Miles Mikolas pitched two-hit ball into the sixth inning, helping the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals 8-1.

ST. LOUIS — Miles Mikolas’ second pitch of the game was a fastball down the middle, which Washington Nationals leadoff hitter CJ Abrams pummeled for a double. Quickly, Mikolas snapped into focus. “I can’t be doing this again,” he muttered to himself.

In addition to the return of St. Louis' offense, starter Miles Mikolas held off the Nationals for one of his better outings. Mikolas, now 5-6 on the year, pitched a shutout through 5.2 innings and allowed just three base runners off two hits and a walk. He even struck out six, his highest strikeout total in a game since June 22.