Miguel Amaya, Ian Happ home runs lift Cubs over Nationals

Miguel Amaya and Ian Happ homered while Cade Horton pitched effectively into the seventh inning as the host Chicago Cubs routed the Washington Nationals 10-2 on Saturday to earn their first win of the season.

Chicago out-hit Washington 9-4. Amaya had two hits and two RBIs, while Pete Crow-Armstrong added two hits.

Horton cruised behind the support, spacing two runs and four hits over 6 1/3 innings with one walk and four strikeouts.

After winning 11 games as a rookie last season, the right-hander was solid in his first outing of 2026. Horton (1-0) was perfect through three innings before James Wood cracked a solo home run for Washington's lone extra-base hit of the afternoon.

Chicago pounded right-hander Miles Mikolas in his Nationals debut, reaching the veteran for six runs, four earned, and six hits in five innings. Mikolas (0-1) walked three and struck out four.

Trouble emerged after Mikolas retired the first four Cubs he faced. Chicago loaded the bases with one out in the second inning on consecutive walks and a single. Matt Shaw drove home the game's first run on a sacrifice fly, and Amaya followed with an RBI single.

Mikolas appeared to work out of the jam when Michael Busch popped up softly to short left field, but Nationals shortstop Nasim Nunez interfered with Daylen Lile's potential play on the ball. Nunez was charged with an error, and two runs scored.

Wood opened the Washington fourth with an opposite-field home run, but Chicago got the run back on Amaya's solo shot in the bottom half. The clubs traded runs again in the fifth, with Nunez delivering a run-scoring single for the Nationals and Nico Hoerner doubling home a run for the Cubs.

Chicago broke things open with a four-run sixth. After the Cubs put two aboard with two out, Happ blasted reliever Ken Waldichuk's first pitch as a National for a three-run homer. Pinch-hitter Carson Kelly worked a bases-loaded walk to force home a run four batters later.

Phil Maton, Caleb Thielbar and Jacob Webb scattered three walks and two strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief for the Cubs.

--Field Level Media