Game 25 lineups: Nats vs. Padres (updated, Rendon rest day)

Game 25 lineups: Nats vs. Padres (updated, Rendon rest day)
The Nationals look to get back in their series with the Padres on Saturday as they send San Diego native Stephen Strasburg to the hill to slow a skid of five losses in their last seven games. Strasburg did quite well Sunday in Miami, pitching eight shutout innings, allowing two hits and striking out 11 in a 5-0 Nats win over the Marlins. Strasburg is 2-1 with a 4.11 ERA. His last start at Nats Park against the Padres was May 27, 2017, when he tossed seven innings and struck out a career-high 15...
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Game 24 lineups: Nats vs. Padres

Game 24 lineups: Nats vs. Padres
It is absolutely pouring here on South Capitol Street, as appears to be the case throughout the region. The good news: The storms are supposed to clear out of here before gametime, though it may be awfully windy for the Nationals' series opener against the Padres. The weather won't do anything to dampen Carter Kieboom's excitement for his major league debut. The 21-year-old infielder officially had his contract purchased from Triple-A Fresno this afternoon, and he's in the lineup starting...
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Game 23 lineups: Nats at Rockies

Game 23 lineups: Nats at Rockies
DENVER - The Nationals are 1-7 in series openers so far this season, and that's a bad thing. But they're 6-1 in series finales, and that's a good thing. Despite digging themselves into a hole every time they open new set against a new opponent, they've found a way to climb out of it and emerge still in one piece. They'll try to do that again today and pull off a series victory at Coors Field after dropping the opener but winning a tense affair last night. They'll ask Aníbal Sánchez...
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Game 22 lineups: Nats at Rockies

Game 22 lineups: Nats at Rockies
DENVER - What a difference a day makes. It's currently 20 degrees warmer at Coors Field than it was for last night's series opener, and there isn't a cloud in the sky, either. Now the Nationals have to hope the result on the field differs from last night as well. After dropping that game 7-5 - their seventh loss in eight series openers so far this season - the Nats face another uphill climb and will need to win the next two games to return home with a series victory and a .500 record. And...
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Game 21 lineups: Nats at Rockies (Noll recalled)

Game 21 lineups: Nats at Rockies (Noll recalled)
DENVER - Hello from Coors Field, where the air is not only thin but really cold. At least today, it is. The high temperature might crack 50 degrees this afternoon, and it'll be dropping down through the 40s during tonight's series opener. You'd think that would be a bad thing for hitters, but I'm not sure it's possible for any game in this ballpark to be bad for hitters. The Nationals certainly hope the altitude helps get their bats going after a sluggish weekend in Miami that at least...
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Orioles and Twins lineups

Orioles and Twins lineups
Joey Rickard is starting in center field today as the Orioles close out their series against the Twins at Camden Yards. Cedric Mullins and Rule 5 shortstop Richie Martin are on the bench. Jonathan Villar is playing shortstop and Hanser Alberto is at second base. Jesús Sucre is catching Dylan Bundy. Chris Davis is playing first base and Trey Mancini is in right field. The Orioles have slipped into last place in the American League East at 8-14. They're 1-8 at home. For the Orioles Jonathan...
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Game 20 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 20 lineups: Nats at Marlins
MIAMI - Well, this certainly is not what the Nationals expected. Arriving Thursday night, the Nats were above .500 again after a series win at home against the Giants. As of today they have lost two in a row to the last-place Marlins and now look to veteran right-hander Stephen Strasburg (1-1, 5.56 ERA) to be the stopper and avoid the sweep. I wrote this morning about how Strasburg has used a matured mental approach to get better with each start. Strasburg needs two innings to become the...
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Game 19 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 19 lineups: Nats at Marlins
MIAMI - Just because the Marlins don't have Giancarlo Stanton, J.T. Realmuto or Christian Yelich any more doesn't mean they still can't play some baseball and make an impact in the National League. The thought that the rest of the NL East is a dogfight and the Marlins are cupcakes may not quite be true, even with their brutal start. Right-hander Aníbal Sánchez, who took the loss Friday night to fall to 0-2, remembers playing for the Florida Marlins from 2006-2011 and says the club...
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Game 17 lineups: Nats vs. Giants

Game 17 lineups: Nats vs. Giants
Surely this is the most important official release of the day in Washington: the Nationals' starting lineup for their series finale against the Giants! While much of the world is focused on a different building in a different part of town, baseball fans are most interested in what takes place here on South Capitol Street, where the Nats are trying to take back-to-back games and win this three-game series in order to head out on a road trip to Miami and Colorado with a winning record. Patrick...
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Game 16 lineups: Nats vs. Giants

Game 16 lineups: Nats vs. Giants
Davey Martinez has stuck with a pretty consistent lineup since opening day. When he's made changes, he's simply plugged in a Matt Adams or a Howie Kendrick or a Kurt Suzuki into the same spot in the batting order as the regular said player is replacing. But after struggling to score runs Sunday and again Tuesday night, Martinez is going with a different look. Adams and Kendrick and Suzuki are all in there against Giants right-hander Jeff Samardzija. But the order has changed, with Anthony...
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Game 15 lineups: Nats vs. Giants

