ATLANTA – After rallying to win last night, the Nationals were in position this afternoon to split this four-game series with the Braves. And given how the frustration mounted over the recent seven-game losing streak, that would have been considered a win in this first leg of a seven-game road trip.

The Nats were able to overcome some early mistakes Wednesday. Not a great recipe for success, but they did just enough to scratch out a win. Unfortunately, that was not the case in this matinee finale.

Facing a familiar deficit from last night by the middle innings, the Nationals dropped their third game at Truist Park 5-2 in front of an announced crowd of 34,074. And they can really only blame themselves.

Davey Martinez once again reconfigured his infield defense. With Luis García Jr. landing on the paternity list earlier this week, the manager moved José Tena from third base to second and inserted Amed Rosario at the hot corner for the previous two games.

That was costly a couple of nights ago when both infielders made mistakes on routine plays. So Martinez swapped them today, and at first, it paid dividends.

ATLANTA – It had been eight days since Kyle Finnegan took a mound in an actual game when he jogged out from the Nationals' bullpen in the ninth inning last night. And quite frankly, it was hard to know how it was going to go with him protecting a one-run lead.

Finnegan entered the tight ballgame with a 6.92 ERA in 27 career appearances, pitching on five-plus days of rest. The All-Star closer usually likes to pitch with more frequency, and when he doesn’t, he gets rusty.

So when the inning started with a leadoff single by Drake Baldwin on Finnegan’s second pitch, some dread probably sank into the hearts of Nats fans.

But the right-hander locked in and retired the next three batters on a scant 10 pitches, needing only 12 total to record his 13th save, which is now tied for second-most in the major leagues.

“You just try to stay ready,” Finnegan said Wednesday night. “We've had a lot of games that could have gone either way late. So I still felt like I was in that game mindset, which is good. But just pulling for the guys to go out there and perform. The ball wasn't bouncing our way, and that's why this one feels really good.”

ATLANTA – Well, the Nationals finally won one. Would two be too much to ask?

If the Nats can find a way to win this afternoon at Truist Park, they will earn a four-game series split, which they would happily accept after suffering through a seven-game losing streak.

The offense scored five runs last night, the most they’ve put on the board in a week. Today the Nats will try to continue their moment against AJ Smith-Shawver. The 22-year-old right-hander is 2-2 with a 2.76 ERA and 1.347 WHIP in six starts. He hasn’t given up more than three runs in an outing so far, and is only two starts removed from a dominant appearance against the Reds in which he pitched eight shutout innings of one-hit ball.

Meanwhile, Trevor Williams will try to help his team end this leg of the road trip on a high note. The right-hander enters his ninth start with a 2-4 record, 5.88 ERA and 1.573 WHIP. He has given up four or more runs in each of his last three starts, so he’ll need to be more effective against this tough Braves lineup.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Truist Park
Gametime: 12:15 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB Network (out-of-market only), MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, DC 87.7 (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 77 degrees, wind 12 mph in from right field

ATLANTA – When things don’t go your way, they really don’t go your way. And things had not gone the Nationals’ way for the better part of the last eight days.

In order to break an extended losing streak, the Nationals had to do almost everything right. And even though they made more mistakes than positive plays in the early parts of this game, the fact that they put together a late rally showed a lot about what this team has: Fight.

This 5-4 comeback victory may look like any ordinary win over the Braves, but it in fact snapped a seven-game losing streak and may have been the first sign that the Nats can finally turn this thing around.

“That win was great," manager Davey Martinez said after the first victory in over a week. "Put one on the board for the good guys, how's that? The boys played well. We're playing baseball. It's fun to watch these guys come out and compete. … It was a good team effort today.”

Down 4-3 in the eighth, the Nats finally put together the clutch at-bats they’ve been searching for over the past week.

ATLANTA – Looking for anything new to spark the Nationals' offense, manager Davey Martinez has shuffled his lineup a bit for the third of a four-game set against the Braves.

With the Braves starting right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver (2.76 ERA) for tomorrow’s noon getaway game, Martinez decided to get Keibert Ruiz off his feet today to play tomorrow and start Riley Adams behind the plate tonight against right-hander Bryce Elder (4.97 ERA).

