Nick Lodolo pitched his first complete game with eight strikeouts, Nick Fraley and Santiago Espinal each had two hits and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Washington Nationals 5-0 on Wednesday. Lodolo (8-6) allowed four hits with no walks.

CINCINNATI -- Nearly six years to the date that Nick Lodolo made his professional debut with the Reds' Single-A affiliate, the Dayton Dragons, the Reds' left-hander threw a complete game shutout Wednesday afternoon in our nation's capital, as the Reds won 5-0 to salvage a game in the series against the Washington Nationals.

This was not a playoff team in October. Or a contender in September. This was the bad-bullpen, meh-lineup Nationals playing for nothing in July.

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The Cincinnati Reds came out of the All-Star break, won two games and were just 1 1/2 games behind the final wild-card position

The Reds pitcher is seeking a second opinion on a recently developed biceps injury after MRI results were “a little murky,” manager Terry Francona said.

Josh Bell hit his 13th home run, Jacob Young and CJ Abrams contributed RBI doubles during the decisive fifth inning, and the Washington Nationals defeated the Cincinnati Reds 6-1.

Since June 1, the Cincinnati Reds’ bullpen has only been charged with five total losses. The Reds are mostly winning and losing with the performances of their rotation, but still it feels like middle and low-leverage relief is an area where the Reds need more production.