It’s going to be a special day at Nationals Park. If you’re coming to the game, get here early. If you’re not coming to the game, MASN will carry the entire Ryan Zimmerman jersey retirement ceremony, beginning at 3 p.m.

We’ll have plenty on that ceremony as the day plays out. As for the game … well, the Nationals are trying to snap a seven-game losing streak overall, an 11-game losing streak to the Phillies and a 12-game losing streak to National League East opponents. So, they could really use a curly W today.

They’ll have Josiah Gray on the mound for the first time in 10 days after his last start was scratched due to a long rain delay. He probably gives them their best chance for a long start all week, and they could certainly use one this afternoon, given the fact both Carl Edwards Jr. and Kyle Finnegan pitched both ends of Friday’s doubleheader, and Tanner Rainey warmed up in the opener and then pitched in the nightcap.

After facing a couple lefties on Friday, the Nationals will go up against veteran right-hander Aaron Nola, who enters with a league-leading 0.894 WHIP and 9.1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. So the challenge is real for a Nats lineup that has been awfully inconsistent.

Update: The Nationals placed left-hander Evan Lee on the 15-day injured list with a flexor strain, one day after he departed a game following a string of eight straight balls (two of them wild pitches). Davey Martinez considered that diagnosis "about as good as it could've been" and said he should be back within a few weeks. Andres Machado, who had been optioned to Triple-A Rochester on Friday, was immediately recalled to take Lee's spot in the bullpen.

A weekend of nostalgia commenced Friday night when Ryan Zimmerman was joined by four ex-teammates (Jayson Werth, Adam LaRoche, Ian Desmond, Danny Espinosa) atop the visitors’ dugout for a Q&A with Nationals fans who hung on the group’s every word and probably wished that event could just keep going on the rest of the evening instead of the actual game that began at 7:05 p.m.

It’s tough to be a Nats fan in 2022, and it’s probably going to continue to be tough to be a fan of this team for a while longer. So it may take more of this kind of nostalgia to bring a smile to everyone’s face.

Before today’s game, the Nationals will officially retire Zimmerman’s No. 11 jersey, the first such player in club history to receive that honor, though certainly not the last. You’ve got to assume No. 31 will stand alongside it a few more years down the road, perhaps No. 37 and/or No. 22 as well, depending on how things go.

It’s one of the few major milestones this franchise hasn’t experienced since arriving in town 17 years ago. There have been no-hitters and division clinchers, an All-Star Game and a World Series. Now there’s a retired number to unveil on the façade of the upper deck along the first base line.

And nobody else in team history would’ve sufficed to be the first.

The Nationals’ pitching woes have been front and center all week, and for good reason. Between injuries, a long rain delay and a bunch of ineffective starts, it has been a massive daily chore for Davey Martinez to simply squeeze nine innings from his staff, let along nine quality innings.

But let’s not discount the lineup’s role during the Nats’ current losing streak, which extended to six games this afternoon with a 5-3 loss to the Phillies in the opener of a day-night doubleheader.

The Nationals have scored an average of 2.7 runs during these last six games, making the games when the pitching staff has at least given them a chance unwinnable.

Such was the case on a scorching Friday afternoon on South Capitol Street, when fill-in starter Joan Adon was far from great but churned out five innings and gave his teammates an opportunity to emerge victorious, if only they could produce at the plate.

They could not. The Nats got an RBI double from Lane Thomas in the third, a two-run homer from Josh Bell in the sixth, and nothing more against Phillies starter Ranger Suárez and three relievers (including former closer Brad Hand, who pitched the ninth for the save).

Needing a fresh arm to help get them through today’s day-night doubleheader, the Nationals recalled right-hander Cory Abbott from Triple-A and optioned reliever Andres Machado to Rochester.

Abbott was today’s scheduled starter for Rochester in Scranton, so he’s available for length should the Nats need it either in relief of Game 1 starter Joan Adon or nightcap starter Paolo Espino.

“The biggest thing was bringing up a guy who could give us multiple innings if need be,” manager Davey Martinez said.

Abbott, 26, has big-league experience, pitching seven games last season for the Cubs, allowing 13 earned runs on 20 hits and 11 walks over 17 1/3 innings. The Giants acquired him in April, then the Nationals claimed him off waivers in May and sent him to Triple-A to pitch as both a starter and reliever.

In six games spanning 13 innings for Rochester, Abbott allowed 13 runs on 17 hits, walking nine but striking out 18.

It’s going to be a long, hot day of baseball at Nationals Park, where the Nats and Phillies are scheduled to play a doubleheader. First game at 1:05 p.m., then the nightcap at 7:05 p.m.

