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Washington Nationals' MacKenzie Gore Racks Up Strikeouts in Historic Opening Day Gem

MacKenzie Gore struck out 13 Philadelphia Phillies in 6.0 innings of work on Thursday, placing the Washington Nationals ace alone atop the MLB record books.
Sam Connon|
Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher MacKenzie Gore (1) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park.
Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher MacKenzie Gore (1) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park. | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

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Washington Nationals

MacKenzie Gore came out of the gates with a career performance Thursday, dominating the Philadelphia Phillies in historic fashion.

The Washington Nationals left-hander faced the minimum on Opening Day, allowing just one hit in 6.0 scoreless innings of work. The one-out single he gave up to J.T. Realmuto in the top of the second was immediately wiped out when Realmuto got caught stealing.

Beyond the lack of hits, the Phillies had a tough time even touching Gore's stuff.

Gore notched two strikeouts in the first and two more in the second before striking out the side in the third. He punched out two more Philadelphia batters in the fourth, another two in the fifth and one last one to close out the sixth.

By the time his day was done, Gore had racked up 13 strikeouts.

As noted by Underdog Fantasy's Justin Havens, Gore became the first starting pitcher in MLB history to record at least 13 strikeouts with no walks and one-or-fewer hits on Opening Day. He is the first southpaw with 12-plus strikeouts on Opening Day since Randy Johnson in 1996, according to Havens.

Gore's 13 strikeouts also broke the Nationals' Opening Day franchise record. He is the first pitcher across MLB to hit that mark since Shane Bieber in 2020, per Havens.

The 26-year-old lefty went 10-12 with a 3.90 ERA, 1.419 WHIP, 9.8 strikeouts per nine innings and a 0.8 WAR in 2024. Once a key piece who came over from the San Diego Padres in the 2022 Juan Soto trade, Gore now stands along as Washington's de facto ace.

The Nationals' bullpen gave up two runs in the seventh and one in the eighth, robbing Gore of the chance to earn the win. Washington went on to lose 7-4.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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