Josh Harrison, arguably the hottest Nationals hitter, is out of the starting lineup for this afternoon's game against the Diamondbacks because he's dealing with some back stiffness.
Manager Davey Martinez said Harrison, who is slashing .556/.600/.778 with a homer and five RBIs in five games since being activated off the COVID-19-related injured list earlier this week, reported a stiff back after Friday night's game, leading to the day off.
"I've been trying to give him a day off, but when he came to me last night, it was a no-brainer to say, 'Hey, just take the day today and we'll get you in there when you're ready,' " Martinez said in his pregame Zoom session with reporters.
Harrison is available, Martinez said, but Jordy Mercer is manning second base this afternoon.
Also out of the lineup - for the first time this season - is center fielder Victor Robles, who is getting a day off after hitting .194 (7-for-36) over the first 11 games. Andrew Stevenson is in center field in his place.
Robles hit leadoff eight times to start the campaign before Martinez dropped him to the eighth or ninth spots in the lineup as he struggled at bat. However, Robles has reached base safely in all but two games.
* Left-hander Luis Avilán, who was placed on the IL with left elbow inflammation on Friday, has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, Martinez said. The reliever, who made the 26-man opening day roster as the second lefty in the bullpen after posting a 1.93 ERA in eight spring training outings, will now decide whether to rehab the injury or undergo Tommy John ligament replacement surgery.
"He's weighing his decision on what to do," Martinez said.
* Reliever Will Harris continues to recover from right hand inflammation at the alternate training site in Fredericksburg, Va. The right-hander will throw another bullpen session tomorrow, the manager said.
"He wants to face hitters this week, which is a good sign," Martinez said.
* The excitement of Kyle Schwarber's walk-off homer on Friday night hasn't dissipated for Martinez, who admitted to watching the 463-foot blast beyond the Nats bullpen in right field "quite a bit" in the 12 hours since the mammoth shot gave the Nats a 1-0 victory.
"When he gets ahold of one, he hits it pretty far. .. I've seen him do that quite a bit," Martinez said.