Also, Amed Rosario has been bumped up to the No. 2 spot to split up leadoff hitter CJ Abrams and slugger James Wood and combat the two lefty relievers the Braves have in Aaron Bummer and Dylan Lee.

“We got a 12 o'clock game tomorrow,” Martinez explained during his pregame media session. “So Riley gets tonight, Keibert gets tomorrow. He's available to pinch-hit if we need him. Moved Rosario between the lefties. They have two good left-handed pitchers in the bullpen, so trying to break those lefties up. But yeah, trying to get everybody in there with the early day game tomorrow.”

Adams has been productive in limited playing time, collecting hits in five of his last six games including two doubles, two home runs and six RBIs.

ATLANTA – While the Nationals were able to finally score first in last night’s game – swinging at strikes and accepting a few walks – they weren’t able to sustain that early success at the plate in their seventh straight loss.

The bats will have to try to get going against right-hander Bryce Elder. The 25-year-old is 2-2 with a 4.97 ERA and 1.289 WHIP in seven starts. But he has given up three or fewer runs in four straight outings, with three quality starts. He also struck out a season-high eight batters (while also giving up two home runs) in his last start against the Pirates.

Mitchell Parker will try to keep the Nats in the ballgame from the mound, something he has struggled with over his last three starts, in which he gave up a combined 15 earned runs and 11 walks. The left-hander hasn’t pitched past the fourth inning in either of his last two outings, so the Nats will also hope their starter can give some more length.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Truist Park
Gametime: 7:15 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, DC 87.7 (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 82 degrees, wind 9 mph in from right field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
3B Amed Rosario
LF James Wood
1B Nathaniel Lowe
RF Alex Call
DH Josh Bell
CF Dylan Crews
2B José Tena
C Riley Adams

ATLANTA – When the Nationals walked into the visiting clubhouse for the first time on Monday, Michael Soroka was greeted with some familiar faces. The longtime Brave already knew some of the clubhouse managers from his first six seasons in the major leagues, all spent in Atlanta.

Hugs were exchanged. Questions about life and family were asked. Smiles were shared.

Then when the Nats returned Tuesday afternoon for the second of a four-game set against the Braves, Soroka was focused on his 20th start at Truist Park, the first as a visitor.

“I was excited,” Soroka said last night after his third start in a Nationals uniform. “Obviously, it's been a while since we were over here. Took that mound. And yeah, there's not a ton of guys over there that I played with all those years back then. But still, certainly some that I came up with and made good memories with. But I definitely wanted to give them my best tonight and felt like we did that.”

Due to a high pitch count of 81, Soroka finished only four innings, giving up four hits, two runs, one walk and four strikeouts, in his first outing against his former team. And while doing so, he did something he had not previously done over the course of his career.

ATLANTA – The Nationals have thought that in order to snap their six-game losing streak they needed better at-bats from their lineup. Specifically, they needed to accept their walks, get the ball in the strike zone and score first.

Well, the Nationals were able to do all three of those things in the second of this four-game set against the Braves. But wouldn’t you know it, that wasn’t enough as the Nats took a 5-2 loss for their seventh straight defeat, marking their longest losing streak since July 7-16, 2022 (nine).

This night immediately started on a positive note as CJ Abrams smacked Spencer Schwellenbach’s first pitch of the game over the right field wall for a leadoff home run. And just like that, for only the fifth time in their last 17 games, the Nationals scored the first run of the contest.

“I wanted to start things off," Abrams said. "Stay aggressive on the fastball. It was a little out of the zone, but I put a good swing on it and it went out.”

Abrams’ 10th leadoff homer is second in Nationals history (2005-present) only to Trea Turner’s 14. Funny that both shortstops originally started their careers in the Padres system.

ATLANTA – The Nationals made a small roster move ahead of their second game against the Braves. Luis García Jr. was placed on the paternity list and Trey Lipscomb was recalled from Triple-A Rochester to fill the open spot on the roster.

“Feels great. Every time you get to come back up here is another opportunity,” Lipscomb said in front of his locker before today’s game. “You enjoy it and you want to cherish it.”

