John Lackey made another solid start and it allowed the Cubs enough time to jump all over the Nationals Saturday afternoon.

Lackey pitched 5 innings and gave up two earned runs over the course of his time on the mound. He also struck out three on the afternoon. Things didn’t start off well as Lackey left one over the plate in the first inning and Bryce Harper gave it a ride to give the Nationals a 1–0 lead in the first. It did not last long.

Former Cub Edwin Jackson was making his third start for the Nationals, and the Cubs jumped all over him in the first inning. Kris Bryant drove in Jon Jay with an RBI double in the first. Then Wilson Contreras got bryant home on an infield single. Cubs newest catcher, Alex Avila struck his first home run as a Chicago Cub and pushed the Cubs lead to 4–1 with the two run shot.

The Cubs bats went cold in the second inning all the way until the 6th when Wilson Contreras belted his 19th home run of the year also bringing in Anthony Rizzo. Jon Jay finished off the scoring for the Cubs with an RBI single in the 7th inning.

The bullpen took over for Lackey in the 6th. Brian Duensing and Pedro Strop each pitched one scoreless inning. The newest reliever Justin Wilson came on in the 8th and found himself in a jam. He ultimately worked out of it. Wade Davis recovered from his rocky outing against the Diamondbacks and closed out the game in the 9th to stay perfect on saves for the year.

The Cubs and Nationals will finish off their season series tomorrow afternoon. Jon Lester will take the mound for the Cubs as first pitch is slated for 1:20pm CST.

Mathias is an Iowa State Alum who loves everything Chicago. You can follow him on Twitter @MathiasWRNL