Anderson takes a perfect game into the sixth inning, retiring the first 16 Nationals batters in order before giving up a hit. Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Trea Turner combine for six hits and …
WASHINGTON — A steady rain fell during Monday’s game at Nationals Park. For most of the night, though, Tyler Anderson wasn’t on the mound long enough to get wet.
“Not a lot,” Anderson said when asked how much he was thinking about his perfect-game chances. “That’s pretty early. If I was really concerned, I think you probably don’t throw a fastball 3-1 . You try to stay a little more stingy there. Throw a changeup or something. But in that situation, we’ve got a big lead. My job is to throw as many innings as I can.”
The left-hander struck out the side in the eighth, running his total for the night to eight strikeouts without a walk. It was his longest outing since his only career complete game in August 2020 for the Giants against the Diamondbacks. While Anderson was cruising through a Nationals lineup featuring Juan Soto, veteran DH Nelson Cruz and an assortment of prospects and filler, the Dodgers’ hitters were romping around Nationals Park as freely as a bunch of big-headed presidents.