Game 121 lineups: Nats at Cardinals

Game 121 lineups: Nats at Cardinals
ST. LOUIS - This critical road trip in the Nationals season has not gone how they would have liked, but it's not over yet. There are two games left to be played against the Cardinals, two games that could either continue the slide into oblivion or perhaps perk everyone up a bit and recapture some semblance of positive momentum. It begins tonight with Jeremy Hellickson on the mound for the Nats. It's been quite an interesting season for the right-hander. He has allowed three or fewer earned...
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Game 120 lineups: Nats at Cardinals (updated)

Game 120 lineups: Nats at Cardinals (updated)
ST. LOUIS - And we're back for another evening of exciting Nationals baseball at Busch Stadium. What does tonight have in store for the D.C. nine? It's tough to imagine anything more dramatic (or devastating) than what this team has experienced in the last 48 hours. But at this point, nothing should surprise you. We don't yet know the state of the Nats bullpen for tonight's game, but reinforcements have arrived. Ryan Madson and Sammy Solís are not listed on the lineup card for tonight's...
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Game 119 lineups: Nats at Cardinals

Game 119 lineups: Nats at Cardinals
ST. LOUIS - It's a new day, in a new town and there's a new ballgame for the Nationals to play tonight. Whether last night's events have any carryover effect in their series opener at Busch Stadium remains to be seen. Your guess is as good as anyone's when it comes to this. The Nats will need Tommy Milone to give them a chance, though. The lefty very much did that in his first two starts in place of Stephen Strasburg, against the Marlins and Mets. He very much did not do it in his last...
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Game 118 lineups: Nats at Cubs

Game 118 lineups: Nats at Cubs
CHICAGO - We've seen no shortage of wacky and wild stuff this summer from a Nationals team that seems to vacillate from contender to pretender on a daily basis. So who knows which version we'll see tonight on Sunday Night Baseball. But we do know we're going to see a marquee matchup: Max Scherzer vs. Cole Hamels. Yes, it's Cy Young Award vs. World Series MVP winner, with the fate of this weekend series at stake. Scherzer is trying to make a case for his third straight (and fourth overall)...
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Orioles and Red Sox lineups

Orioles and Red Sox lineups
Joey Rickard stays in left field and bats leadoff today as the Orioles try to avoid a four-game sweep in their series against the Red Sox at Camden Yards. Trey Mancini is the designated hitter, batting fourth, and Cedric Mullins moves back down to ninth in the order. Mark Trumbo is out of the lineup. Tim Beckham returns to shortstop after sitting out Game 2 last night. The Red Sox are sitting outfielder Andrew Benintendi and shortstop Xander Bogaerts. For the Orioles Joey Rickard LF Jonathan...
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Game 117 lineups: Nats at Cubs (Rendon scratched)

Game 117 lineups: Nats at Cubs (Rendon scratched)
CHICAGO - Another day, another opportunity for the Nationals to change the script of a season that has pretty much followed one path. And not the path this team wanted to follow. After their latest agonizing loss, the Nats will try to reverse the trend this afternoon at Wrigley Field and take the second game of this weekend series. They'll be hoping Tanner Roark can continue his recent reversal of trends - 3-0, 0.82 ERA his last three starts - and do his part to help beat the Cubs. It's...
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Game 116 lineups: Nats at Cubs

Game 116 lineups: Nats at Cubs
CHICAGO - It's a warm, sunny day at the corner of Clark and Addison, but the wind's actually blowing in, a rarity at Wrigley Field given the other conditions. That could help keep the ball in the park, which of course benefits the pitchers in today's series opener between the Nationals and Cubs. Jeremy Hellickson is the kind of pitcher who looks for groundballs, so he won't complain about the conditions this afternoon. The right-hander still faces a stiff challenge, of course, in the Cubs...
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Orioles and Rays lineups

Orioles and Rays lineups
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Jonathan Villar leads off again tonight as the Orioles try to even the series with the Rays. Danny Valencia makes another start in right field Andrew Cashner is making his third start against the Rays this season. He allowed five runs and 11 hits in five innings at Tropicana Field, and two runs and five hits in six innings at Camden Yards. Cashner followed the second outing by lasting only 1 2/3 innings in Texas and surrendering 10 runs and seven hits, with three...
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Game 113 lineups: Nats vs. Braves

Game 113 lineups: Nats vs. Braves
And we're back for the nightcap of today's doubleheader. The Nationals did what they needed to in the opener, riding five strong innings from Jefry Rodriguez and a pair of four-run rallies to an 8-3 victory that moved them to within five games of the Phillies and 3 1/2 games of the Braves. There's still an opportunity to either gain or lose ground the rest of the evening, with Philadelphia playing late at Arizona. The Nats have to like the fact they've got Max Scherzer on the mound tonight,...
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Orioles and Rays lineups

Orioles and Rays lineups
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Jonathan Villar is leading off tonight for the Orioles, who open a three-game series against the Rays at Tropicana Field, and Chris Davis returns to the lineup after sitting out the last two games in Texas. Jace Peterson is in right field. Mark Trumbo is batting fourth as the designated hitter. Caleb Joseph is catching. The Orioles are leading the American League in hitting with a .300 average (160-for-533) and slugging percentage (.499) since the All-Star break. They've...
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Game 112 lineups: Nats vs. Braves (Holland signed)

