Reds 15, Nationals 1: Burns, Bleday Power Cincinnati Past Washington

The lead

May 14, 2026 - Cincinnati - The Cincinnati Reds avoided a home sweep with the kind of afternoon that resets a series narrative. Chase Burns worked six scoreless innings, JJ Bleday homered twice and drove in six runs, and Cincinnati routed the Washington Nationals 15-1 at Great American Ball Park, per the Associated Press recap on CBS Sports.

The Reds scored in bunches, belted four home runs, and extended their streak of consecutive home series without being swept to 39, according to AP.

How the game turned

Matt McLain staked Burns to a 2-0 lead in the second with his fourth homer of the year. Washington starter Foster Griffin (4-2) had allowed only 11 earned runs in his first eight starts before Thursday; the Reds tagged him for nine runs in 4.1 innings, per AP.

Bleday's three-run shot in the fifth made it 9-0 and ended Griffin's day. A two-run homer in the seventh pushed the lead to 11-0, and Cincinnati added a four-run eighth that included Dane Myers' three-run blast off outfielder-turned-pitcher Joey Wiemer. Washington's lone run came on a wild pitch by Lucas Mey in the eighth.

Pitching and matchup notes

Burns (5-1) allowed two hits, struck out seven, walked two, and worked around a three-error fifth to keep the Nationals scoreless. He has allowed only one earned run over his last three starts, per AP.

Burns received help from the outfield: Spencer Steer made a sliding catch in left to strand a runner in the third, and Myers ended the fifth with a diving grab in center with runners on the corners.

Bats that changed the board

Bleday's day was the headline: two homers, six RBIs, and his third career multi-homer game. Steer went 2-for-3 with three runs, and Elly De La Cruz doubled and singled for his sixth straight multi-hit game, tied for the longest such streak by a Cincinnati switch hitter since 1900, according to AP.

AthX Engine fantasy angle

Cincinnati's offensive explosion projects to the top of AthX Engine team fantasy scoring for May 14, with Burns's 29 pitching FP and Bleday's 16 hitting FP leading the daily board. Blowout nights reward multi-homer bats and long starts even when the box score gets lopsided late. AthX Engine scoring is separate from dynamic pricing.

What comes next

Washington returns home for Baltimore on Friday while Cincinnati rests before a road trip, per AP's notebook lines.

*Sources: MLB.com schedule, MLB gameday wrap, CBS Sports recap, Associated Press via CBS, and AthX Engine scoring. Information only; not financial advice.*