Lipscomb has found some sustained success in Rochester, hitting .283 with three doubles, two home runs, 14 RBIs, 12 walks, six stolen bases and 14 runs scored in 26 games.

“Just kind of being myself,” he said. “Day by day, just doing things like having a better routine, going up there and just letting the game happen.”

While it will likely be a short one (players are only allowed to be on the paternity list for a maximum of three days), this will be Lipscomb’s second major league stint this year. He went 2-for-4 with a run scored across three games in late April when Paul DeJong was placed on the injured list.

ATLANTA – The Nationals need a win and they need it badly. It doesn’t matter how they get it. Whether it’s via a blowout or by one run, they just need to come out on top of the Braves to stop this six-game losing streak.

After Jake Irvin turned in the Nats’ first quality start since Tuesday in the series opener last night, Davey Martinez will turn to Michael Soroka in hopes he'll repeat the feat tonight. Soroka makes his first start at Truist Park, which he called home for the first six years of his career, since the Braves traded him to the White Sox in November 2023.

The emotions could be high for the right-hander as he faces his old team, with which his once-promising career was derailed by injuries. Soroka is 8-6 with a 4.67 ERA and 1.311 WHIP in 20 appearances (19 starts) in Atlanta. He made a strong start in his return from the injured list last week, shutting out the Guardians over five innings before ultimately being charged with four runs after the sixth got away from him.

We know the Nats’ issues at the plate. They’ll try again to correct them against right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach, who is 1-3 with a 3.42 ERA and 1.099 WHIP in eight starts.

Roster move: The Nats placed Luis García Jr. on the paternity list this afternoon and recalled Trey Lipscomb from Triple-A Rochester.

ATLANTA – The Nationals should have been feeling good about their chances to break their losing streak entering the bottom of the ninth inning of last night’s game against the Braves.

Jackson Rutledge had just pitched a shutdown eighth inning on 12 pitches, keeping it a 3-1 game going to the ninth. In the top half of the final frame, the offense rallied to tie the game 3-3, thanks to a throwing error by Braves shortstop Nick Allen.

So when the door to the Nats bullpen swung open in left field, it was surprising to see only a security guard step out onto the warning track and turn to scan the crowd. Kyle Finnegan, the All-Star closer who hasn’t pitched since the first game of Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Guardians, remained in the ‘pen and Rutledge ran back to the mound from the dugout.

And so it was Finnegan watching from the sidelines as Rutledge gave up a single and sacrifice bunt on a combined four pitches, Andrew Chafin entered to surrender the walk-off RBI single to Alex Verdugo and the Nats dropped their sixth straight game, their longest such losing streak since 2023.

“He's throwing the ball well. We had the bottom of the order up. He threw the ball really well,” manager Davey Martinez said to defend his decision to stick with Rutledge in the ninth. “Chafin, he's a guy we count on to get lefties out. He put a good at-bat up. For me, I don't want to put my closer in a tie game in the ninth inning. So I thought that they threw the ball well. It was just unfortunate a ground ball got through the infield.”

ATLANTA – The most recent homestand wasn’t kind to the Nationals. A rainout on Monday forced a doubleheader Tuesday, and with a noon game already scheduled for Wednesday, they had to play all three games against the Guardians in under 24 hours.

The Nats won the first game of that twinbill. And that still stands as the last time they found themselves in the win column.

With tonight’s 4-3 loss in the opener of a four-game series against the Braves, the Nationals have now lost six in a row, their longest losing streak since also dropping six straight Aug. 30-Sept. 5, 2023.

After a ninth-inning rally tied the game at 3-3, Jackson Rutledge and Andrew Chafin combined to give up the winning run in walk-off fashion in the bottom frame.

While closer Kyle Finnegan, who hasn’t pitched since the Nats’ last victory Tuesday, sat in the bullpen, Rutledge gave up a leadoff single, with the runner advancing to scoring position on a sacrifice bunt.

ATLANTA – The Nationals will take the field at Truist Park tonight looking to snap a five-game losing streak. A loss in the series opener against the Braves will be the Nats’ longest losing streak since they lost six in a row from Aug. 30 to Sept. 5, 2023.