Obviously, the Nationals need some length from their starter after a brutal week for the rotation. Joan Adon gets the ball, only 10 days after he was sent down to Triple-A Rochester with a 1-10 record and 6.95 ERA. This will likely be a one-and-done start for the rookie, who is the designated 27th man for the doubleheader, but he can help his cause with a solid outing this afternoon against a tough Phillies lineup.

After struggling against ace Zack Wheeler on Friday night, the Nats get a chance against left-hander Ranger Suárez today. That means Lane Thomas is back at the top of the lineup, in front of César Hernández and Juan Soto. Riley Adams gets the nod behind the plate, with Keibert Ruiz scheduled to catch the nightcap.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 94 degrees, wind 14 mph out to right field

NATIONALS
LF Lane Thomas
2B César Hernández
RF Juan Soto
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Josh Bell
3B Maikel Franco
SS Luis García
C Riley Adams
CF Victor Robles

The longest, toughest homestand that would never end continues today with a day-night doubleheader, a byproduct of the opening week of games that was lost when Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association couldn’t finalize their new collective bargaining agreement in time to start the season as scheduled.

The Nationals actually won the first two games of this 11-game homestand, beating the Brewers behind some offensive firepower. But since then they’ve lost five in a row, including Thursday night’s blowout loss to the Phillies.

So that leaves four more games over the next three days, with two on tap today. First up is Joan Adon vs. Ranger Suárez at 1:05 p.m. Then comes Paolo Espino vs. Bailey Falter at 7:05 p.m.

What kind of shape is the Nationals pitching staff in at this point? It’s not great. That’s what happens when your starters combine for only 19 2/3 innings during this five-game losing streak. Yes, on average they’ve been getting fewer than four innings from their starters during this stretch.

Given all that, manager Davey Martinez suggested after Thursday night’s loss the team might need to bring in another fresh arm before today’s game. Adon will serve as the 27th man for the doubleheader, so any other roster additions would have to be accompanied by roster reductions.

That the Nationals are losing games at this rate, though disappointing and frustrating, is not necessarily surprising. This week – with eight games in seven days against the red-hot Braves and Phillies – always loomed as a potential landmine for an overmatched home ballclub.

What is so striking about recent events here is not that the Nats are losing so much, but that they’re losing by so much. Tonight’s 10-1 trouncing at the hands of the Phillies should be an outlier, a rare lopsided game. Instead, it is the absolute norm for this team.

Over their last 17 games, a stretch that began May 30 in New York, the Nationals have trailed at some point by five or more runs a staggering 11 times. They’ve trailed by seven or more runs seven times. And with tonight added to the list, they’ve now trailed by nine or more runs four times.

They’re not just playing bad baseball. They’re playing uncompetitive baseball, facing deficits too large to contemplate overcoming before even reaching the fifth inning many nights.

"You usually try to stay mentally tough and locked in, no matter what the circumstance, if you fall behind early," second baseman Cesár Hernández said, via interpreter Octavio Martinez. "We have had a few games, but we have the talent to fight and get back in the games. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to lately. But the talent is on the field."

Needing to get through the final leg of a brutal 14-games-in-13-days stretch, the Nationals have decided to recall Joan Adon from Triple-A Rochester and start the right-hander in the opener of Friday’s doubleheader against the Phillies.

Paolo Espino will start the nightcap, making left-hander Evan Lee available to pitch out of the bullpen whenever needed.

The choice of Adon may come as a surprise to those who just saw the Nationals demote the rookie eight days ago after he went 1-10 with a 6.95 ERA in 12 starts to begin the season, but the club was in a dire enough situation to necessitate his recall.

With 18 scheduled innings on tap Friday, the Nats were reluctant to use a pair of starters (Espino and Lee) who haven’t been extended yet to throw more than five innings at best. Adon, who reached the sixth inning in three of his starts, is good to throw at least 90 pitches, taking some pressure off the bullpen for the doubleheader.

“Adon’s been stretched out, so we’re going to pitch him in Game 1,” said manager Davey Martinez, adding that Adon will be the designated 27th man for the doubleheader, suggesting he’ll be sent back to Rochester after the game.

The National League East has not been kind to the Nationals so far in 2022. At this point, they’ve gone an atrocious 5-20 against division foes this season, including nine straight losses to the Mets, Marlins and Braves. And tonight they face a red-hot Phillies club for the first time in the opener of a rare five-game series on South Capitol Street.

Having just been beaten up by the Braves, the Nats must now try to find a way to contain an explosive Phillies lineup that ranks second in the NL in homers and third in OPS. It’s imperative that Patrick Corbin keep the ball in the yard tonight, and he has actually been better at that this year, with only nine homers surrendered in 13 starts (after giving up a club record 37 in 31 starts last year).

