Game 11 lineups: Nats vs. Dodgers

Who would’ve thought three days ago the Nationals would find themselves on a three-game winning streak, against the Diamondbacks and Dodgers no less? And yet here we are, with the team having already clinched at least a .500 homestand against two of the best teams in the league, and now a chance to clinch a winning week with one more victory tonight or Wednesday.

After going all-in to win Monday’s opener, Davey Martinez has no choice but to take a different approach tonight. That starts with the guy starting the game: Brad Lord. After three relief appearances to begin his career, the 25-year-old right-hander now makes his first career start, essentially taking the injured Michael Soroka’s place.

Because he hasn’t been stretched out, Lord is probably good for only 45-50 pitches. Which means Jackson Rutledge will probably come out of the bullpen, either directly behind him or later on in the game, to provide multiple innings himself. And if the Nationals are in a position to win the game late, there’s no way Kyle Finnegan is pitching for a fourth straight day. So who gets the ninth? Jose A. Ferrer? Jorge López? Martinez would love to be in a position to find out.

Offensively, the Nats have done a lot more during this homestand than they did during the season’s first week, especially early in games. They will look to do the same tonight against the Dodgers’ own fill-in starter. Left-hander Justin Wrobleski was called up from Triple-A to replace the injured Blake Snell, who was supposed to take the mound tonight but is dealing with a shoulder ailment. Wrobleski is Los Angeles’ 11th-ranked prospect and made six big league starts last year, going 1-2 with a 5.70 ERA. He threw 76 pitches over 5 2/3 scoreless innings in his lone outing for Oklahoma City to begin the season, so he is stretched out to make a full start if he pitches well.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 6:45 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 87.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 45 degrees, wind 17 mph left field to right field

NATIONALS
LF Alex Call
DH James Wood
C Keibert Ruiz
1B Nathaniel Lowe
3B Amed Rosario
2B Luis García Jr.
SS Paul DeJong
RF Dylan Crews
CF Jacob Young

RHP Brad Lord

DODGERS
DH Shohei Ohtani
SS Mookie Betts
2B Tommy Edman
RF Teoscar Hernández
LF Michael Conforto
1B Kiké Hernández
3B Max Muncy
CF Andy Pagas
C Austin Barnes

LHP Justin Wrobleski