Game result and context
Nationals top Cardinals 8-5 in 11 innings as both clubs play out eliminated 2026 seasons
Washington broke an extra-inning tie with four runs in the top of the 11th and beat St. Louis 8-5. Daylen Lile homered in the first, Andrew Alvarez threw six scoreless innings and Jorbit Vivas had four hits. The Cardinals rallied to force extras but could not answer the final push. Both teams are already eliminated from division and wild-card contention.
Final result
The Washington Nationals beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-5 in 11 innings on September 19, 2026, at Busch Stadium. Attendance was 29,774.
The win moved Washington to 73-82. St. Louis fell to 75-80.
How the game changed
The decisive turn came in the top of the 11th, when the Nationals scored four runs to pull away. The Cardinals got one back in the bottom half, but the margin held.
Washington took control early. Daylen Lile hit a two-run homer in the top of the first, and the Nationals added a run in the sixth for a three-run cushion.
St. Louis chipped back. The Cardinals scored twice in the seventh and once in the ninth to tie the game and send it to extra innings. Each side scored once in the 10th before Washington's big inning settled it.
Key performances
Andrew Alvarez gave the Nationals six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts, keeping St. Louis off the board until after he left.
Jorbit Vivas had four hits in six at-bats with a run scored and an RBI. Lile finished with one hit in six at-bats, but it was the game's only home run, a two-run shot that also produced his run. José Tena had one hit in two at-bats, scored once and drove in two.
For St. Louis, José Fermín had three hits in five at-bats with an RBI, and Pedro Pagés had two hits in four at-bats with a run scored and an RBI.
Season and playoff context
Neither team has postseason stakes remaining. Both have been eliminated from division and wild-card contention.
Washington sits fourth in its division, 18.0 games back, and eighth in the wild-card race, 12.0 games back. St. Louis is fourth in its division, 22.0 games back, and seventh in the wild-card standings, 10.0 games back.
Series context
This was Game 2 of a three-game regular-season series between the Nationals and Cardinals in St. Louis.