Above all else, Corbin needs to provide innings. Like Erick Fedde on Wednesday night, Corbin will be throwing 100-110 pitches no matter what. It’s only a question of how many innings he can stretch those pitches into in advance of Friday’s day-night doubleheader.

Juan Soto returns to the lineup tonight after missing the last two games with bruised right knee.

Zack Wheeler, who since signing with the Phillies in 2020 has developed into one of the most consistently effective starters in the league, gets the ball tonight. The Nationals actually had some success against him last season, though, beating him three times in six starts while scoring 18 runs in 36 2/3 innings.

Reed Garrett got the call around midnight on Tuesday, having only just arrived in Scranton, Pa., with his Triple-A Rochester teammates a few hours earlier. The Nationals were calling him and fellow reliever Francisco Perez up, and because there weren’t any good flight options, his best bet was to rent a car and make the four-hour drive to Washington.

So it was that Garrett found himself behind the wheel, with Perez riding shotgun, on the road to D.C., then eventually into Tuesday night’s game against the Braves. It may have sounded like a stressful trip to some, but for the 29-year-old right-hander, it sure beat the travels he endured the last two seasons.

“Reflecting on it, it’s been a wild journey,” he said. “But it’s all been worth it.”

The journey began in Henrico, Va., where Garrett was born. It included life growing up in the Richmond area rooting for the Braves, though he believes the first major league game he ever attended was at RFK Stadium to see the Nationals.

A 16th round pick of the Rangers in 2014 out of Virginia Military Institute, Garrett would be selected by the Tigers in the 2019 Rule 5 draft and make his major league debut that season, only to be sent back to Texas after 13 disappointing appearances.

Jackson Tetreault found himself standing on the mound at Nationals Park at 7:06 p.m., a 26-year-old, seventh-round pick in the 2017 draft realizing a lifelong dream, starting a big league game. And when the right-hander proceeded to strike out Braves leadoff man Ronald Acuña Jr. on a high, 97-mph fastball, the impossible seemed possible, if only for a fleeting moment.

That moment indeed was fleeting, because the Acuña strikeout was followed by a no-doubt Dansby Swanson homer to left, which was followed by another run an inning later, which was followed by five more runs (including two more homers) the inning after that, leaving the Nats in a big hole they wouldn’t escape en route to a 10-4 loss.

"Early on, I just made sure I looked around, took it all in, said hi to the family, all that," Tetreault said. "But after that, it was good. Obviously not the result I was looking for, but I'm not going to shy away. I'm eager to get back out there and throw again. Just happy to get the first one under my belt. An awesome experience."

That Tetreault, who isn’t listed among the organization’s top prospects, found himself in this situation was more a reflection of the drastic pitching predicament the Nationals found themselves in than of his particular resume. After Stephen Strasburg went on the 15-day injured list with a stress reaction in his ribs and Josiah Gray had to be scratched from Monday night’s start after warming up just before a lengthy rain delay, the Nats simply needed somebody to start this game capable of throwing 90 or more pitches.

And with their higher-ranked prospects all off-schedule, the call was placed to Tetreault, who last started for Triple-A Rochester on Thursday and thus was good to go.

The Nationals formally placed Stephen Strasburg on the 15-day injured list today with a stress reaction of his second and third ribs, a diagnosis that doesn’t necessarily offer an optimistic or pessimistic outlook on the right-hander’s timetable to return but is related to the thoracic outlet surgery he had last summer and ensures he’ll be out for a not-insignificant period of time while letting this latest injury heal.

Strasburg is scheduled to fly to Southern California to be examined by specialist Neal ElAttrache, the noted orthopedist who just performed teammate Joe Ross’ second Tommy John surgery last week.

“This surgery, you just don’t know where it’s going to go,” Martinez said of pitchers who have attempted to return from thoracic outlet surgery. “I’ve seen a lot of guys go through this and not come out of it good right away. I’ve seen guys come out of it where they pitch for many years. We’re just going to have to wait. There’s no timeline right now for Stephen. He’s going to go see another specialist, and then we’ll know more.”

Strasburg had just completed a yearlong rehab process from last summer’s career-altering surgery, making his return to a big league mound Thursday night in Miami. Though he gave up seven runs in 4 2/3 innings, with a fastball velocity that averaged 90-91 mph, the 33-year-old was genuinely encouraged with how he felt physically and was prepared to make his next start in five days.

