SAN FRANCISCO – Don’t look now, but the Nationals have won 10 of their last 17. They’re 15-20 overall. They’re one game behind the Phillies, 1 1/2 games behind the Marlins, two games behind the Mets. Sure, it’s still early May, and there’s a whole lot that can still go wrong (or right), but this is unquestionably a better position than almost anyone envisioned this team being in at this moment.
The Nats will look to keep the good vibes rolling tonight in the middle game of this series against the Giants, hoping Patrick Corbin can pick up where he left off last time out. In far and away his best start in a long time, Corbin carried a one-hit shutout into the eighth inning against the Cubs before finally fading. He did so by pounding the strike zone, tunneling his fastball and slider to make them look the same coming out of his hand and keeping the opposing hitters off balance.
The Nationals would love to give Corbin an early lead like they did for Jake Irvin on Monday night. They’ll see what they can do against veteran Giants right-hander Logan Webb, trotting out the same lineup as the series opener with one notable exception: Jake Alu makes his major league debut, batting ninth and starting in left field.
WASHINGTON NATIONALS at SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
Where: Oracle Park
Gametime: 9:45 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 57 degrees, wind 16 mph out to center field
NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
2B Luis García
C Keibert Ruiz
DH Joey Meneses
3B Jeimer Candelario
1B Dominic Smith
CF Alex Call
SS CJ Abrams
LF Jake Alu
LHP Patrick Corbin
GIANTS
LF Austin Slater
2B Thairo Estrada
RF Mitch Haniger
3B J.D. Davis
1B Wilmer Flores
DH David Villar
SS Casey Schmitt
C Joey Bart
CF Brett Wisely
RHP Logan Webb