There was a natural reaction for some to Sunday’s news the Nationals drafted Dylan Crews of disappointment. Not because the Nats made a mistake taking the LSU center fielder with the No. 2 overall pick, but because the Pirates prevented them from taking Paul Skenes by making the LSU ace the No. 1 pick in the country.

For months, we kept hearing about the perfect couple the Nationals and Skenes would make. Fans and club officials alike were formulating 2024 rotations in their minds. Players openly talked about welcoming him into their clubhouse next spring and then showing the 21-year-old he wasn’t quite ready for the big leagues yet.

Of course Skenes was going to wind up a National. How could he not?

So when the announcement came shortly after 7 p.m. Sunday that the Pirates had selected him, the subsequent selection of Crews felt like some kind of letdown.

News flash: It shouldn’t feel that way. The Nationals just got themselves a bona fide No. 1 pick with the No. 2 pick, one of the most accomplished college players ever, as much of a slam-dunk prospect as you’re ever going to find.

Kris Kline saw every top hitter in the country this season. He drafted the best of them in Dylan Crews, the Golden Spikes Award winner selected by the Nationals with the No. 2 overall pick Sunday evening.

And it’s quite possible the Nats’ longtime vice president of scouting was even more impressed in some ways with the hitter he selected in the second round of the draft several hours later.

"One of the loudest bats I heard this year," Kline said of University of Miami third baseman Yohandy Morales. "We were pretty happy with that one, to get him at 40."

As much attention was given to the Nationals’ first-round pick - and rightfully so given the talent available and the significance of that selection - internally, club officials believed their second-round pick was going to be just as important to the franchise. Though they lost the No. 1 overall pick to the Pirates via the new draft lottery, they still maintain the first choice for every other round based on their worst-in-baseball record in 2022.

"When you're picking that high (in the first round), it takes care of itself," Kline said. "A lot of the work, most of the work actually, went into pick 40."

In the end, the Nationals didn’t get to make the choice for themselves. The Pirates did it for them.

When Pittsburgh went with right-hander Paul Skenes as the No. 1 pick in this tonight’s Major League Baseball Draft, the Nats made the easy decision to follow with his LSU teammate, award-winning center fielder Dylan Crews, as the No. 2 selection. In the process, the organization used its first draft slot on a position player for only the seventh time in 11 years, though for the third consecutive year.

The Nationals later selected another position player, University of Miami third baseman Yohandy Morales, with the first pick of the second round.

General manager Mike Rizzo, vice president of scouting Kris Kline and their team thought they might wind up having to choose between Skenes or Crews if the Pirates went for a potential cost-saving move and took Florida outfielder Wyatt Langford or Indiana high school outfielder Max Clark with the top pick.

That scenario, which was speculated all week, never came to fruition. Pittsburgh wasn’t scared off by the injury risk of a power pitcher like Skenes and went ahead and drafted the flame-throwing ace anyway.

Since they arrived in Washington nearly two decades ago, the Nationals have been in this position – owners of one of the top two picks in the Major League Baseball Draft – twice. In each case, they owned the No. 1 pick. And in each case, they drafted a generational talent whose name and reputation were already well-known throughout the sport.

Tonight, they’re back in this position for the first time since 2009-10, when they selected Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper and set a course toward an eight-year run of success and an eventual World Series title.

It’s not the No. 1 pick this time around. But if ever there was a year to have the No. 2 pick, this appears to be it. No matter who they end up with, the Nationals are going to draft a player every notable expert insists is good enough to be the No. 1 player selected in the country. Not to mention one who should find himself on a fast track to the big leagues.

“This pick could be somebody that changes us really quick, within one or two years,” manager Davey Martinez recently admitted. “It’s definitely exciting how this is all going to work out.”

There was little drama the last time the Nats were here. Everybody knew Strasburg was the choice in 2009, and everybody knew Harper was the pick in 2010. That’s not the case this time.

Forgive anyone who sat through today’s proceedings at Nationals Park and worried things were going to end up just like they did the previous five days here. It was hot again. It was humid again. It rained again. A first-place team was in the visitors’ dugout again. Surely, another loss by the home team was forthcoming again, right?

