KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Nationals won Friday night’s series opener, but it required all manner of wackiness to pull it off, especially when it came to bullpen usage in the final three innings. Davey Martinez can only hope for an easier path to victory this afternoon as his team tries to secure a series win.

Josiah Gray gets the start, so that helps right off the bat. The right-hander has been the club’s most consistent starter, allowing two or fewer runs in eight of his 10 outings. He did, however, walk six batters Sunday against the Tigers, and that limited him to only five innings even though he gave up only one run. Gray will need to be around the strike zone more this afternoon, especially against what on paper is a weak Royals lineup (last night’s 10-run outburst notwithstanding).

For the second straight day, Kansas City sends a starter to the mound with an ERA over 7.00. Friday night, it was Jordan Lyles. Today, it’s Brady Singer, the one-time top prospect who has not yet come close to realizing his full potential. The 26-year-old right-hander is 3-4 with a 7.48 ERA and 1.642 WHIP, and he’s been hit hard by everybody: Left-handed batters own a .948 OPS against him, righties are at .881.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at KANSAS CITY ROYALS
Where: Kauffman Stadium
Gametime: 4:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 79 degrees, wind 7 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
2B Luis García
DH Joey Meneses
3B Jeimer Candelario
LF Corey Dickerson
C Keibert Ruiz
1B Dominic Smith
CF Alex Call
SS CJ Abrams

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – When it came to deciding who he would entrust to record the final outs required to defeat the Royals in a wild ballgame Friday night, Davey Martinez didn’t really have the chance to consider a multitude of options.

Kyle Finnegan wasn’t available after pitching each of the previous two nights. Same for Hunter Harvey. Andres Machado needed a night off after throwing 27 pitches Thursday. Thaddeus Ward also pitched in that game, and the rookie Rule 5 draft pick has yet to appear on back-to-back days this season. Mason Thompson, who threw 12 pitches Thursday, might have been available if absolutely necessary, but Martinez preferred to stay away from him as well.

So that left … who exactly in the Nationals bullpen?

Erasmo Ramirez had already entered in the seventh after Patrick Corbin loaded the bases and proceeded to allow Kansas City to score five runs without recording an out.

Carl Edwards Jr. had to pitch out of the seventh-inning mess Ramirez created, then return to at least start the eighth.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Luis García stepped to plate to begin the top of the sixth tonight at Kauffman Stadium, hoping to jumpstart a Nationals lineup that to that point had been shut down by, statistically, the worst pitcher in the major leagues. He promptly doubled to deep left.

Some 19 minutes later, García was back at the plate, batting for the second time in an inning that had now turned into one of the Nats’ best sustained rallies of the season. He promptly doubled down the left field line again, this time driving in two runs.

In becoming the first player in club history to record two doubles in the same inning, then later becoming only the second player in club history to record six hits in a game, García became the focal point of an eight-run rally that propelled the Nationals to what should’ve been an easy victory against a Royals team that owns the second-worst record in the majors.

Instead, the Nats needed every one of the eight runs they scored in the sixth – not to mention the three they added in the eighth – to escape with a wild, 12-10 victory that got way too close for comfort when Erasmo Ramirez imploded in the bottom of the seventh, spoiling what would’ve been a quality start by Patrick Corbin.

"It feels great, especially when my teammates are battling every at-bat," García said, via interpreter Octavio Martinez. "We never got down at all, stayed focused and battled every at-bat. It's a great feeling."

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Ten months removed from elbow surgery, Sean Doolittle will begin pitching in competitive games again. For now, that will still be at the minor league level.

Doolittle is scheduled to join the bullpen at High-A Wilmington and make his season debut Saturday, Nationals manager Davey Martinez said. It will be the left-hander’s first actual game appearance since April 19, 2022, when he suffered a partial tear of his ulnar collateral ligament in a win over the Diamondbacks.

Doolittle spent the next several months attempting to return without surgery, hoping to make it back for the season’s second half. But when the elbow pain returned during bullpen sessions, he opted to go under the knife.

Rather than have the more invasive Tommy John surgery, which would’ve knocked him out for 12 to 18 months, Doolittle decided to go with an internal brace procedure, a relatively new option for pitchers in which the damaged ligament is wrapped and strengthened instead of replaced altogether.

