SAN DIEGO - The Nationals enter tonight's contest against the Padres having won 12 of their last 15 games and five consecutive series.
After a day off, catcher Wilson Ramos returns to the lineup riding a major league-best and career-high 15-game hitting streak. During the stretch, Ramos is batting .390 (23-for-59) with four doubles, eight RBIs and six runs scored.
Right-hander Doug Fister is on his own run, having not allowed a walk in the last 17 2/3 innings. He brings a 2-1 record with a 2.87 ERA into tonight's start. Fister's only outing against the Padres came as a member of the Mariners when he tossed a complete game in July 2011 in a losing effort, despite allowing just one run.
The Padres will send right-hander Tyson Ross (1-3, 3.98 ERA) to the mound. He is the older brother of Nats highly-ranked righty prospect Joe Ross, who was acquired as part of a three-team trade that sent outfielder Steven Souza to Tampa Bay in December of 2014.
For the Nationals:
3B Yunel Escobar
LF Jayson Werth
RF Bryce Harper
1B Ryan Zimmerman
C Wilson Ramos
SS Ian Desmond
2B Danny Espinosa
RHP Doug Fister
For the Padres:
3B Cory Spangenberg
CF Will Venable
RF Matt Kemp
LF Justin Upton
C Derek Norris
2B Jedd Gyorko
1B Will Middlebrooks
SS Alexi Amarista
RHP Tyson Ross