PITTSBURGH (Interstat) — CJ Abrams homered and drove in two runs, and the Washington Nationals survived a late rally and a tense ninth inning to edge the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 on Tuesday night at PNC Park.

The Nationals, rebounding from a 16-5 drubbing by the Pirates a day earlier, built an early four-run lead and then relied on a parade of relievers to secure the victory in front of a crowd of 9,423. The game lasted 3 hours, 8 minutes.

Washington’s offense erupted immediately against Pirates starter Mitch Keller. James Wood and Luis García Jr. drew consecutive walks to open the game. Brady House followed with an RBI single, Daylen Lile added a run-scoring single of his own, and Abrams capped the first-inning outburst with another RBI single to stake the Nationals to a 3-0 lead before many fans had settled into their seats.

Pittsburgh answered in the bottom half when Brandon Lowe launched a solo home run to right-center field off Nationals opener Mitchell Parker. But Parker, who earned the win, limited the damage by striking out Oneil Cruz and inducing an inning-ending double play from Ryan O’Hearn.

Abrams provided a critical insurance run in the third inning, crushing a solo shot to right field off Keller for his sixth home run of the season. The shortstop finished 3 for 4, extending a hot streak that has seen him hit safely in five of his last six games.

Washington added what proved to be the decisive run in the fourth. Nasim Nuñez reached on a fielder’s choice, advanced to second on a walk to Wood, and scored on a two-out RBI single by García, pushing the lead to 5-1.

The Pirates began chipping away in the bottom of the fourth against Nationals reliever Miles Mikolas. Lowe walked and Bryan Reynolds drew a walk after a successful challenge overturned a strike call. Marcell Ozuna then doubled sharply to left, scoring Lowe. Nick Gonzales followed with a groundout that plated Reynolds, cutting the deficit to 5-3.

Pittsburgh pulled within a run in the fifth when Joey Bart led off the inning with his first home run of the year, a solo drive to left-center off Mikolas to make it 5-4.

From there, the game transformed into a bullpen duel. The Pirates’ relievers were exceptional, with Yohan Ramírez, Isaac Mattson and Mason Montgomery combining for five scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and striking out five. Their work kept Pittsburgh within striking distance.

Washington’s relief corps, however, matched them zero for zero under increasing pressure. After Mikolas departed, Clayton Beeter, Cionel Pérez and Mitchell Parker navigated through the middle innings. The most pivotal sequence came in the seventh. With Pittsburgh threatening, loading the bases with one out on two singles and a fielding error, Nick Yorke grounded into a crushing 4-3 double play to end the inning and preserve the one-run lead.

The Nationals missed a chance to add a cushion in the eighth when Abrams doubled but was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a single by José Tena, a call upheld after a Washington challenge for a home-plate collision.

Gus Varland entered for the save in the ninth for Washington. He immediately allowed a double to Konnor Griffin. After a walk to Bart put the potential winning run on base, Varland bore down. He struck out Cruz swinging for the first out. Nick Yorke then popped out to first baseman Curtis Mead in foul territory for the final out, stranding the tying and winning runs and sealing Varland’s second save.

Mitchell Parker, who followed opener Miles Mikolas and pitched two scoreless innings of relief with five strikeouts, was credited with the win, improving to 1-0. Mitch Keller took the loss for Pittsburgh, falling to 1-1 after surrendering five runs on seven hits over four innings.

The victory improved Washington’s record to 8-9, while the Pirates dropped to 10-7. The two teams continue their four-game series Wednesday at PNC Park.

The most important part of the game was the seventh-inning double play turned by the Nationals with the bases loaded and one out. Pittsburgh, having closed the gap to 5-4, had momentum and the heart of its order looming. The ground ball from Nick Yorke to second baseman Nasim Nuñez, who started the routine 4-6-3 twin killing, extinguished the Pirates’ best chance to tie or take the lead and allowed Washington’s shaky bullpen to regain control of the contest.