed two runs and four hits in his five innings of work. The left-hander struck out four and walked none after being called up from Triple-A Rochester earlier in the day.
“After we got the first inning out of the way, it kind of started to become normal,” Parker said. “I kept telling myself all day it’s the same game I’ve been playing all my life, so try not to overthink any of it.”
Parker’s strikeouts included Mookie Betts to start the game and two-time AL MVP Shohei Ohtani. He also got 2020 NL MVP Freddie Freeman to ground out in the third.
“Imagining it and living through it are two very different things,” Mitchell said. “It was a special experience.” Promoted to replace the injured Josiah Gray in the rotation, Parker’s parents flew cross-country to support him.
“The kid has got good stuff,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. “The kid has a shallow heartbeat. Nothing seems to faze him. That’s a tough team to face, and he did well.” Kyle Finnegan closed the game in the ninth inning to secure his sixth save.