With both the pitchers (20 runs allowed over the weekend against the Cardinals) and the bats (only three runs scored against the Cardinals) recently, where do the Nats begin to turn things around?

“We just gotta focus on the little things,” manager Davey Martinez said during his pregame meeting with the media. “We're struggling hitting. We just got to come out and swing the bats a little bit better. Our leadoff hitter is doing what he's supposed to be doing. We just got to follow suit. I often talked about swinging at strikes, taking our walks, extending innings. We need to come out and do that today.”

Sure enough, CJ Abrams has been the Nats’ best hitter of late. He has reached base safely in 16 straight games, tied for the longest streak of his career. He’s hitting .379 with five doubles, two triples, seven RBIs, five walks, four stolen bases and 10 runs scored during the streak.

But the rest of the lineup, aside from a few guys here and there, has struggled to produce any more offense. Over these last five games, the Nats collectively are slashing .219/.292/.319 with a .611 OPS. They collected only 10 extra-base hits, while walking only 15 times compared to 37 strikeouts. And seven of those walks came in Wednesday’s finale against the Guardians.

ATLANTA – Greetings from about 20 minutes outside of Downtown Atlanta, where the Nationals arrive for their first series against the Braves in 2025. The Nats didn’t have a lot going for them during a 1-5 homestand, so they’ll look to turn things around on the road, where they’re 7-12 on the season.

Davey Martinez needs a strong outing from Jake Irvin, as the Nats search for the first quality start from their starting pitcher since the nightcap of Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Guardians. Irvin is 2-1 with a 3.94 ERA and 1.146 WHIP in eight starts. The right-hander dominated the Braves last year, going 2-0 with a 1.16 ERA, 0.900 WHIP and 22 strikeouts over four starts. That included a 1.59 ERA, 1.059 WHIP and 13 strikeouts in two starts here at Truist Park.

Meanwhile, the offense – which only scored three runs over the weekend against the Cardinals – will try to heat up against Grant Holmes. The 29-year-old right-hander is 2-3 with a 4.58 ERA and 1.246 WHIP in eight games (seven starts) in his second year in the majors. He was charged with four runs in 5 ⅓ innings in his last start against the Reds. He’s also been prone to the longball this year, so the Nats should look to take him deep in his first start against them.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Truist Park
Gametime: 7:15 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: The Team 980, DC 87.7 (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 73 degrees, wind 7 mph in from left-center field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
LF James Wood
1B Nathaniel Lowe
C Keibert Ruiz
2B Luis García Jr.
DH Josh Bell
RF Dylan Crews
3B José Tena
CF Jacob Young

The Nationals needed improvements all across the board to snap their three-game losing streak. Following last night’s 10-0 blowout loss to the Cardinals in the series opener, they needed better pitching and better offense.

Unfortunately, they got neither in their fourth straight loss, this one by a score of 4-2 with frustration mounting on an otherwise lovely 72-degree spring day in the District.

Recently, it had been the sixth inning that has buried the Nationals, with their opponents scoring a combined 18 runs in that frame over the last 11 games. But today, their woes came around much earlier.

After a perfect first inning on 12 pitches, Trevor Williams labored through a 35-pitch second that resulted in the Cardinals jumping out to an early 4-0 lead.

With one out, the right-hander, who was looking to right his own ship, hit a batter and issued a walk. A forceout at second put runners on the corners, but with only one out needed to get out of the inning.

After last night’s postgame roster move of releasing right-hander Lucas Sims, the Nationals have found a replacement in their bullpen.

Zach Brzykcy was recalled this afternoon from Triple-A Rochester for an extended stay in the Nats ‘pen after serving as the 27th man for Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Guardians.

“Great. Obviously, it's good to be back here. But yeah, I'm just trying to do my best to stay here,” the right-hander said in the Nats clubhouse four days after he left to go back to Triple-A. “I feel good. Knee's good, arm's good.”

Brzykcy, an undrafted signee out of Virginia Tech, missed all of the 2023 season after Tommy John surgery. But he bounced back to make his major league debut at the end of last year, proving himself to be a hidden gem in the Nats' farm system.