Game 112 lineups: Nats vs. Braves (Holland signed)
Who's ready for a long - and important - day and night of baseball? The Nationals better hope they are. They enter the day 5 1/2 games behind the Phillies, four games behind the Braves. By night's end, they could be anywhere from four to seven games behind Philadelphia, two to six games behind Atlanta. So, yeah, it's a big day. It all gets started with the opener of this day-night doubleheader, with Jefry Rodriguez taking the mound for the Nats. It'll be the right-hander's sixth career...
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Orioles and Rangers lineups

Orioles and Rangers lineups
Adam Jones and Chris Davis are both out of the starting lineup today as the Orioles try to avoid a four-game sweep in Texas. Joey Rickard takes Jones' customary position in center field. Trey Mancini is playing first base again today. Jace Peterson is leading off and starts in left field. Jonathan Villar, who has been batting in the leadoff slot since he came over from the Brewers in the Jonathan Schoop trade, bats third today. Mark Trumbo is in right field, while Danny Valencia takes a turn...
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Game 111 lineups: Nats vs. Reds

Game 111 lineups: Nats vs. Reds
After a long day and night at the ballpark on Saturday, the Nationals return to the ballpark today for what amounts to a pretty big series finale with the Reds. Obviously, every game is big at this point, but consider that the Nats need to win today to win the series. And carry some positive momentum into their critical upcoming four-games-in-three-days series with the Braves. Which leads into a seven-game road trip to Chicago and St. Louis. So, yeah, a win today would help a lot of things....
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Orioles and Rangers lineups

Orioles and Rangers lineups
Jonathan Villar is batting leadoff again tonight after collecting two hits in his Orioles debut. Tim Beckham is again slotted second in the order. Renato Núñez is at third base, Jace Peterson is in right field and Caleb Joseph is catching. David Hess is back in the rotation as Kevin Gausman's replacement and makes his first start since June 29. He pitched twice in relief last month, allowing two runs in two innings on July 4 in Philadelphia and tossing a scoreless inning July 28 against...
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Game 109 lineups: Nats vs. Reds

Game 109 lineups: Nats vs. Reds
The Nationals haven't enjoyed a four-game winning streak since the final week of May, when they managed to sweep the Marlins and Orioles in successive road series. More than two months later, they finally have a chance tonight to put "W4" in the "Streak" column of the standings. It'll be Gio Gonzalez on the mound. He's coming off a strong start in Miami but still is seeking his first win since May 28 over Baltimore (during the aforementioned winning streak). The lefty did beat the Reds...
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Game 108 lineups: Nats vs. Reds

Game 108 lineups: Nats vs. Reds
It is pouring at this moment on South Capitol Street, and there is rain in the forecast at various points throughout the remainder of the afternoon and evening. What that means for tonight's series opener against the Reds ... we just don't know yet. Stay tuned. As always, when we know, you'll know. The Nationals would very much like to play, trying to sustain some positive (on-field) momentum from their two-game sweep of the Mets and sending Max Scherzer to the mound. That's a nice...
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Game 106 lineups: Nats vs. Mets

Game 106 lineups: Nats vs. Mets
With all the attention placed on the trade deadline, the Nationals want to make sure they do not divert from their most important mission this week: accumulate wins and find a way to earn series victories against the Mets and the Reds at home. The two-game series against New York features a night game tonight and a 12:05 p.m. game Wednesday. The Nats also need to end a two-game losing streak. Right-hander Tanner Roark (4-12, 4.55 ERA), is looking to build off his best start of the season, eight...
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Game 105 lineups: Nats at Marlins (updated)

Game 105 lineups: Nats at Marlins (updated)
MIAMI - Is it actually possible that the fate of the Nationals' season comes down to one game on July 29 at Marlins Park? If they win today's series finale, they'll reach the trade deadline with a winning record and be either five or six games back in the division. If they lose, they'll reach the trade deadline with a losing record and be either six or seven games back in the division. In reality, that's not a significant difference. In the perception of the people who must decide whether...
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Game 104 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 104 lineups: Nats at Marlins
MIAMI - Three wins in a row is nice. Four in a row would be nicer for a Nationals club that flat-out owns the Marlins right now. The Nats are 8-1 against them this season, 16-1 over the last calendar year. And they've still got 10 more games to play vs. Miami in 2018. Gio Gonzalez has been a part of that ownage. The Miami native went 4-0 with a 1.59 ERA against the Marlins last season and allowed two runs in five innings in his lone appearance against them so far this year. It's been said...
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Game 103 lineups: Nats at Marlins

Game 103 lineups: Nats at Marlins
MIAMI - The last time the Nationals won three in a row, the opponent was the Marlins. This was three weeks ago in D.C., a streak that began with a record-breaking comeback from nine runs down. Miami's starting pitcher that evening: Pablo López, who is starting tonight's game as well. The Nats actually didn't get off to a good start that evening against López, who faced the minimum through his first three innings. Then they finally got to the young right-hander in the fourth and fifth,...
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