Lord earns 1st MLB win as Nationals beat Phillies 4-2 to prevent sweep

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Luis Garcia Jr. singled, doubled and drove in a run, Brad Lord pitched effectively into the sixth inning for his first major league win and the Washington Nationals avoided a three-game sweep with a 4-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday night.

Nathaniel Lowe also drove in a run for Washington, which had lost three in a row overall.

Lord (1-3) allowed two runs and six hits in five-plus innings. The rookie right-hander struck out four and walked one.

Jose A. Ferrer fanned three in two scoreless innings of relief, and Kyle Finnegan got three outs for his 10th save.

Trea Turner had three hits for Philadelphia, which had won four straight.

Alec Bohm’s RBI single in the fifth put the Phillies in front 1-0 before the Nationals scored all their runs in the sixth off Taijuan Walker (1-3) with some help from the Phillies.

Lowe’s RBI single tied it at 1, and the Nationals went in front when Bryce Harper couldn’t field Keibert Ruiz’s hard-hit grounder at first base. Lowe scored on the error, and Ruiz reached third. Garcia’s single plated Ruiz, and the Nationals tallied their final run on a double steal, with Garcia scoring from third and Dylan Crews going from first to second.

Walker cruised through five scoreless innings, allowing one hit, before an adventurous sixth. After a leadoff double by CJ Abrams, James Wood hit a hard liner off Walker’s leg. Walker stayed in the game but wasn’t as effective from that point forward. He didn’t make it through the inning, though only one of the four runs the Nationals scored against him was earned.

Philadelphia slugger Kyle Schwarber has reached base safely in 37 consecutive games after extending his streak with an eighth-inning walk.

Nationals: Open a three-game series at Cincinnati on Friday night. Washington LHP Mitchell Parker (3-1, 2.65 ERA) opposes Reds RHP Hunter Greene (3-2, 2.70).

Phillies: Begin a three-game series against Arizona on Friday night. Philadelphia LHP Jesús Luzardo (3-0, 1.73 ERA) faces Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (3-1, 4.41).

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Washington Nationals' Nathaniel Lowe follows through after hitting a run-scoring single off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Taijuan Walker during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Max Kepler, right, reacts as he scores past Washington Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz on a single by Alec Bohm during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Max Kepler reacts after hitting a double against Washington Nationals pitcher Brad Lord during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Alec Bohm hits a run-scoring single against Washington Nationals pitcher Brad Lord during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Johan Rojas, center, reacts past Washington Nationals third baseman José Tena after hitting a triple during the ninth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Taijuan Walker pitches during the second inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Nick Castellanos hits a run-scoring single against Washington Nationals pitcher Jose A. Ferrer during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Washington Nationals pitcher Jose A. Ferrer fields a run-scoring single by Philadelphia Phillies' Nick Castellanos during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Washington Nationals' Keibert Ruiz, right, reacts past Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm after batting in a run on a fielding error by first baseman Bryce Harper during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Washington Nationals' Nathaniel Lowe, right, scores past Philadelphia Phillies catcher Rafael Marchán after a fielding error by first baseman Bryce Harper on a batted ball by Keibert Ruiz during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Washington Nationals' Keibert Ruiz runs to first after batting in a run on a fielding error by Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Washington Nationals pitcher Kyle Finnegan, right, and catcher Keibert Ruiz celebrate after the Nationals won a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Washington Nationals' Brad Lord pitches during the second inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

NUUK, Greenland (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that NATO should help the U.S. acquire Greenland and anything less than American control is unacceptable, hours before Vice President JD Vance was to host Danish and Greenlandic officials for talks.

In a post on his social media site, Trump reiterated his argument that the U.S. “needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security.” He added that “NATO should be leading the way for us to get it” and that otherwise Russia or China would — “AND THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!”

“NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES,” Trump wrote. “Anything less than that is unacceptable.”

Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, is at the center of a geopolitical storm as Trump insists he wants to own it — and residents of its capital, Nuuk, say it isn't for sale. The White House hasn't ruled out taking the Arctic island by force.

Vance is to meet Denmark’s foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt in Washington later Wednesday to discuss Greenland.

Along the narrow, snow-covered main street in Nuuk, international journalists and camera crews have been stopping passersby every few meters (feet) asking them for their thoughts on a crisis which Denmark’s prime minister has warned could potentially trigger the end of NATO.

Tuuta Mikaelsen, a 22-year-old student, told The Associated Press in Nuuk that she hoped American officials would get the message to “back off."

Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen told a news conference in Copenhagen on Tuesday that "if we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark. We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU.”

Asked later Tuesday about Nielsen's comments, Trump replied: “I disagree with him. I don’t know who he is. I don’t know anything about him. But, that’s going to be a big problem for him.”

Greenland is strategically important because, as climate change causes the ice to melt, it opens up the possibility of shorter trade routes to Asia. That also could make it easier to extract and transport untapped deposits of critical minerals which are needed for computers and phones.

Trump said in Wednesday's post that Greenland is “vital” to the United States' Golden Dome missile defense program. He also has said he wants the island to expand America’s security and has cited what he says is the threat from Russian and Chinese ships as a reason to control it.

But both experts and Greenlanders question that claim.

“The only Chinese I see is when I go to the fast food market,” heating engineer Lars Vintner said. He said he frequently goes sailing and hunting and has never seen Russian or Chinese ships.

His friend, Hans Nørgaard, agreed, adding “what has come out of the mouth of Donald Trump about all these ships is just fantasy.”

Denmark has said the U.S. — which already has a military presence — can boost its bases on Greenland. For that reason, “security is just a cover,” Vintner said, suggesting Trump actually wants to own the island to make money from its untapped natural resources.

Nørgaard said he filed a police complaint in Nuuk against Trump’s “aggressive” behavior because, he said, American officials are threatening the people of Greenland and NATO.

Mikaelsen, the student, said Greenlanders benefit from being part of Denmark, which provides free health care, education and payments during study, and “I don’t want the U.S. to take that away from us."

Following the White House meeting, Løkke Rasmussen and Motzfeldt, along with Denmark’s ambassador to the U.S., are due to meet with senators from the Arctic Caucus in the U.S. Congress.

Two lawmakers — Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican — have introduced bipartisan legislation that would prohibit the use of funds from the U.S. Defense or State departments to annex or take control of Greenland or the sovereign territory of any NATO member state without that ally’s consent or authorization from the North Atlantic Council.

A bipartisan delegation of lawmakers is also heading to Copenhagen at the end of the week to meet with Danish and Greenlandic officials.

Last week, Denmark’s major European allies joined Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in issuing a statement declaring that Greenland belongs to its people and that “it is for Denmark and Greenland, and them only, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland.”

On Wednesday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told RTL radio that his country plans to open a consulate in Greenland on Feb. 6, following a decision last summer to open the diplomatic outpost.

“Attacking another NATO member would make no sense; it would even be contrary to the interests of the United States. And I’m hearing more and more voices in the United States saying this,” Barrot said. “So this blackmail must obviously stop.”

Geir Moulson in Berlin, Lisa Mascaro in Washington and Catherine Gaschka in Paris contributed to this report.

A fisherman carries a bucket onto his boat in the harbor of Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A boat travels at the sea inlet in Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

People walk near the church in Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A bird stands on a boat at the harbour of Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

People walk along a street in downtown of Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)