Okamoto with a solo home run to center field! 🎥 Sportsnet | #Bluejays
Instant Reaction: Four run first sinks Blue Jays as Nationals even series
Photo credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images
Jul 28, 2026, 22:59 EDT
The 2026 version of the Toronto Blue Jays just can’t seem to string wins together.
On Tuesday night, the Washington Nationals defeated the Blue Jays 8-6, dropping the club to 49-59 through 108 games played, and setting up a rubber match for the series tomorrow.
After Cade Cavalli worked a scoreless first inning, the Nationals put up a four-spot in the first inning, backed by some Shane Bieber control issues. Leadoff man James Wood walked, which was followed by Luis García Jr. grounding out before the wheels fell off.
Dylan Crews worked a walk and then C.J. Abrams beat out an infield single, setting up the Nationals in business with the bases loaded and one out. Keibert Ruiz and Daylen Lile worked back-to-back RBI walks to make it 2-0 Nats.
Nasim Nuñez followed with a sacrifice fly to make it 3-0, and then both Jorbit Vivas and Jacob Young walked to make it 4-0, ultimately ending Bieber’s night after throwing only 15 of his 42 pitches for strikes.
The Blue Jays were able to battle back to make it a 4-2 game, but the Nationals kept coming in the bottom of the fourth. With two outs, García launched a two-run home run off of Mason Fluharty to extend the lead to 6-2 and raise his season total to 22. After manager John Schneider turned to C.J. Van Eyk, Crews stepped up and drove a 1-1 cutter 408 feet to left-centre field, extending the Nationals’ lead to 7-2 with his ninth home run of the year.
While the Blue Jays’ offence was able to muster eight baserunners off of Cavalli, he was able to limit the damage for the most part. Kazuma Okamoto, who entered for the injured Vladimir Guerrero Jr., smashed his 24th home run of the season off Cavalli, tying Eric Hinske’s record for most home runs by a rookie in a season.
In a flash, to open the top of the eighth inning, off of Gus Varland, the Blue Jays made it an 8-6 game. Nathan Lukes won an 11-pitch battle with a line-drive single to centre, and an Abrams error that followed put runners on first and second with nobody out. After getting ahead 2-0 in the count, George Springer launched a 94.7 MPH fastball 437 feet to straightaway centre to make it an 8-6 ball game.
Springer has started to find his stride at the plate as of late, highlighted by a .288 average with four home runs and 12 RBIs over his past 15 games. With his recent surge, Springer is now batting .234 with 12 home runs and 33 RBIs on the season and could be an option for teams looking to add a veteran bat down the stretch.
Cavalli finished his night with a pitching line of 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, and continued to build on what is his first full season with the Nationals. Through 23 starts, Cavalli is 8-4 with a 3.55 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. The 27-year-old has struck out 130 batters over his 116.2 innings pitched and has held opponents to a .256 average.
While Fluharty and Van Eyk were tagged for four runs, left-hander Brendon Little turned in his finest outing of the season. Little entered in the bottom of the first inning and worked 2.1 hitless innings and struck out four. This appearance was the first time Little looked like the reliever who became a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays in the first half of last season.
Bieber’s final outing before the trade deadline didn’t go as anyone around the Blue Jays’ organization hoped or planned. Bieber failed to make it out of the first inning after turning in a pitching line of 0.2 IP, 1 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 6 BB, 0 K, setting a Blue Jays franchise record for walks in a single inning in the process.
The start for Bieber was almost puzzling, as the 31-year-old was coming off his past two starts against the Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays in which he allowed only one run across 13 innings while striking out nine.
For the season, Bieber has now made seven starts and has gone 2-1 with a 5.74 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP. The right-hander has struck out 22 across his 31.1 innings pitched, and with the August 3 trade deadline sitting under a week away, time will tell if Bieber has made his final start in a Blue Jays uniform.
The Blue Jays and Nationals will wrap up their series on Wednesday afternoon with first pitch set for 1:05 p.m. EST at Nationals Park. The Blue Jays will turn to Trey Yesavage, while the Nationals will counter with Zack Littell.
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