Doolittle had that surgery done in July, and at the time hoped it would allow him to be ready for the start of the 2023 season. But his timeline was slowed during spring training, and the Nationals shut him down and had him start the rehab process all over again in late March.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The nicest thing about Major League Baseball’s new schedule this season is that it allows every team from one league to play every team from the other league every year, alternating between a home series one year and a road series the next. For the Nationals, that means road trips to some places they haven’t visited much in the past, and Kansas City is high on that list.

The Nats have played at Kauffman Stadium only twice in club history. In August 2013, they took two of three from the Royals, the lone loss coming when Craig Stammen allowed two runs in the bottom of the eighth. And in May 2016, they also took two of three from the Royals, the lone loss coming thanks to a blown save by Jonathan Papelbon in the bottom of the ninth. Now the Nationals are back here, facing a Kansas City team that would have the worst record in the majors if not for the sham that is the 2023 Oakland Athletics.

Tonight’s pitching matchup is a doozy: Patrick Corbin vs. Jordan Lyles, owners of the two highest ERAs in baseball from 2020-22 (minimum 400 innings pitched). The good news for the Nats: Corbin has turned things around this season, with six quality starts in his last seven outings. Lyles, meanwhile, continues to be one of the worst pitchers in baseball, entering tonight a staggering 0-8 record with a 7.15 ERA. His biggest problem (and it’s certainly something Corbin can relate to): He has surrendered a league-leading 14 homers in 56 2/3 innings.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at KANSAS CITY ROYALS
Where: Kauffman Stadium
Gametime: 8:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 74 degrees, wind 12 mph in from right field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
2B Luis García
DH Joey Meneses
3B Jeimer Candelario
LF Corey Dickerson
C Keibert Ruiz
1B Dominic Smith
CF Alex Call
SS CJ Abrams

For a team that doesn’t hit for a lot of power but has more than a few fast players in the lineup on a regular basis, the Nationals really haven’t run that much this season.

They rank 25th in the majors in stolen bases. They’re 19th in FanGraphs’ overall team baserunning metric.

The Nats did run more than they usually do Wednesday night against the Padres. And in nearly every instance, it paid off and helped carry them to their 5-3 victory.

“We want to play our game,” manager Davey Martinez said. “If a chance arises to do some things, we’re going to try to push the envelope a little bit and do it. These guys are all ready for it. As soon as they get on first base, they’re looking at me: ‘I’m ready, I’m ready!’ Under some circumstances, we can. And today was one of those where we could push the envelope a little bit.”

The Nationals had two stolen bases in the game, one by Luis Garcia, one by CJ Abrams. But that doesn’t tell the full story. Abrams’ seventh-inning steal actually turned into a two-baser when San Diego catcher Brett Sullivan’s throw wound up in shallow center field.

Give the Nationals lineup a chance to face a left-handed starter and take an early lead. Give Trevor Williams a chance to pitch into the sixth inning and retain that lead. Then hand over the rest to the trusted portion of Davey Martinez’s bullpen and watch them finish the job.

It’s a nice formula for success, and it worked quite well for the Nats tonight during a 5-3 victory over the Padres.

The lineup put up a four-spot in the bottom of the second against San Diego starter Ryan Weathers, the latest lefty to be hit around by this group. Williams surrendered a pair of homers but otherwise was strong during his 5 2/3 innings on the mound.

All of which allowed Martinez to deploy his bullpen in his preferred manner. He had Carl Edwards Jr. get out of the sixth (on one pitch) and then record the first two outs of the seventh. He had Hunter Harvey face the top four members of the Padres lineup, and retire all four to finish the seventh and complete the eighth. And then he had Kyle Finnegan pitch the ninth and emerge with his 10th save in 12 attempts.

"Every series, I do my work before everybody comes in," Martinez said. "And I pick groups of (hitters) based on information that I get, where I feel guys match up best late in games. The (top of the San Diego lineup) was where I really felt comfortable with Harvey. ... It worked out really well. These guys came in and shut the door down."

Six times in their last 16 games, the Nationals have entered the ninth inning with a lead of three runs or fewer. Here, in order, is the name of the pitcher who took the mound in those save situations:

May 5 at Diamondbacks: Kyle Finnegan

May 6 at Diamondbacks: Hunter Harvey

May 13 vs. Mets: Finnegan

May 16 at Marlins: Harvey

Tuesday night’s series opener had some extra emotions attached to it, what with Juan Soto returning to D.C. and MacKenzie Gore facing the Padres for the first time. Tonight’s game shouldn’t carry quite the same vibes, even though Soto obviously will still be playing in D.C. And he’ll be facing a guy who hasn’t pitched for the Padres before but is from San Diego.

