Miles Mikolas allows back-to-back-to-back homers in fifth inning to sink Nationals

Nationals fans had already grown restless, but they let their disgust be heard after right-hander Miles Mikolas allowed his third consecutive home run, showering him with boos as he regrouped on the mound.

​The Nationals entered the fifth inning of Tuesday’s 7-3 loss against the Marlins with both teams throwing no-hitters. The Nationals left the inning trailing 4-0.

​The Marlins’ fifth-inning flurry happened swiftly. Mikolas, appearing in the bulk reliever role, recorded a groundout to begin the frame. He then walked rookie Owen Caissie — who entered the game with a minuscule 6.8% walk rate — and allowed a two-run homer to Joe Mack on a first-pitch sinker to break up the scoreless tie and the Nationals’ no-hitter.

​Designated hitter Heriberto Hernández hammered a 2-1 slider for a solo homer, picking up where he left off from Monday’s game, and shortstop Otto López completed the trifecta by knocking a 2-1 sinker to the left-field seats.

Mikolas allowed six runs on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks over six innings, his longest outing of the season. He touched 97 mph for the first time and said it was the best fastball he’s had in years.

“The ball started floating up on me,” he said. “Everything felt really good. When I can keep the ball down, I’m really successful. Once I start to float up, that thigh-belt area, with those fastballs, big-league hitters are going to hit that.”

​Mikolas walked All-Star outfielder Kyle Stowers before recording back-to-back outs to end the fifth. All three homers came off fastballs near the heart of the zone.

Catcher Drew Millas said that Mikolas’ stuff was electric, and that there were some pitch selections he wanted back.

“I got a little bit cute with some of the pitch calls,” Millas said. “His game is to play the bottom of the zone, and with how his stuff was working, we expanded a little bit, and that inning got a little bit away from us.”

​The Nationals’ offense wasn’t able to muster much against Miami in a bullpen game until the sixth inning, when Millas led off with a bloop single and advanced to third on a single and a fly out. First baseman Luis García Jr. grounded into a force-out that scored pinch-runner Keibert Ruiz, who came in for Millas after he suffered an upper lip laceration sliding into third base.

Washington added two runs in the seventh with three consecutive singles and a pair of groundouts to make it 4-3.

After Mikolas’ miscues in the fifth inning, he rebounded to give the team length, but he created a deficit too steep to overcome. Miami tacked on three more runs in the ninth inning — two charged to Mikolas, one to left-hander Mitchell Parker.

Though the offense deserves some blame in Tuesday’s loss for not coming through with runners in scoring position (1-for-9), the Nationals’ bats have been terrific all season long. The lineup has carried the team with its speed, contact and power.

Meanwhile, the pitching has been shaky. But the staff improved in May, posting a 4.08 ERA, which ranked 19th in the majors but helped the team to its best month since August 2023.

Mikolas, who had turned things around after a slow start to the season, was a big part of that.

He worked with pitching coach Simon Mathews on adjusting his setup out of the windup, which gave him more of a rhythm on the mound and upped his velocity. He credited the training staff with helping him with his flexibility, which has gotten his delivery in a good spot.

Going forward, Mikolas has to figure out how to pair his stuff with better command to avoid leaving pitches in advantageous spots for hitters.

“I wish the numbers spoke a little bit better, but hopefully with how my stuff has been feeling I can get on a nice little run here and have some good outings,” he said.