Not so fast. The conditions may have felt familiar, but the end result was most unfamiliar. The Nationals actually won.

Yes, for only the second time in their last 17 home games, the Nats emerged victorious, storming out to an early lead against the Rangers, then weathering another rain delay before cruising to an 8-3 win before a crowd of 29,042 that barely remembered how to celebrate such an occasion.

That crowd was treated to a 4-0 lead by the Nationals before they even made an out in the first, an 8-0 lead by the time the third inning came to a close.

"I talk about it all the time: It's a lot different ballgame if you go out there and score first," manager Davey Martinez said. "I hope these guys learned today by going out there and putting some runs up on the board early, our pitcher gets to relax a little bit, and they get to relax a little bit and have some fun. Hopefully, we come out tomorrow and do the same thing." 

Jeimer Candelario is back in the Nationals lineup after one day off with a knee injury, but he’s not back at third base yet.

Candelario, who was struck in the right knee with a pitch during the 10th inning of Thursday’s loss to the Reds, sat out Friday night’s series opener against the Rangers. He attempted to take swings in the cage prior to the game but wasn’t comfortable doing it.

The 29-year-old gave it another try today and felt better, telling manager Davey Martinez he could hit but probably not play the field. So he’ll serve as designated hitter for this afternoon’s game.

“We talked to him; he said he could hit,” Martinez said. “We’ll just DH him today, and hopefully by tomorrow he’ll get back on the field.”

The Nationals sorely missed Candelario’s bat during Friday’s loss, one that saw them score only two runs, each via Joey Meneses solo homers. Candelario has statistically been the team’s second-best hitter this season, trailing only Lane Thomas with 12 homers and an .814 OPS. He’s also second in the National League with 27 doubles.

Will the Nationals win a home game today? If they do, will they pop champagne in the clubhouse? At this point, anything’s possible.

Having begun this homestand 0-5, and having lost 15 of their last 16 home games overall, the Nats are desperate for something positive to happen on South Capitol Street. The good news: All the top relievers should be available today after sitting Friday night. So if Jake Irvin can give them five or six quality innings (no guarantee, of course) they should at least be in a good position to compete late.

Above all else, though, this lineup needs to start scoring some runs. The Nationals have totaled 14 runs on this homestand, an average of 2.8 per game for those who need help with the math. They’re asking an awful lot of their pitching staff to compensate for that. Perhaps they can finally enjoy some success this afternoon against Rangers lefty Andrew Heaney.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. TEXAS RANGERS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 4:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Chance of storms, 86 degrees, wind 6 mph right field to left field

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

Joey Meneses didn’t need to be told. He knew how long it had been since he’d hit a baseball over a fence in a game.

Not that it stopped anyone and everyone from talking to him about it. Which, in turn, made it awfully hard not to think about it.

“Absolutely,” the Nationals designated hitter said, via interpreter Octavio Martinez. “It seems like everybody reminds you of that. Friends. Teammates. Just in general, it seems like you get a comment saying: ‘Why aren’t the home runs coming?’ So you always have it in your mind.”

Perhaps that’s what prompted Meneses to do what he did in the bottom of the sixth Friday night: Toss his bat in defiant celebration and look at his dugout after he ended a two-month home run drought with a two-homer game.

“It’s somewhat of a relief,” he said. “I can take a deep breath and relax a little bit. It’s my job to hit, so it was great to be able to hit two home runs today.”

On the night they lost for the 15th time in their last 16 home games – a stretch of futility that is increasingly hard to fathom – the Nationals saw Trevor Williams give up two runs early and two runs late. They saw Joan Adon make his 2023 major league debut and give up home runs to two of the first three batters he faced. They saw Joey Meneses finally end his power slump with a pair of solo homers.

All of those developments were notable within the context of this particular game, a 7-2 loss to the Rangers. None was necessarily earth-shattering in the larger scheme of things.

In this rebuilding season, the focus has been and will continue to be on the handful of young players who could be building blocks for the future. And CJ Abrams has always been near the top of the list of players who fit that description.

