Stephen Strasburg looks to continue dominant stretch (with lineups)

Stephen Strasburg aims to deliver the Nationals' fourth consecutive series win when he takes the mound in the finale against the Marlins this afternoon. Strasburg has overmatched hitters in four starts since returning from the disabled list on Aug. 8 after missing more than a month with a strained left oblique.

The hard-throwing right-hander is 3-1 with a 1.73 ERA while striking out 32 and walking just three in 26 innings over the four-game stretch. Battling nagging injuries, Strasburg's ERA ballooned to 6.55 while opponents hit .325 off him through his first 10 starts of the year. Now healthy, Strasburg has displayed confidence and command on the mound, controlling the strike zone and limiting hitters to a .156 average over his recent hot stretch.

Ian Desmond's second-half resurgence continued last night with an enormous homer to straightaway center. The solo blast followed Clint Robinson's two-run shot, giving the Nats their second back-to-back homers of the season.

Over his last 37 games, Desmond is filling up the stat sheet, hitting .309/.365/.581 with 10 homers, one triple, five doubles, 25 RBIs, 12 walks, seven stolen bases and 23 runs scored.

The Nationals have won seven of their last 11 games, outscoring their opponents 64-42, while averaging 5.8 runs per contest.

For the Marlins:

2B Dee Gordon
RF Ichiro Suzuki
3B Martin Prado
1B Justin Bour
LF Derek Dietrich
CF Marcell Ozuna
SS Adeiny Hechevarria
C Jeff Mathis
LHP Brad Hand

For the Nationals:

LF Jayson Werth
3B Anthony Rendon
RF Bryce Harper
1B Ryan Zimmerman
SS Ian Desmond
C Wilson Ramos
2B Danny Espinosa
CF Michael A. Taylor
RHP Stephen Strasburg