But during a standard bullpen session Saturday, Strasburg noted something didn’t feel right. And on Sunday, shortly after the Nationals announced him as their scheduled starter for tonight’s game against the Braves, he informed the club of this new bout of discomfort, leading to an MRI on Monday.

First we thought Stephen Strasburg would be starting tonight. Then we thought Josiah Gray would be starting tonight. Neither is, Strasburg because of an injury that today put him on the 15-day injured list, Gray because he wasn’t ready to bounce back after completing a full warmup session before Monday night’s game was delayed by rain.

So who’s starting for the Nationals tonight against a Braves team that has won 12 in a row to climb back into the NL East race? That would be Jackson Tetreault. Who’s Jackson Tetreault, you ask? He’s a 26-year-old right-hander drafted in the seventh round in 2017. In 12 starts at Triple-A Rochester, he went 5-3 with a 4.19 ERA and 1.293 WHIP, striking out 52 while walking 24. He’s not officially ranked among the organization’s top 30 prospects, but he made his most recent start Thursday and that means he was already on schedule for tonight, something the club’s other potential pitching options were not.

So, welcome to the majors, Jackson. Now, go out there and hold Ronald Acuña Jr., Dansby Swanson, Austin Riley and Co. in check for at least five solid innings, OK?

The Nationals could help their rookie starter out with some early run support. To do that, they’ll have to produce against lefty Max Fried, who enters 6-2 with a 2.64 ERA but hasn’t been as successful in his career against the Nats. Old stats don’t mean a whole lot, given how different this current lineup looks compared to previous ones. But they did get to Fried for three runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings when they met earlier this year in Atlanta.

In addition to selecting Tetreault's contract, the Nationals have also selected the contract of right-hander Reed Garrett from Rochester and recalled lefty Francisco Pérez. Along with Strasburg's latest stop on the IL, the team made space for the three by optioning reliever Jordan Weems to Rochester and designating utility player Dee Strange-Gordon for assignment.

In a season that's already featured more than a fair share of bad days, Monday was about as bad as it gets for the Nationals. Between injuries to star players, a rain delay, altered pitching plans and a 9-5 loss to the Braves, nothing went right for the club.

And now the Nats have to pick up the pieces from all that and take the field against the red-hot Braves again tonight, with the rest of this 11-games-in-10-days homestand still looming.

Here’s a rundown of what needs to be sorted out before today is over …

* How’s Stephen Strasburg?
Davey Martinez didn’t want to offer up any update on Strasburg late Monday night: “We’ll talk about Stephen tomorrow, if that’s OK,” the manager said. “I’ll know a lot more tomorrow about Stephen.”

Chances are, Martinez already knew something about the results of the MRI performed on Strasburg earlier in the day. But given all the other fires he was trying to put out after a game that nearly ended at midnight, he didn’t want to go into any more detail yet.

As he warmed up in the right field bullpen, Josiah Gray’s task for the evening was clear. Give the Nationals a chance to beat the Braves tonight? Sure. But more important than that, go deep enough in the game to alleviate pressure on a pitching staff that faces a daunting task this week with eight games scheduled over the next seven days, and with a replacement starter already needed Tuesday as Stephen Strasburg heads back to the injured list.

So consider what happened right around 7 p.m. as a worst-case scenario for the Nats. With rain falling and a heavy storm cell fast approaching, the grounds crew rolled out the tarp, the start of the game ultimately was delayed 1 hour, 33 minutes and Gray (because he had already warmed up) was scratched altogether out of caution by the organization.

"He sat for a very, very long time, and I'm not going to do that to him," manager Davey Martinez said. "I mean, he was in uncharted waters right there, so I decided after an hour and a half that we weren't going to send him out, and he was good."

This game was now in the hands of an already depleted bullpen, with Erasmo Ramírez charged with the unenviable task of starting the game and going as far as he could possibly go.

The ensuing results shouldn’t have surprised anyone. Ramírez gave up six runs in three innings, and the Nationals slogged their way through a 9-5 loss that brought a fitting conclusion to a downtrodden day for the organization.

Stephen Strasburg is going back on the injured list after reporting discomfort following his bullpen session over the weekend, bringing the Nationals right-hander’s attempted return from thoracic outlet surgery to a screeching halt.

Strasburg had come out of Thursday’s start in Miami – his first big league outing in more than a year – genuinely encouraged about the way he felt physically, and the Nationals had already announced him as their scheduled starter for Tuesday’s home game against the Braves.

But after throwing off the bullpen mound Saturday in his typical between-starts regimen, the 33-year-old informed club officials he “didn’t feel right, some discomfort,” according to manager Davey Martinez.

Strasburg went to have an MRI test today; the team is still waiting for results, but Martinez already announced he’ll be placed back on the IL and won’t start Tuesday as initially planned.