So the most significant thing that happened tonight may not have been the end result, but the name of the player Davey Martinez wrote down in the No. 1 position on his lineup card.

"He's had almost 300 plate appearances now, so I think it's time," the manager said. "I think it's time we push him up, see what he can do. He's got all the ability to be a really good leadoff hitter. Now he's just got to understand what he needs to do every day to do that: That's to be consistent, not chase and try to get on base. Not try to do too much."

A Nationals pitching staff that was overtaxed the last few days will have a fresh arm for the final series of the first half: Joan Adon.

Adon was recalled from Triple-A this afternoon, giving the Nats someone who could churn out a good number of innings if needed out of the bullpen against the Rangers. Left-hander Joe La Sorsa was optioned to Rochester to clear a roster spot.

The events of the last two days made some kind of move inevitable. La Sorsa threw 51 pitches in two innings of relief Wednesday night, making him unavailable to return until at least Saturday. Jordan Weems threw 27 pitches that night, then returned to throw 28 on Thursday, likely knocking him out a few days as well.

The 1-hour, 43-minute rain delay in the second inning Thursday really threw a wrench into plans, with starter MacKenzie Gore unable to continue after throwing only 17 pitches. Manager Davey Martinez wound up using six relievers to cover the remaining 8 2/3 innings necessary in a 10-inning loss to Cincinnati.

Hence the decision to promote Adon, who was scheduled to start for Rochester on Thursday night but was instead informed he was to report to D.C. The 24-year-old right-hander has made 15 starts at Triple-A this season, going 2-5 with a 4.81 ERA and 1.578 WHIP.

The Nationals had no luck against the Reds this week, dropping four straight to the surprise leaders of the National League Central. Will they fare any better this weekend against the Rangers, the surprise leaders of the American League West?

Texas has enjoyed its resurgence not as much through a rebuilding farm system like Cincinnati, but through a spending spree in recent years that included Marcus Semien, Corey Seager, Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom. That last addition hasn’t worked out, but the others have done well, especially Seager, owner of a 1.040 OPS. Having said that, the Rangers enter this series on a bit of a downswing, having dropped nine of their last 13 games.

The Nationals need to play better all around this weekend. It begins tonight with Trevor Williams, who continues to give his team a chance, even if the right-hander doesn’t exactly dominate on the mound. Williams probably needs to provide some length tonight, given the fact Davey Martinez had to burn up his whole bullpen after Thursday’s second-inning rain delay.

The lineup gets another crack at an opposing left-hander, in this case, Cody Bradford. The 25-year-old makes only his seventh career appearance tonight, having tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings of relief four days ago against the Astros. Davey Martinez will not have Jeimer Candelario, who sits after getting hit by a pitch on his right knee Thursday. He will, however, have CJ Abrams batting leadoff for the first time this season, with Lane Thomas second. More on that notable change to come ...

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. TEXAS RANGERS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Chance of storms, 83 degrees, wind 5 mph left field to right field

There was a certain admirable quality to what the Nationals bullpen did Thursday afternoon. After a 1-hour, 43-minute rain delay forced MacKenzie Gore’s start to end after only 1 1/3 innings and 17 pitches, Davey Martinez had to ask six relievers to churn out a combined 8 2/3 innings in a game that wasn’t decided until the 10th.

Of course, the bullpen’s performance would’ve been appreciated even more had Kyle Finnegan not surrendered the game-tying run in the eighth and Hunter Harvey surrendered the game-winning runs in the 10th.

But given the circumstances, and what was asked of them, Martinez couldn’t get too down on the group as a whole.

The key figure in the proceedings was Mason Thompson, who was summoned to take over when the rain delay ended, thrust into a jam in the top of the second. The right-hander proceeded to induce an inning-ending, 6-2-3 double play, then returned to pitch the third and fourth innings, ultimately allowing one run to the Reds.

“It starts with the first guy and wondering how far he can go,” Martinez said. “Mason did a great job. You’re hoping for an inning and two-thirds, and he gave us more than that. So that set the tone. Then the rest of the guys just followed suit. I thought they did really well.”