Yes, Trevor Williams grew up there, so it’s always a bit of a big deal for the right-hander to face the Padres. More than anything, Williams wants to give the Nationals some length tonight and take some pressure off the bullpen, which wasn’t great in the wake of Gore’s 4 2/3-inning start Tuesday night.

The Nats will look to get something going offensively against Ryan Weathers, yet another left-hander. They’re currently in a stretch of facing nine opposing lefties in 15 games. The good news: They’ve hit much better against lefties, to the tune of a .299/.359/.441 slash line (it’s only .247/.307/.358 against righties).

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. SAN DIEGO PADRES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly clear, 79 degrees, wind 6 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
2B Luis García
DH Joey Meneses
3B Jeimer Candelario
LF Stone Garrett
1B Dominic Smith
C Keibert Ruiz
CF Alex Call
SS CJ Abrams

While MacKenzie Gore’s laborious start Tuesday night – three runs, seven hits, four walks, 103 pitches in 4 2/3 innings – put the Nationals in a rough position, the young lefty wasn’t the pitcher of record in a 7-4 loss to the Padres. That distinction went to Erasmo Ramírez, who was charged with four runs in one-plus innings of relief, a ragged outing by the veteran right-hander to say the least.

Ramírez, such a bright spot in 2022, continues to struggle in 2023. He now owns a 5.18 ERA and 1.397 WHIP in 19 appearances. Opponents are batting .300 off him.

“It’s tough as a pitcher, no matter what, starting or relieving, every time you go to the mound you just want to do the best you can,” said the 33-year-old, who finished with a 2.92 ERA and 1.077 WHIP in 60 games last season. “And when things don’t come out right, you know you have to try to forget it and move on, execute better and work on stuff.”

Ramírez has struggled, to be sure. But the fact he was even pitching in that particular situation Tuesday night says more about the current state of the Nationals bullpen as a whole. In short, it’s not in a great state at the moment.

When Gore’s pitch count crossed into triple-digit territory, manager Davey Martinez decided to pull his starter with two on and two out in the fifth. He summoned Andrés Machado, who did a nice job to strike out pinch-hitter Matt Carpenter and prevent either inherited runner to score.

The baseball gods brought Juan Soto, MacKenzie Gore and CJ Abrams together tonight as only they can, three of the primary figures in one of the biggest trades in history converging at Nationals Park for a series opener that was anticipated more than most because of their participation.

The game – a 7-4 loss by the Nationals to the Padres – ultimately was decided during a couple of critical sequences in the sixth and seventh innings. But those three still were front and center on this night, in ways both uplifting and discouraging.

Abrams and Soto each homered, the former to help the Nats storm back to tie the game in the fifth, the latter to help the Padres extend the lead they retook in the seventh.

Soto, who doffed his helmet to an appreciative crowd of 21,438 when he stepped to the plate in the top of the first, finished 3-for-4 with the aforementioned homer, two singles and a walk in his second D.C. appearance since last August’s trade.

Abrams reached base only once in four tries, but that one was a big one: a two-run homer off Yu Darvish to spark the Nationals’ mid-game comeback.

When he stepped to the plate at Nationals Park nine months ago for the first time as a member of the Padres, Juan Soto was greeted with a sustained standing ovation from the crowd.

Anecdotally, it felt like the loudest and warmest ovation any former Nationals player has received in his return with another team. Louder than the ovation for Max Scherzer as a Met. Louder than the ovation for Trea Turner as a Dodger. Certainly friendlier than the reaction for Bryce Harper.

That moment stuck with Soto, who only 10 days earlier had been traded to San Diego along with Josh Bell for six players in a deal that altered both franchises.

“It means a lot,” the 24-year-old slugger said today. “It means I did a good job over here. It feels great to hear those cheers for you. That means they’re really proud of the championship that we bring back.”

Soto will forever be remembered for playing a major role in delivering Washington its first World Series title in 95 years. Scherzer, Turner, Anthony Rendon, Stephen Strasburg and countless others were vital to the cause as well, but Soto for some reason stands out from the rest, perhaps because he had only just turned 21 during the series but performed like a seasoned superstar.

Hey, have you heard Juan Soto is back in town? OK, so it is of course a big deal that the 24-year-old slugger is back in D.C. for the first time since mid-August, the second time since he was traded to the Padres. We’ll see what kind of reaction he gets from the crowd when he comes up to bat in the top of the first tonight … against one of the guys he was traded for.

