Mariners rout Nationals behind Bryce Miller, Dominic Canzone

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Mariners' 10-2 romp of the Washington Nationals was as complete of a game as they've played all season, and it was as complete of a performance as Bryce Miller has had at any stage of his career.

It just wasn't quite Miller's first complete game, despite throwing some of best negotiating tactics at Dan Wilson after the eighth inning.

"I told him I had one more," Miller said just before midnight local time Friday after a long, steamy, weather-delayed day at Nationals Park. "But it's fine. I was happy with where we were at."

Everyone in the visitors' dugout was happy by the end of this one, as the Mariners (37-34) backed Miller's eight-inning gem with three home runs and another double-digit hitting barrage to improve to 4-4 on this eternal East Coast trip.

There was even more encouraging news postgame, when left fielder Randy Arozarena - the Mariners' most valuable player through the first 70 games - said he expects to be sidelined for just a couple days with a strained hamstring that forced him out of the game in the third inning.

"What a game today," Wilson said. "I thought the quality of at-bats were pretty special."

Dominic Canzone continued his torrid start to June with a two-run triple to start the Mariners' five-run second inning, and he added his 10th home run of the season leading off the eighth.

Colt Emerson, the Mariners' 20-year-old rookie playing in his 21st major-league game, belted his fifth home run on an elevated fastball from Nationals starter Zack Littell, a two-run shot to make it 5-0 in the second inning.

Josh Naylor capped the night with his eighth home run in the ninth.

Every starter had at least one hit, and the M's finished with 11 hits for their 12th double-digit hit total in their past 18 games - and they've done so without the likes of Cal Raleigh (oblique), J.P. Crawford (hand) and Brendan Donovan (groin) in the lineup lately.

The early run support was nice for Miller after he went through much of his usual pregame warmup routine - only to find out that the game was being delayed because of a lightning storm approaching the D.C. area.

Up to 95 degrees earlier in the day, temperatures dropped to the mid-80s by the time the game finally started at 8:56 p.m. local time. Still, the relative humidity was 86%, and Miller said afterward it was hotter than any game he could remember pitching in back home in Texas.

"I probably lost 20 pounds sweating so much," Miller said.

You could hardly tell.

Miller was perfect through three innings on 33 pitches.

James Wood, the Nationals' emerging star, punished a slider and launched it out to right field after Miller fell behind 3-1 in the count.

But Miller cruised from there, retiring 10 of the next 11 batters and needing just 80 pitches to get through seven innings for the first time this season. Again relying mostly on his four-seam fastball, splitter and slider, Miller did sprinkle in his other four pitches, too, and he said he's comfortable throwing any of those for strikes these days.

He went back out for the eighth inning and promptly fell behind Dylan Crews 3-0 in the count. Crews crushed a middle-middle fastball out to left-center for the second solo homer of the day off Miller.

Miller needed just six pitches to retire the next three batters and complete eight innings for the first time in his career, at 91 pitches.

One of the better performances we've seen all year," Wilson said. "(Miller was) just in control again from top to bottom."

One more, Skip?

Wilson, it seems, had already made up his mind. Miller, by then, had done plenty, finishing with seven strikeouts, no walks and just four hits allowed.

In six appearances (five starts) since his May 13 season debut, Miller has a 1.54 ERA in 35 innings, with 20 hits allowed and a 36-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

In his 80th career appearance with the M's, Miller said he feels as good as ever.

"Right now the 'velo' is good, the body feels really good, and I feel really confident with, really, every pitch, and that's a spot that I haven't been in in the past," he said. "Where every pitch, one through seven, I feel like I can go to and I can get swing-and-miss or I can be in zone with it when I need to.

"So, yeah, I'd say confidence is definitely at an all-time high.

BOX SCORE

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This story was originally published June 12, 2026 at 11:37 PM.