WASHINGTON -- It had been two seasons since a Nationals pitcher went deeper than seven innings in a game.

On Thursday, second-year starter Jake Irvin delivered eight scoreless frames with just one hit in the Nationals¡¯ 1-0 win over the Mets in their annual July Fourth matinee. He also struck out eight and allowed only one walk.

¡°[Pitching eight innings] means a heck of a lot more on the Fourth of July, I can tell you that,¡± said Irvin. ¡°It was a cool accomplishment. It was a fun day. Riley [Adams] and I were on the same page all day -- big props to him, he called a fantastic game.¡±

It was the most innings pitched by a Nats hurler since Patrick Corbin¡¯s eight on June 28, 2022. Irvin became the first Nationals pitcher to dazzle with eight-plus scoreless innings and no more than one hit since Gio Gonzalez on July 31, 2017.

Among all pitchers, Irvin is only the fourth this season to go eight-plus innings with one hit or fewer allowed. He joins only Tobias Myers of the Brewers and Ronel Blanco of the Astros to accomplish the feat in a scoreless outing.

"For him to go out there and do what he did today, especially an early game like today, it says a lot about his character,¡± said manager Dave Martinez. ¡°He got himself ready, he was ready to go and he put the team on his back."

Irvin was so efficient -- throwing just 99 pitches (70 strikes) -- that the Nationals bullpen did not begin warming up until Derek Law in the eighth inning. Irvin stifled the Mets with a pitch mix of 40 curveballs, 38 fastballs (which reached 96.4 mph), 18 sinkers, two cutters and one slider.

"The fastball was explosive,¡± said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza. ¡°He attacked. The life on his fastball, especially at the top, the way he commanded it, and then the way he used the breaking ball kept us off balance, too.¡±

Irvin continued his case for All-Star consideration, dropping his ERA to 2.80 in 18 starts (1.70 with 34 strikeouts in his last six outings). Following Thursday¡¯s performance, he ranked fifth in ERA, sixth in WHIP (1.00) and sixth in opponent¡¯s batting average (.212) among National League pitchers.

Irvin joined Max Scherzer (2015) as the only other pitcher in Nationals history (2005-present) to pitch at least six innings while allowing no more than one hit three times in a season.

¡°He¡¯s an All-Star, man,¡± Jesse Winker said. ¡°The guy prepares every single day. ... It was a privilege to watch him. ¡±

Martinez and Irvin were in agreement when Irvin¡¯s afternoon ended after retiring the side in the eighth. Irvin walked off the field to a roaring ovation and waved his arms in excitement.

¡°Make no mistake, would have loved the ninth,¡± said Irvin. ¡°But after you do something like that, you kind of give the manager no choice.¡±

Irvin had given the Nats everything he had, but the offense still had yet to score a run. Seeing Irvin¡¯s performance from the dugout, Winker was energized when he was called upon to pinch-hit for Harold Ram¨ªrez in the bottom of the eighth inning. The lefty went yard off righty reliever Adrian Houser for his fifth career pinch-hit home run to put the Nats on the board. Winker donned a stars and stripes top hat and shirt in celebration.

¡°It¡¯s so inspiring,¡± Winker said of Irvin. ¡°You just want to get him a run.¡±

A one-run lead set the stage for Law to make a special appearance -- the veteran had decided in advance he was going to take the bullpen cart with the American flag for the holiday. He earned his first save since Sept. 16, 2023.

¡°You can argue he¡¯s an All-Star,¡± said Law. ¡°It¡¯s impressive, honestly. Day in and day out, you know he¡¯s going to give you a strong six, most likely, seven, eight maybe. It¡¯s just kind of a nice relief for the bullpen when guys like that come around in the group and you¡¯re like, 'All right, we¡¯ve just got to get ready for this part of the order, because he¡¯s going to be able to handle probably three times around.'¡±