Yes, adding some spice to tonight’s series opener is the presence of MacKenzie Gore on the mound for the Nationals. This will of course be Gore’s first career start against San Diego, and he’ll be challenged to keep his emotions in check and not get too amped up about the matchup.

Yu Darvish starts for the Padres, and that’s always a challenge for any lineup, let alone one with as little experience as the Nats have. Given how many different types of pitches Darvish throws, guys will have to be patient and focus on swinging at good pitches, not just anything that looks like a strike (especially early in the count).

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. SAN DIEGO PADRES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Hazy, 72 degrees, wind 11 mph in from right field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
2B Luis García
3B Jeimer Candelario 
DH Joey Meneses 
LF Corey Dickerson 
C Keibert Ruiz 
1B Dominic Smith 
CF Alex Call 
SS CJ Abrams

When Juan Soto takes the field at Nationals Park tonight in a Padres uniform, it will still sting for any number of people who still have a hard time fathoming the 24-year-old slugger wearing anything other than a curly W on his head.

It might, however, sting a little less if MacKenzie Gore and CJ Abrams do their part to lift the home team to victory, reminding all those suffering souls why Soto was traded in the first place and why the Nationals could emerge from the wreckage in a better place when it’s all said and done.

This isn’t Soto’s first trip back to D.C. That already happened last August, only 10 days after he was dealt to San Diego along with Josh Bell for six players, five of them promising young prospects. The emotions were still raw at that time, and the image of perhaps the greatest player in Nats history coming up to bat against them was tough for everyone to take.

The passage of time eases some of the pain. But perhaps even more than that, the emergence of the first two of the prospects acquired in the trade at the big league level helps make it far more tolerable. No, neither Gore nor Abrams has come close yet to matching Soto’s status. But each has offered up enough this season to make you believe stardom is on the horizon.

Gore, in particular, has stood out. Unable to make his Nationals debut last season because he was still recovering from an elbow injury in August and September, he’s now nine starts into his Nats career. And the results, while erratic, have been overwhelmingly positive in the big picture.

Lane Thomas knows his reputation. He’s been a streaky hitter ever since arriving in Washington at the 2021 trade deadline.

It really became noticeable last season, one that saw Thomas finish with a .705 OPS but only after experiencing the following month-by-month roller coaster: .496, .661, .864, .587, .775, .724. So the Nationals right fielder vowed to try to be more consistent this year, recognizing the importance of avoiding the long streaks (good or bad) that had come to define him.

And how has he done with that? Well, the .629 OPS he posted in April followed by the .944 mark he has delivered so far in May suggests he’s on his way to another roller-coaster season.

Unless Thomas can capture what he’s done this month and sustain something like it throughout the summer and into the fall. Which, of course, is easier said than done.

“I feel like I’m trying to be a little more consistent this year,” he said. “That’s something I wanted to focus on: What got me into a streak? I felt like I was a little streaky. I’d get a few hits one series last year, and then no hits. I’m just trying to be more consistent in approach and with at-bats late in games. Hopefully that’s paying off a little bit and I can keep doing it.”

Much as major league managers wish it wasn’t so, the path to victory on any given day isn’t always going to be a straight one. The Nationals made life easy on Davey Martinez during Saturday’s low-drama win over the Tigers, getting a quality start from Patrick Corbin and clutch hits from the lineup to take the lead, allowing the skipper to use his traditional bullpen alignment late to close it out.

This afternoon did not afford Martinez such luxuries. Though the Nationals stormed out of the gates to take a five-run lead and ultimately rapped out 18 hits, they still needed several escape acts from their top relievers – some of them in unfamiliar roles – to emerge with a 6-4 win over Detroit.

In order to capture this weekend series, the Nats not only needed home runs from backups Riley Adams and Ildemaro Vargas, plus another four-hit game from Jeimer Candelario against his former team. They needed Josiah Gray to gut his way through five innings of one-run ball despite six walks. And then they needed Kyle Finnegan (owner of nine saves) to pitch out of a jam in the sixth and return for the seventh, ultimately setting up Carl Edwards Jr. and Hunter Harvey to close out perhaps the weirdest win of the season.

"It was definitely weird," Martinez said. "We did some things just to get out of some jams."

Edward, Harvey and Finnegan each pitched Saturday, in that order, with Finnegan earning his ninth save of the season in a 5-2 victory. Not 24 hours later, Martinez was summoning Finnegan out of the bullpen to clean up a sixth-inning jam created by Andres Machado, then asking him to return for the seventh as well.

