Harris, Baldwin and Olson homer as Braves rally past Nationals 8-6 for 7th win in 8 games

WASHINGTON (AP) — Michael Harris II homered twice, Drake Baldwin and Matt Olson also went deep and the Atlanta Braves rallied from a three-run deficit to beat the Washington Nationals 8-6 on Wednesday night for their seventh win in eight games.

Harris had his seventh multi-homer game — his third against the Nationals. He started the comeback from a 4-1 deficit with a two-run homer off Zack Littell (0-3) in a three-run second that included Ronald Acuña Jr.'s tying sacrifice fly. Harris then homered for a 5-4 lead in the third.

Olson boosted the margin to 8-4 in the fourth with his seventh home run, a three-run drive against Littell. With three four-homer games, the Braves matched their total of 2025.

Washington closed on homers by Joey Wiemer and James Wood in the sixth off Martín Pérez, who had been slated to start Thursday. Wood leads the NL with nine homers, and Wiemer had the first pinch-hit home run of his big league career.

Dylan Lee (1-0) pitched a perfect seventh and Robert Suarez worked around a leadoff single in an eight-pitch ninth for his second save.

Littell tied a career-high by allowing four homers and has given up a major league-leading 11 in 25 innings this season. He allowed eight runs — six earned — and seven hits in six innings, raising his ERA to 7.56.

Washington has lost six of 10 following a three-game winning streak.

Didier Fuentes of the Braves, at 20 years, 309 days the youngest starting pitcher in the major leagues this year, allowed four runs and seven hits in three innings.

Atlanta's Drake Baldwin homered in the first. Daylen Lile hit a three-run homer in the bottom half and Jorbit Vivas had an RBI double for Washington, which leads the major leagues with 29 first-inning runs.

Nationals RHP Cade Cavalli (0-1, 4.12 ERA) and Braves RHP JR Ritchie start Thursday. Ritchie will be called up to make his major league debut and Fuentes will be optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett,

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Atlanta Braves' Matt Olson hits a sacrifice fly during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Monday, April 20, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.)

Washington Nationals' James Wood runs after hitting a solo home run against Atlanta Braves pitcher Reynaldo López during the second inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Washington Nationals right fielder James Wood attempts to catch a double hit by Atlanta Braves' Jonah Heim during the seventh inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Atlanta Braves Michael Harris II celebrates a home run in the second inning during a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)

Atlanta Braves Michael Harris II hits a home run in the third inning during a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Shohei Ohtani's career-best 53-game on-base streak ended on a night he pitched six scoreless innings.

It's something only Ohtani could achieve, but the two-way superstar could be having games like that a little bit less often.

Before Wednesday's loss to San Francisco, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made it clear he's committed to Ohtani's health and keeping him fresh to perform both on the mound and at the plate for the long haul.

And that may look different by the day or week, depending how Ohtani is feeling.

For some games, that could mean Ohtani pitches but doesn't bat as the designated hitter — and Roberts plans to keep his options open.

Ohtani was solid on the mound again for the Dodgers in a 3-0 loss to the Giants, allowing no earned runs for the third time in four starts this season. A week earlier, Ohtani was held out of the lineup while pitching for the first time since 2021 because he was still sore from getting hit by a pitch.

Ohtani batted in his customary leadoff spot and went 0 for 4 with a strikeout, hitting a fly ball to left in his last at-bat. That ended an on-base streak that matched Shawn Green for the second-longest in Dodgers history. Duke Snider owns the team record at 58 games from May 13-July 11, 1954. Ohtani’s streak was the longest in the majors since Orlando Cabrera reached base in 63 straight from April 25-July 6, 2006.

The 31-year-old Ohtani saw his batting average drop from .271 to .258. He has allowed one earned run over 24 innings for an ERA of 0.38 and a 2-0 record, surrendering 15 hits with 25 strikeouts and six walks.

“I think if you look at the overall numbers it's certainly something. I still feel really good about putting his name in the lineup,” Roberts said. “I know the last start I chose not to have him hit and just pitch. I am open to it. We'll see. It's something that we've certainly flagged, and also you have to look at what's the option. In years past or last year, you've got to kind of weigh, who's a different option?”

Catcher Dalton Rushing has become a capable fill-in at DH. He's hitting .414 with seven homers and 13 RBIs.

The two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers have dropped four of five. They lost 3-1 in Tuesday night's series opener at rival San Francisco.

Roberts had yet to decide whether Ohtani would play the series finale Thursday. He said beforehand he had no qualms about giving Ohtani five at-bats on a day he’s pitching but would consider moving him down in the batting order if that makes sense.

“I think everything should be on the table,” Roberts said.

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Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani throws to a San Francisco Giants batter during the third inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani, left, throws to a San Francisco Giants' Heliot Ramos, right, during the second inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani walks to the dugout after striking out during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani throws to a San Francisco Giants batter during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)