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Nationals reliever Ken Waldichuk leaves game vs. Brewers after hurting his arm on pitch

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Nationals reliever Ken Waldichuk leaves game vs. Brewers after hurting his arm on pitch
Sport

Sport

Nationals reliever Ken Waldichuk leaves game vs. Brewers after hurting his arm on pitch

2026-04-13 06:33 Last Updated At:06:40

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Nationals left-hander Ken Waldichuk departed after hurting his arm while throwing a pitch in the seventh inning of Washington's 8-6 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday.

Waldichuk threw a ball to Brice Turang and reacted in discomfort. As training staffers went to the mound to check on him, Waldichuk pointed to his left arm.

Waldichuk had Tommy John surgery nearly two years ago.

“Yeah, there's definitely some concern,” manager Blake Butera said. “Any time somebody goes to their forearm and comes out of the game, it's usually pretty scary. Before I say anything (else), I want to have some time to take a look at him and figure out what it is.”

After he pointed to his arm, Waldichuk walked slowly to the dugout and Cole Henry came out of the bullpen to replace him with a 2-0 count. Turang eventually drew a walk that was charged to Waldichuk.

Waldichuk, 28, was charged with one earned run in 1 2/3 innings Sunday and has a 6.75 ERA in five appearances. He's 6-11 with a 5.35 ERA in 46 career appearances, including 29 starts.

He pitched for Oakland from 2022-23, missed the entire 2024 season and spent last year in the minors. Waldichuk made Washington's roster this year after allowing two runs — one earned — over 9 2/3 innings in spring training.

“He's a guy that's got a lot of upside,” teammate Zack Littell said. “We saw him in spring training have a dominant spring. You obviously want a guy like that healthy. Whoever it is, it's just never fun to see that happen.”

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Washington Nationals' Ken Waldichuk reacts after suffering an injury during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Washington Nationals' Ken Waldichuk reacts after suffering an injury during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Washington Nationals' Ken Waldichuk (52) walks to the dugout with a trainer after suffering an injury during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

Washington Nationals' Ken Waldichuk (52) walks to the dugout with a trainer after suffering an injury during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungarian voters on Sunday ousted long-serving Prime Minister Viktor Orbán after 16 years in power, rejecting the authoritarian policies and global far-right movement that he embodied in favor of a pro-European challenger in a bombshell election result with global repercussions.

It was a stunning blow for Orbán — a close ally of both U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin — who quickly conceded defeat after what he called a ″painful″ election result. U.S. Vice President JD Vance had made a visit to Hungary just days earlier, meant to help push Orbán over the finish line.

Election victor Péter Magyar, a former Orbán loyalist who campaigned against corruption and on everyday issues like health care and public transport, has pledged to rebuild Hungary's relationships with the European Union and NATO — ties that frayed under Orbán. European leaders quickly congratulated Magyar.

His victory was expected to transform political dynamics within the EU, where Orbán had upended the bloc by frequently vetoing key decisions, prompting concerns he sought to break it up from the inside.

It will also reverberate among far-right movements around the world, which have viewed Orbán as a beacon for how nationalist populism can be used to wage culture wars and leverage state power to undermine opponents.

It's not yet clear whether Magyar’s Tisza party will have the two-thirds majority in parliament, which would give it the numbers needed for major changes in legislation. With 93% of the vote counted, it had more than 53% support to 37% for Orbán’s governing Fidesz party and looked set to win 94 of Hungary's 106 voting districts.

“I congratulated the victorious party,″ Orban told followers. “We are going to serve the Hungarian nation and our homeland from opposition.″

In a speech to tens of thousands of jubilant supporters at a victory party along the Danube River, Magyar said his voters had rewritten Hungarian history.

“Tonight, truth prevailed over lies. Today, we won because Hungarians didn’t ask what their homeland could do for them — they asked what they could do for their homeland. You found the answer. And you followed through,” he said.

On the streets of Budapest, drivers blared car horns and cranked up anti-government songs while people marching in the streets chanted and screamed.

Many revelers chanted “Ruszkik haza!” or “Russians go home!” — a phrase used widely during Hungary’s 1956 anti-Soviet revolution, and which had gained increasing currency amid Orbán’s drift toward Moscow.

Turnout in the election was nearly 80%, according to the National Election Office, a record number in any vote in Hungary’s post-Communist history.

Orbán, the EU’s longest-serving leader and one of its biggest antagonists, traveled a long road from his early days as a liberal, anti-Soviet firebrand to the Russia-friendly nationalist admired today by the global far-right.

The EU will be waiting to see how Magyar changes Hungary's approach to Ukraine. Orbán repeatedly frustrated EU efforts to support the neighboring country in its war against Russia’s full-scale invasion, while cultivating close ties to Putin and refusing to end Hungary’s dependence on Russian energy imports.

Recent revelations have shown a top member of Orbán's government frequently shared the contents of EU discussions with Moscow, raising accusations that Hungary was acting on Russia’s behalf within the bloc.