Luis García’s day off Saturday was somewhat significant, though hardly big news. But when García’s name again wasn’t in the Nationals’ lineup for today’s series finale against the Tigers, it raised eyebrows.

Is the Nats second baseman hurt? Is he being benched for lack of performance?

“No,” manager Davey Martinez said this morning. “I had a conversation with him. This is just kind of a reset for him.”

García certainly merited a break after starting 21 consecutive games and appearing in 33 straight games since missing four days with a tight hamstring early last month.

More than that, Martinez noticed the 23-year-old showing signs of pressing in recent days. García was 1-for-11 with five strikeouts over his last three games. He also committed his first error of the season during Friday night’s loss, a costly mistake that prolonged the top of the third inning for starter Jake Irvin, who wound up not even completing the inning.

The Nationals ended a four-game losing streak Saturday with a solid, 5-2 victory over the Tigers. They’d love to make it two in a row today and take the weekend series in the process.

The Nats have Josiah Gray on the mound, and that usually means they’re going to have an excellent chance of winning. The right-hander really has become their most reliable starter, having allowed three or fewer runs in each of his eight starts since his rough season opener and two or fewer runs in all but one of those starts. He’s also completed seven innings each of the last two times he’s pitched, further evidence of his growth since last year.

The Nationals have faced a bunch of lefties recently, and they get another one today in Detroit’s Joey Wentz. The 25-year-old impressed as a rookie last season, posting a 3.03 ERA and 1.102 WHIP in the first seven starts of his career. He’s been far less successful so far this season, with a 6.38 ERA and 1.445 WHIP through eight starts. Strangely enough, Wentz’s strikeout and walk rates have remained almost the same. The biggest difference from last year: He’s giving up a lot more hits, especially home runs (seven in only 36 2/3 innings).

Davey Martinez is going with a different look in his lineup this afternoon. Stone Garrett will bat cleanup against the lefty, and Riley Adams is giving Keibert Ruiz a well-deserved day off. But the most notable difference is that both CJ Abrams and Luis García are on the bench (García for the second straight day). So it’s Ildemaro Vargas and Michael Chavis up the middle of the infield.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. DETROIT TIGERS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 74 degrees, wind 11 mph in from left field

When the bottom of the sixth arrived at Nationals Park on Friday night, a zero still showing in the home team’s hit column, Lane Thomas decided to just go ahead and say what surely others in the ballpark were thinking at the time.

“I just started screaming: ‘He’s throwing a no-hitter!’ the outfielder said. “I think nobody really knew. I was like: ‘Hey guys, we’ve got to get one here soon!’”

Indeed, the Nationals had not been able to make any dent into Tigers starter Matthew Boyd, who through five scoreless innings had walked one batter and plunked another but had not surrendered anything close to a clean base hit and had faced the minimum thanks to a couple of double plays.

This was rare territory for the Nats, who remarkably still have not been no-hit in club history. The streak actually dates all the way back to July 18, 1999, when David Cone tossed a perfect game against the Expos at Yankee Stadium. The only franchise to enjoy a longer streak without being no-hit: the Athletics, who haven’t had it happen to them since four Orioles pitchers stymied them on July 13, 1991.

The Nationals have had a few close calls over the years, none closer than Sept. 24, 2013, when Cardinals rookie Michael Wacha was one out away from a no-hitter at Busch Stadium when Ryan Zimmerman narrowly beat out an infield single to save his team from suffering that ignominy.

When Chad Kuhl landed on the 15-day injured list at the beginning of the month, the Nationals decided to promote Jake Irvin from Triple-A Rochester and see what they had in this 26-year-old right-hander.

After a solid, though flawed major league debut against the Cubs, there was enough reason to want to see more of Irvin. After an eye-opening, 6 1/3 innings of scoreless ball in San Francisco, there was reason to wonder if Irvin might really be legit. And though his third start ended with a nightmare fifth inning, Irvin performed well enough against the Mets up to that point to warrant another look.

So, now what?

Irvin’s fourth career start didn’t come close to producing the promising moments of his previous three. Rocked by the weak-hitting Tigers for six runs in only 2 2/3 innings, he dug the Nationals into a deep hole they nearly climbed all the way out of before falling 8-6 in the opener of a weekend interleague series.

"Tomorrow, we've got to come out ready to play," an unusually perturbed Davey Martinez said. "From the first pitch on."