He entered this year as a candidate to make the bullpen on the Opening Day roster, but an ankle injury set him back. After finally making his season debut with the Red Wings, he pitched to a 2.35 ERA with 14 strikeouts, three walks and a .207 opponents’ batting average in eight appearances.

The Nationals would like nothing more than to shake off Friday night’s blowout loss to the Cardinals with a lopsided victory of their own this afternoon.

Where do they begin? Let’s start on the mound.

After Mitchell Parker’s rough outing, Trevor Williams makes his eighth start of the season. The right-hander is 2-3 with a 5.86 ERA and 1.613 WHIP on the year. He has been charged with five and four earned runs in his last starts, so he will also be looking to right the ship.

The lineup, meanwhile, will look to score their first runs of the series after being shut out for just the second time this season by old friend Erick Fedde, who threw his first career complete game Friday night.

The Nats' bats will try their luck against Andre Pallante, who makes his eighth start of 2025. The 26-year-old right-hander is 2-2 with a 4.75 ERA and 1.528 WHIP. However, he’s a different pitcher on the road: He’s 2-0 with a respectable 3.52 ERA at home, but 0-2 with a 5.66 ERA away from Busch Stadium.

For the second time in the last week, Michael Soroka has met the Nationals in D.C. from his minor league rehab assignment. And for the second time in the last week, he doesn't know when or where his next start will take place.

Soroka dominated Friday during his third rehab start while working his way back from a right biceps strain. He struck out 11 hitters over five innings of one-run ball, while reaching his goal of 94 pitches for Triple-A Rochester.

“I felt pretty good,” Soroka said in the Nats clubhouse Monday afternoon. “Everything was coming out pretty good and I can't complain about that. Ultimately, we got to the full pitch count. Yeah, I felt really good.”

The veteran right-hander then threw his between-starts bullpen session at Nationals Park yesterday, so the team will wait to see how he responds today before making a final decision on whether or not to return him to the major league rotation.

“He threw the ball really well. He's good,” manager Davey Martinez said. “So we'll see how he feels tomorrow, and we'll make a decision, hopefully tomorrow.”

Josh Bell will sit for the third straight game while dealing with a groin issue that kept him out of the lineup for the final two matchups in Cincinnati.

The Nationals designated hitter tweaked his right groin muscle running out a ground ball in the seventh inning of Friday night’s loss to the Reds. Manager Davey Martinez kept the 32-year-old out of the lineup for the final two games against the Reds as a precaution, especially due to the bad weather all weekend at Great American Ball Park.

But although Bell is feeling better, Martinez continues to practice caution, sitting him again for the opener against the Guardians, his former team.

“He's doing better. I'm being very cautious,” the skipper said during his pregame media session. “We have played in some bad weather. He's a big guy, so I want to make sure that he's OK. But he's definitely doing better. Yesterday he said he was a lot less sore than he was the day before, so that's good.”

Bell has struggled to start the season, hitting .139 with a .528 OPS in 30 games. Although, he is third on the team with five home runs and 14 RBIs. With him sidelined, Alex Call (and his .875 OPS) has the chance to play more, and is manning left field tonight while James Wood serves as the designated hitter.

After three straight rain-delayed games in Cincinnati, the Nationals return home to … more rain.

Yes, the weather for tonight’s series opener against the Guardians does not look promising, with thunderstorms projected to hit the area all night. The good news is this is the first game of this three-game set. The two teams play again tomorrow night and are scheduled to play a 12:05 p.m. game on Wednesday, leaving plenty of room for a possible doubleheader.

And although they would prefer not to lose an off-day, neither team is scheduled to play on Thursday, so could play each other then if need be.

Jake Irvin is slated to make his eighth start of the season tonight, bringing a 2-1 record, 4.01 ERA and 1.125 WHIP to the mound. After a stretch of three consecutive strong outings, the right-hander was roughed up in his last start, allowing six runs in six innings against the Phillies.

Luis Ortiz will take the mound for the Guardians. The 26-year-old right-hander is 2-3 with a 4.78 ERA and 1.406 WHIP in his first six starts with Cleveland since being acquired via trade in the offseason.