Members of Trump's “Make America Great Again” movement are among those who see Orbán's government and his Fidesz political party as shining examples of conservative, anti-globalist politics in action, while he is reviled by advocates of liberal democracy and the rule of law.

In Budapest, Marcell Mehringer, 21, said he was voting “primarily so that Hungary will finally be a so-called European country, and so that young people, and really everyone, will do their fundamental civic duty to unite this nation a bit and to break down these boundaries borne of hatred.”

During his 16 years as prime minister, Orbán launched harsh crackdowns on minority rights and media freedoms, subverted many of Hungary's institutions and been accused of siphoning large sums of money into the coffers of his allied business elite, an allegation he denies.

He also heavily strained Hungary's relationship with the EU. Although Hungary is one of the smaller EU countries, with a population of 9.5 million, Orbán has repeatedly used his veto to block decisions that require unanimity.

Most recently, he blocked a 90-billion euro ($104 billion) EU loan to Ukraine, prompting his partners to accuse him of hijacking the critical aid.

Magyar, 45, rapidly rose to become Orbán's most serious challenger.

A former insider within Orbán's Fidesz, Magyar broke with the party in 2024 and quickly formed Tisza. Since then, he has toured Hungary relentlessly, holding rallies in settlements big and small in a campaign blitz that recently had him visiting up to six towns daily.

In an interview with The Associated Press earlier this month, Magyar said the election will be a “referendum” on whether Hungary continues on its drift toward Russia under Orbán, or can retake its place among the democratic societies of Europe.

Tisza is a member of the European People's Party, the mainstream, center-right political family with leaders governing 12 of the EU's 27 nations.

Magyar faced a tough fight. Orbán's control of Hungary's public media, which he has transformed into a mouthpiece for his party, and vast swaths of the private media market give him an advantage in spreading his message.

The unilateral transformation of Hungary's electoral system and gerrymandering of its 106 voting districts by Fidesz also will require Tisza to gain an estimated 5% more votes than Orbán’s party to achieve a simple majority.

Additionally, hundreds of thousands of ethnic Hungarians in neighboring countries had the right to vote in Hungarian elections and traditionally have voted overwhelmingly for Orbán's party.

Russian secret services have plotted to interfere and tip the election in Orbán's favor, according to numerous media reports including by The Washington Post. The prime minister, however, accused neighboring Ukraine, as well as Hungary's allies in the EU, of seeking to interfere in the vote to install a “pro-Ukraine” government.

Associated Press journalists Béla Szandelszky, Marko Drobnjakovic, Ivan L. Nagy, Florent Bajrami in Budapest, Hungary, and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed to this report.

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party celebrate after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party celebrate after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, center, addresses after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, center, addresses after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party waves a national flag after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party waves a national flag after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party celebrate after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party celebrate after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

A man waves a Hungarian flag as he celebrates in the streets after the announcement of partial results of the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A man waves a Hungarian flag as he celebrates in the streets after the announcement of partial results of the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party celebrates after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party celebrates after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, center, flanked by his team reacts after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, center, flanked by his team reacts after a parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, speaks to the media after polls closed, during the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, speaks to the media after polls closed, during the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A woman takes ballots at a polling station during the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A woman takes ballots at a polling station during the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A woman casts her ballot at a polling station during the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A woman casts her ballot at a polling station during the Hungarian parliamentary election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the junior ruling Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP) Zsolt Semjen and his wife Gabriella Semjenne Menus cast their ballots during an election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (Zsolt Szigetvary/MTI via AP)

Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the junior ruling Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP) Zsolt Semjen and his wife Gabriella Semjenne Menus cast their ballots during an election in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (Zsolt Szigetvary/MTI via AP)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban prepares to cast his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban prepares to cast his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban addresses the media outside a polling station after voting in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban addresses the media outside a polling station after voting in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, speaks to the media outside a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, speaks to the media outside a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, casts his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, casts his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban casts his vote in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban casts his vote in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Officially sealed ballot boxes are seen at a local polling station during an election in Szekesfehervar, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (Tamas Vasvari/MTI via AP)

Officially sealed ballot boxes are seen at a local polling station during an election in Szekesfehervar, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (Tamas Vasvari/MTI via AP)

A man casts his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A man casts his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

A man prepares to cast his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A man prepares to cast his ballot at a polling station in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party hold up their lit phones during a final election rally in Debrecen, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party hold up their lit phones during a final election rally in Debrecen, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party hold up their lit phones during a final election rally in Debrecen, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters of Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party hold up their lit phones during a final election rally in Debrecen, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party attends a rally in Debrecen, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Peter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party attends a rally in Debrecen, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Supporters attend electoral campaign closing rally of Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the governing Fidesz in Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Supporters attend electoral campaign closing rally of Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the governing Fidesz in Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban attends the electoral campaign closing rally of the governing Fidesz in Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban attends the electoral campaign closing rally of the governing Fidesz in Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

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