As soon as the skies opened in the top of the second at Nationals Park, this was guaranteed to be an unconventional day at the yard.

The grounds crew would need to put in extra work to get the field playable once the storm passed. Bullpens would need to be asked to work overtime, with starters burned up. Benches would be emptied, players would switch positions, designated hitters would be forfeited.

In the end, the path may have been different, but the result was not. The Nationals lost yet another home game, this time by a count of 5-4 in 10 innings to a Reds team that just completed a four-game sweep in impressive fashion.

Nick Senzel’s two-run homer off Hunter Harvey on the first pitch of the 10th was the deciding blow, though it was Senzel’s defensive efforts in the bottom of the ninth that made it possible in the first place.

With a chance to win it in regulation, the Nats got a one-out double from Riley Adams and then thought for a moment they got at least a walk-off double (if not a homer) from CJ Abrams. But Senzel’s leaping catch at the wall in right denied the home team a chance for a rare celebration, and ultimately sent the game into extras.

Joey Meneses had a little extra bounce in his step this morning, certainly more than you’d expect from a player facing the quick turnaround from a three-hour game the previous night to a 1:05 p.m. first pitch today.

The reason for Meneses’ good mood: He’s playing first base for the Nationals in today’s series finale against the Reds.

This has become a rare event. Meneses, who has served as the Nats’ designated hitter 74 times in the team’s first 86 games, is playing only his sixth game in the field this afternoon. It’s the first time he’s played first base since April at Citi Field in New York.

“He’s excited about it,” manager Davey Martinez said. “He takes ground balls every day. He gets a chance to go out there today and play the field. He’s up for it.”

With left-hander Brandon Williamson starting for the Reds, Martinez decided to give both Dominic Smith and Luis García the day off and go with a more right-handed-heavy lineup. That includes Ildemaro Vargas at second base and Keibert Ruiz as DH.

The Nationals, plain and simple, have not played good baseball this week. It’s not just the fact they’ve lost three straight to the Reds, it’s the way they’ve looked in losing those three games. Sloppy defense. Bad pitching. An inability to deliver at the plate with runners in scoring position. It’s been ugly.

One win in today’s series finale won’t change all that, but it sure wouldn’t hurt. Success would start with MacKenzie Gore, who needs a bounceback performance of his own after giving up seven runs in only 2 2/3 innings his last outing at Philadelphia. The lefty would love to go into the All-Star break on a better note, not to mention an ERA lower than the 4.48 mark he brings into today’s start.

The Nats face another unfamiliar pitcher today in Cincinnati’s Brandon Williamson, who makes his 10th career start. The 25-year-old left-hander enters with a 5.56 ERA, but he did hold the Padres to two runs over five innings in his last appearance.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. CINCINNATI REDS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Chance of storms, 89 degrees, wind 6 mph right field to left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
3B Jeimer Candelario
1B Joey Meneses
LF Stone Garrett
DH Keibert Ruiz
2B Ildemaro Vargas
C Riley Adams
SS CJ Abrams
CF Alex Call

For all the trouble they had when the Reds were at bat Wednesday night, the Nationals might actually have given themselves a chance to win the game had they simply converted some golden scoring opportunities in their first two innings at the plate.

Instead, another failure to pounce on a struggling opposing starter set the tone for what became a 9-2 rout rather than a competitive ballgame.

Seven of the Nationals’ first nine batters actually reached base against Cincinnati starter Graham Ashcraft, who entered with a 6.66 ERA. Only one of those seven (Lane Thomas) would score, and he only did so via wild pitch.

Thomas opened the bottom of the first with a walk, the 30th time he has reached base in the 61 games he has led off the first inning. Luis Garcia followed with a single, but Jeimer Candelario grounded into a killer double play that moved Thomas to third but left the Nats with two outs. Even so, they still proceeded to load the bases when Joey Meneses walked and Dominic Smith was hit by a pitch.

Ashcraft’s wild pitch scored Thomas and moved everybody else up one base, but Keibert Ruiz then grounded out to end that rally with only the one run across the plate.

