Despite a solid Holmes start, Braves get shutout by Nationals in game two

The Braves fell 2-0 to the Nationals and managed only one hit, failing to score after a scoreless stretch. A rain delay occurred in the middle of the second inning, and neither team scored until the fourth. Dylan Crews hit a home run in the fourth, and Jorbit Vivas added another in the fifth. Grant Holmes delivered a strong performance, recording nine of his 10 strikeouts through the first four innings and totaling 18 strikeouts using a five-pitch arsenal. Holmes pitched five innings, allowing two solo home runs as his only earned runs, along with six hits and two walks on 87 pitches. The bullpen limited further damage, but the Braves struggled offensively against Jake Irvin, who has a 5.23 ERA.

"Falling 2-0, they just couldn't find a way to rally late and get on the board with only one hit managed. Coming off a rain delay in the middle of the second inning, both teams remained scoreless until the top of the fourth inning, where Nationals' Dylan Crews hit a homer, followed by Jorbit Vivas in the fifth with one of his own."

"Grant Holmes delivered a quality performance, getting nine of his 10 strikeouts through the first four innings and accumulating 18 whiffs off his five-pitch arsenal. He pitched for a total of five innings and gave up those two solo shots as his only earned runs, six hits and two walks with a total of 87 pitches. The Braves' bullpen helped carry out their end on defense by limiting any more runs from Washington."

"Not the result Holmes wanted from his offense, but today was his best outing of the year so far, with his highest number of strikeouts recorded since July 2025. An overall disappointing ending for game two, not because the Nationals' offense was that good, but because the Braves couldn't find a good pitch against Jake Irvin, who's now boasting a 5.23 ERA."

"The Nationals responded to being walked off by the Braves in game one, but didn't have to dominate the game to do so. You know what that means: time for the Braves to bounce back in the finale with Martín Pérez on the mound."

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