“Like I said before, this surgery, this thoracic outlet thing, you just don’t know,” the manager said. “We don’t know if this is the same issue or not yet, but we’ll know more as soon as we get the MRI and the doctors read the image. But it stinks because he was all excited to be back. But hopefully it’s just a minor setback.”

The Nationals spent the weekend taking advantage of a good Brewers club going through a rough stretch, extending Milwaukee’s losing streak to eight games before falling in Sunday’s finale. Now they’ll have to try to go up against a Braves team that’s absolutely on fire right now.

Atlanta enters the week on an 11-game winning streak, outscoring its opponents by 44 runs. The defending World Series champions were off to a ragged start to their season, but they’ve figured something out here recently and come to town on a roll.

Josiah Gray gets the start, and he’ll be looking to duplicate what he did at Truist Park back in April, when he held the Braves to one hit over five scoreless innings. The young righty also had a 10-strikeout game in Atlanta last summer, so he’s proven he can have some success against this very tough lineup.

The Nationals, who exploded for seven homers Friday and Saturday but were shut down Sunday, go up against Ian Anderson, who actually hasn’t faced them since he was a rookie in 2020. Davey Martinez is again going with Lane Thomas, who has gotten hot over the last few weeks, in center field leading off.

ATLANTA BRAVES at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 86 degrees, wind 5 mph out to center field

When Victor Robles came up to bat in the bottom of the third Saturday afternoon, moments after teammate Luis Garcia had led off the inning with a single, anyone inside Nationals Park who has been paying attention this season knew what was about to happen.

Sure enough, as Brewers left-hander Eric Lauer began his delivery toward the plate, Robles squared around to bunt. And when he proceeded to pop up that bunt attempt, right to first baseman Rowdy Tellez for an easy out, the crowd moaned, annoyed both with the result of the play but perhaps also the fact it happened in the first place.

That’s not necessarily how the Nationals dugout reacted to the botched bunt attempt.

“Look, it’s got to be part of his game, right? We want him to bunt in certain situations,” manager Davey Martinez said Sunday morning. “I thought yesterday he had the right idea, but he caught the ball back and had his hands up close to his body. So he couldn’t really see the ball hit the bat. He’s got to understand that when he does do that, he’s got to get to the ball out front.”

Officially, it went down as Robles’ 12th sacrifice bunt attempt this season, only six of which have been successful. Those 12 attempts lead the majors. And as a matter of fact, only five teams have attempted more sacrifice bunts this year than Robles has attempted on his own.

The Nationals entered today’s series finale against the Brewers with a suddenly resurgent lineup and a piecemeal pitching plan that needed to come together if they wanted to pull off their first three-game sweep of the season.

Who would’ve thought the pitching part of the equation would be the least of their concerns?

While Paolo Espino, Evan Lee and two relievers teamed up to hold Milwaukee in check, the Nats lineup went silent during a 4-1 loss to spoil any hopes of a weekend sweep on South Capitol Street.

Espino and Lee combined for the equivalent of a “quality start,” allowing three runs over six innings without issuing a walk. But their teammates couldn’t produce enough at the plate, despite several early opportunities with runners in scoring position, and thus couldn’t duplicate the power display they put on the previous two nights, when they launched seven total homers in back-to-back wins.

"Our pitching was good," manager Davey Martinez said. "We just didn't come up with that big hit. Twice had bases loaded, only scored one run. We just couldn't get that big hit today."

Everything has felt normal for Stephen Strasburg since his season debut Thursday night, so the right-hander is good to remain on a five-day schedule and start Tuesday against the Braves at Nationals Park.

Strasburg emerged from his 83-pitch start in Miami and his subsequent workouts with no issues, giving club officials more reason to be optimistic he can proceed as a healthy member of the rotation after returning at last from last summer’s thoracic outlet surgery.

“He’s got a good routine,” manager Davey Martinez said. “For him, it’s going to be every start, every five days in between, we just have to keep an eye on him and make sure nothing goes awry. So far, so good.”

The results from Strasburg’s start against the Marlins – seven runs allowed in 4 2/3 innings – weren’t encouraging, but both he and the team were highly encouraged by the way he felt physically throughout the game. Strasburg believed any struggles he had were a product of execution and/or pitch selection, not any residual effects of his injury.

There were signs the 33-year-old isn’t all the way back from the surgery, though. After retiring 10 of 12 batters during one stretch, he appeared tired in the bottom of the fifth, allowing five straight hits on loud contact. And his fastball velocity, which averaged 92-94 mph in his minor league rehab starts, was only 90-91 mph in his first big league game.