Whether it was a display of gamesmanship meant to rattle a talented rookie or genuine concern about the device Elly De La Cruz had wrapped around the knob of his bat, Davey Martinez and the Nationals’ actions in the top of the second this evening didn’t produce anything close to a desired result for the home team.

Not only was De La Cruz ultimately allowed to use the device, he used it while launching a gargantuan home run to right-center and then immediately pointed at it before circling the bases, the defining moment of the Nats’ ugly, 9-2 loss to the Reds on a long, muggy night of unsightly baseball on South Capitol Street.

De La Cruz, the sport’s top-rated prospect one month ago and now the face of Cincinnati’s sudden resurgence to the top of the National League Central division, had his way with the Nationals for the second straight day.

The Nats? They lost their third straight to open this four-game series, not to mention their 13th loss in their last 14 home games despite having gone 6-3 on the road in between all that.

"We can't give teams those extra outs," Martinez said after watching his team commit two errors and allow four stolen bases. "Every time we do that, it comes back and bites us."

The Nationals’ continued search for a productive center fielder while Victor Robles is on the injured list landed on a familiar face today: The club recalled Alex Call from Triple-A Rochester and designated struggling Derek Hill for assignment.

Call rejoins the Nats only three weeks after he was demoted because of his own struggles, plus Robles’ initial return from a back injury. When Robles had to go back on the 10-day IL with a recurrence of the injury, Hill was given the promotion over Call.

Hill never found offensive success in D.C. Though he had a robust .914 OPS at Triple-A, the 27-year-old outfielder batted just .170 with one extra-base hit, three walks, 11 strikeouts and a .411 OPS in 13 big league games. He finally recorded his first RBI in his 48th plate appearance during Tuesday’s 8-4 loss to the Reds.

“When you’re not seeing the results, you start pressing a little bit,” manager Davey Martinez said. “We talked to him about shortening his swing a little bit, and it felt like he was getting long. We worked with him, and just nothing came out of it.”

Having already played for the Tigers in parts of the previous three seasons, Hill was out of options and couldn’t be demoted without first being exposed to waivers. Hence today’s move to designate him for assignment. If he goes unclaimed, he could wind up back in Rochester.

The Nationals tonight look to bounce back from two uninspired losses to the Reds to begin this homestand, and they’ll have a new face patrolling center field. (Though he’s not actually new, he’s just back for the first time in a few weeks.) Alex Call has been recalled from Triple-A Rochester, with struggling Derek Hill designated for assignment after a particularly rough game Tuesday.

Call, who didn’t exactly set the world on fire at the plate while filling in for the injured Victor Robles, gets another chance to prove his worth until Robles is ready to return from his lingering back issues. He’ll bat ninth tonight, behind CJ Abrams. Joey Meneses returns to the cleanup spot, with Dominic Smith bumped down to the No. 5 position against Reds right-hander Graham Ashcraft.

Josiah Gray makes his final start before heading to Seattle for his first All-Star Game. The young right-hander is coming off one of his best outings of the season in Philadelphia, and surely he would love to keep the positive vibes going before he joins his fellow All-Stars out West next week.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. CINCINNATI REDS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 89 degrees, wind 4 mph right field to left field

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

CJ Abrams came up to bat four times during Tuesday’s game at Nationals Park, and he was legitimately pleased with both the process and the results of three of those plate appearances.

There was a third-inning double to right. There was a fifth-inning double to left. And there was a ninth-inning leadoff walk.

The common theme with those plate appearances? Abrams swung at pitches in the zone and took those outside the zone. He took two pitches off the plate and then doubled on a changeup right over the heart of the zone in the third. He took three straight pitches, two of them called balls, before driving a sinker at the knees the other way for a double in the fifth. And he took five straight pitches in the ninth, the first of them called a strike, the others all called balls.

“I was swinging more at my pitch today,” he said. “Swinging at good pitches I can handle. I was seeing in the zone, going fastball the other way, pulling the changeup and reacting.”

The ninth-inning walk, in particular, pleased Abrams’ manager.