WASHINGTON -- Minutes before a rainstorm pelted Nationals Park on Friday night, an offensive storm was endured and the pitching floodgates opened. By final out of the Nationals' 11-0 loss to the Orioles, they had given up 19 hits -- their most in a nine-inning game since July 18, 2018.

“This game was about as lopsided as I’ve seen in a long time,” said manager Dave Martinez.

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First it was Aníbal Sánchez who took the mound in the Beltway Series opener, looking to bounce back from allowing four home runs in his first start of the season. His struggles followed him -- not in the form of homers, but in hard-hit balls. The veteran allowed six hits with exit velocities over 95 mph for the second consecutive outing as he dropped to 0-2 on the year. His evening culminated in five earned runs, 10 hits and three walks in 5 1/3 innings while striking out four over 91 pitches.

What stuck out? After watching his delivery, Martinez said, “We’ve got to get him down in the strike zone.”

Sánchez agreed. He is looking to establish a rhythm after he missed his last scheduled start when the Marlins series was postponed. Pitching in a game for the first time since July 27, he allowed 10-plus hits for the first time in a game since Sept. 10, 2017.

“I used to throw my fastballs down, and it's easier to locate my off pitch in the dirt -- and that's when the hitters got more swing and miss,” Sánchez said. “So when I'm up, every breaking ball is a bit higher than normal, and that's when the hitter is able to make contact with the ball.”

Washington called on Ryne Harper out of the bullpen to put a hold on Baltimore’s bats. If he could limit the deficit, perhaps the time would be there for his teammates to warm up at the plate after being held to three runs in the first six innings by former National Tommy Milone.

Not the case. Harper surrendered three runs and four hits in just two-thirds of a frame. The righty entered Friday responsible for three total hits in his first five relief outings this season.

“You’ve got a bunch of young hitters that go up there and just swing the bats,” Martinez said in reference to the Orioles' lineup. “Tonight was one of those nights where it didn’t matter where you threw the ball -- it seems like they were hitting it.”

With the Nationals trailing 8-0 at the start of the seventh inning, Wander Suero took the mound, only to have the same results as Harper: three runs off four hits in one inning. It was only his second appearance since being reinstated from the injured list on Monday. At that point in the game, it was simply an opportunity for him to get in reps.

“We’ve just got to get him out there, get him built up,” Martinez said. “Today, he was 91, 92 [mph] tops. ... When you miss that much time, you’ve just got to build your strength back up and get out there and face as many hitters as possible.”

By the time Kyle Finnegan and Sam Freeman each threw a scoreless frame, the damage had been done. Minutes after the Nationals suffered their largest margin of defeat since Aug. 3, 2019, the skies opened up in the same way Washington would like to wash away any lingering effects of Friday's loss.

“This is one of those games where you’ve just got to put it behind you as quick you can, come back tomorrow and regroup and go get them,” Martinez said.