WASHINGTON D.C. — Kyle Harrison finds himself at an interesting juncture in his major league career.

Harrison, 23, is part of the Giants rotation, entering the mix when Justin Verlander hit the injured list. He made his first start on Saturday, allowing two runs over four innings as the Giants lost to the Nationals, 3-0, their offense stifled by Jake Irvin for eight scoreless innings. Once Verlander returns, Harrison will likely return to the bullpen.

It’s tough to project how Harrison’s summer will unfold. He totaled the second-most starts and innings for the Giants last season, but it’s unclear whether the former De La Salle High star will see more time as a starter or reliever.

But Saturday was all his, to start.

“Felt great,” Harrison said. “It felt good to have a day dedicated to me and go out there, went about my business. Good to get in a routine again.”

Harrison’s first major league start of the year was never going to be long given that he hadn’t started a game since April 30 with Triple-A Sacramento. Manager Bob Melvin said Harrison’s pitch limit was in the neighborhood of 60 pitches, and Harrison ended at 57 pitches.

Through 12 pitches, though, the Giants found themselves in a deficit they’d never erase.

Following Amed Rosario’s 110.9-mph, one-out double, James Wood hit a 109.7 mph two-run homer on Harrison’s hanging slurve, a loud swing that put the Giants in an early 2-0 deficit. Harrison needed 23 pitches to complete the first inning, a rough start given he was on a pitch limit.

From there, Harrison kept Washington scoreless for the rest of his short outing, allowing two hits the rest of the way. The left-hander found himself in a jam in the fourth when the Nationals put runners on first and second with one out, but Harrison escaped unscathed before giving way to the bullpen.

“Especially early, I was really strike-focused, attacking these guys,” Harrison said. “Ultimately, that ended with me leaving pitches over the plate too much. After that inning, I looked at the locations and just had to get off the plate a little bit more because they were willing to swing and chase. As soon as I tapped into that a little bit more, got a little better.”

Added Melvin: “I thought he threw good. There was just the one pitch to Wood — hung a breaking ball. Other than that, (velocity) was up. It was pretty efficient. For his pitch count, he got four innings in, so can move along a little bit further after that. But all in all, it came down to one pitch. When you don’t score any runs, it is what it is.”

Harrison heavily relied on his four-seam fastball against the Nationals’ left-handed-heavy lineup, his heater accounting for 42 of his 57 pitches. His average fastball velocity of 94.7 mph was expectedly lower compared to the 95.8 mph he averaged as a reliever, but still considerably higher than last year’s 92.5 mph.

“It’s always good to have that velocity,” Harrison said. “Just going out there and attack — that was the game plan. Got beat a little bit, but didn’t give in, I thought, and made pitches when I needed to.”

For Irvin, those two runs from Wood’s homer were plenty. Irvin matched the longest outing of his career, tossing eight scoreless and striking out seven batters as San Francisco was shut out for the fifth time this season.

The Giants’ best opportunity to score off Irvin was in the fourth inning when they put runners on first and second with no outs. But Irvin escaped by getting Matt Chapman to ground into a double play and striking out Willy Adames.

“He was just pounding the zone and able to locate his fastball,” Chapman said. “He came right after us and we weren’t really able to get anything going off him. He pitched well.”

Irvin benefitted from quick innings in the latter half of his start, needing just five pitches to complete the sixth inning and four pitches to finish the seventh inning.

“You know what’s coming. It’s going to be sinkers in for the righties and they’re strikes,” Melvin said. “They’re trying to get him out of there. Sure, as we sit here now, you’d like to say be more patient with it, but it’s probably going to be strike one.”

Harrison’s next start should land against the Marlins in Miami next weekend. Despite the long gap between starts, Harrison said his body felt great and that he could’ve gone out for the fifth inning. In South Beach, Harrison will likely have an opportunity to pitch deeper into the game.

From there, the Giants will determine whether Harrison needs to maintain a starter’s stamina.

Giants unveil “new” road look

The Giants have worn their alternative black jerseys exclusively during Saturday home games, but the team decided to wear them on the road for the first time this season.

Per the game notes, the jerseys represent the “team unity that was built in spring training and wanting to carry that momentum throughout the season.” The Giants’ 21-6 record during spring training was the best mark in baseball.

“We played well in it during spring training so we wanted to bust it out, but obviously didn’t go our way today,” Chapman said. “I don’t think the jersey has anything to do with it, but it’s nice to have something to switch to.”

San Francisco will continue using its traditional road grays as the primary road uniform but will have the opportunity to use the alternates on occasion.