Game 15 lineups: Nats vs. Giants
We've got a pretty cool pitching matchup here in tonight's series opener between the Nationals and Giants. It's Stephen Strasburg versus Dereck Rodríguez, son of Iván, who of course was behind the plate for Strasburg's major league debut nine years ago. Yep, it's OK to start feeling old after reading that tidbit. After a great rookie season, Rodríguez has pitched OK through his first three starts this year. But the way things are going, the Giants don't need great work out of...
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Game 13 lineups: Nats vs. Pirates

Game 13 lineups: Nats vs. Pirates
The sun is out, and it's going to be a warm afternoon here on South Capitol Street as the Nationals and Pirates return to action after last night's rainy (and frustrating, for the Nats) affair. They'll try to get back on track with Aníbal Sánchez on the mound, though, as we all know, the performance of the starter matters less than the performance of whichever relievers are summoned from the bullpen to replace said starter. On that front, the Nationals have a new face in the bullpen...
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Game 12 lineups: Nats vs. Pirates

Game 12 lineups: Nats vs. Pirates
For the first time this season, the Nationals are facing someone other than the Mets or Phillies. If they play, that is. Yes, if it's a home game, that means there's rain in the forecast. It appears that we may be OK early on, but there is a line of storms approaching that could impact us later tonight. As always, when we know something, you'll know it, too. The Nationals face a Pirates club that is off to a solid 6-5 start thanks to dominant pitching. They lead the league with a 2.61 ERA...
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Game 11 lineups: Nats at Phillies

Game 11 lineups: Nats at Phillies
PHILADELPHIA - If you thought last night's game had some fireworks, you may want to tune in again tonight for the series finale between the Nationals and Phillies. Because if these two lineups were able to produce against Stephen Strasburg and Aaron Nola the way they did, imagine what could happen against Jeremy Hellickson and Nick Pivetta. No offense to those two right-handers, but they don't have the track record of last night's starters. And both have been beaten up by these respective...
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Martinez sticking with pitcher eighth, Robles ninth (tied in 10th)

Martinez sticking with pitcher eighth, Robles ninth (tied in 10th)
PHILADELPHIA - Davey Martinez has already been asked this question multiple times in the last week: Is he tempted to move Victor Robles out of the No. 9 spot in the Nationals lineup? And the manager's answer has remained consistent. "Right now, no," Martinez said. "I like what he's doing in the nine-hole. We're 10 days in, and he's done really well. I want him to just play the game. And he's having fun. He's doing the little things that we're asking him to do. He's playing really...
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Game 10 lineups: Nats at Phillies

Game 10 lineups: Nats at Phillies
PHILADELPHIA - Though they lost 4-3, the Nationals played a clean, pretty crisp game last night. No, it wasn't perfect, but neither was it anything like some of their other games to date that featured all manner of dysfunction. So Davey Martinez will be looking for a similar performance tonight. And yet, the Nationals need not only to play well but also to win, lest they fall to 4-6 overall and a full four games behind the Phillies in the standings. Yeah, these games matter, even in early...
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Game 9 lineups: Nats at Phillies (Taylor activated)

Game 9 lineups: Nats at Phillies (Taylor activated)
PHILADELPHIA - We knew all along this opening stretch of the season was going to be a bear for the Nationals, who had to face the Mets and Phillies at home and then the same two teams on the road. And it indeed has been a bear, but the Nats have survived so far, going 3-3 against New York and entering tonight's series opener against Philadelphia with a 1-1 head-to-head record. That makes this three-game set a big one, of course, because the end result will pretty much end up defining how these...
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Game 8 lineups: Nats at Mets

Game 8 lineups: Nats at Mets
NEW YORK - For all the trouble they've been through already this young season, the Nationals still have an opportunity to win a weekend series against the Mets today and get back to the .500 mark heading into a three-game series at Philadelphia. And they have Max Scherzer on the mound in an attempt to do it. Scherzer is already making his third start of the season in only the team's eighth game, a byproduct of all the off-days the Nats have had. He's on normal rest, but he'll get an extra...
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Game 7 lineups: Nats at Mets

Game 7 lineups: Nats at Mets
NEW YORK - And we're back. It's been a very odd schedule to begin this season, with three days off already. But now the Nationals finally get into a consistent routine, with five consecutive game days beginning this afternoon at Citi Field. The Nats will look to make it three in a row and get over the .500 mark for the first time this season. They'll have Patrick Corbin on the mound to make his second start, each of them against the Mets. The new lefty was solid his debut Sunday afternoon, a...
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Game 6 lineups: Nats at Mets

Game 6 lineups: Nats at Mets
NEW YORK - Hello from Citi Field, where the Mets host the Nationals in their home opener only one week after the Nats hosted the Mets in their home opener on South Capitol Street. It was a short night for the Metropolitans, who had a 6:05 p.m. game in Miami and didn't arrive back in New York until 2 a.m. The Nationals are a bit more rested after taking the train up from D.C. following yesterday afternoon's wild win over the Phillies. They've also got some fresh blood on the roster: Howie...
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