The Nationals will try to avoid the sweep today in St. Louis, sending right-hander Doug Fister to the mound. Fister is 5-0 with a 1.95 ERA in his last five starts.
He'll have a markedly different alignment supporting him, starting with third baseman-turned-left fielder Ryan Zimmerman, who is making his first career start at first base and batting cleanup. With left-hander Jaime Garcia pitching for the Cardinals, lefty swinging Adam LaRoche gets a day off.
The Nationals gave Zimmerman regular...
ST. LOUIS - Jordan Zimmermann has never beaten the Cardinals, going 0-4 with a 7.03 ERA in seven career starts against the boys from St. Louis.
Today, he looks to change that and to also continue his recent strong stretch, which has seen him throw 18 straight scoreless innings.
The Cardinals will give the ball to Lance Lynn today. Lynn held the Nationals to one run over 5 2/3 innings in a win back in mid-April.
For the Nationals
CF Denard Span
3B Anthony Rendon
RF Jayson Werth
1B Adam...
Manny Machado is batting seventh again tonight for the Orioles, hoping to break an 0-for-18 slump.
Delmon Young is batting second and serving as the designated hitter. Caleb Joseph is behind the plate.
For the Orioles
Nick Markakis RF
Delmon Young DH
Adam Jones CF
Chris Davis 1B
Nelson Cruz LF
J.J. Hardy SS
Manny Machado 3B
Jonathan Schoop 2B
Caleb Joseph C
Kevin Gausman RHP
For the Blue Jays
Jose Reyes SS
Melky Cabrera LF
Jose Bautista RF
Edwin Encarnacion 1B
Adam Lind DH
Brett Lawrie...
SAN DIEGO - Manager Matt Williams had been hoping to give Ian Desmond and Jayson Werth a day off for nearly two weeks now. He just needed to find the right time.
Yesterday, with the Nationals having won four of their last five, Williams sat Desmond for the first time all season.
Today, with the Nats coming off a sweep of the Phillies and facing Padres righty Tyson Ross, Williams will rest Werth and put the left-handed-hitting Nate McLouth in right field.
Here's tonight's Nats lineup in...
Not a bad pitching matchup for us tonight here at Nationals Park, as Stephen Strasburg will oppose Phillies righty A.J. Burnett.
Strasburg hasn't allowed an earned run in his last 21 innings against the Phillies.
He went 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA in two home starts against the Phils last season.
Ryan Zimmerman is making his second big league start in left field tonight and again hitting fifth. The Nationals' lineup from 1-8 looks exactly as it did yesterday. So does the Phillies', in fact.
For...
ARLINGTON, Texas - Nelson Cruz is serving as the Orioles' designated hitter again tonight against the Rangers. David Lough is in left field.
Caleb Joseph gets another start behind the plate after going 2-for-4 with a tie-breaking double.
For the Orioles
Nick Markakis RF
Manny Machado 3B
Nelson Cruz DH
Adam Jones CF
Chris Davis 1B
J.J. Hardy SS
Jonathan Schoop 2B
David Lough LF
Caleb Joseph C
Bud Norris RHP
For the Rangers
Shin-Soo Choo LF
Luis Sardinas SS
Mitch Moreland 1B
Adrian Beltre...
The Nationals have scored 19 runs in the first two games of their series against the Rangers and send right-hander Tanner Roark to the mound in search of an interleague sweep this afternoon.
But it won't be easy. Texas ace Yu Darvish is 4-2 with a 2.35 ERA and brings so many pitches to the table that it took Nats manager Matt Williams about 30 seconds to list all all of them in a press conference yesterday.
Of course, Roark is pretty solid, too. The 3-3 record and 3.47 ERA may look pretty...
For the second time in three days, Matt Williams' lineup has Kevin Frandsen playing second base, with Danny Espinosa on the bench.
Frandsen gets the start today as the Nationals take on Marlins right-hander Henderson Alvarez. The switch-hitting Espinosa would typically be a better option against a righty starter, but Espinosa is now 0-for-his-last-13 with eight strikeouts and is hitting .123 with 34 strikeouts in 74 at-bats this month.
Williams pinch-hit Frandsen for Espinosa in the ninth...
The Nationals hope to build off yesterday's win in Pittsburgh now that they're back home, and they'll send Tanner Roark to the mound in this afternoon's Memorial Day contest.
The Nats welcome the Marlins to town, who are handing the ball to righty Nathan Eovaldi.
For the MarlinsLF Christian Yelich2B Derek Dietrich RF Giancarlo Stanton 3B Casey McGehee 1B Garrett Jones C Jarrod Saltalamacchia CF Pablo Ozuna SS Adeiny Hechavarria RHP Nathan Eovaldi
For the Nats CF Denard Span 3B Anthony...
Adam LaRoche is back from the left quad injury that landed him on the 15-day disabled list, and he'll go right into the Nationals lineup in his customary spots at first base and fourth in the batting order.
For a team that's dropped a season-high four straight games, an infusion of offense is a welcome development.
To make room for LaRoche on the 25-man roster, infielder Zach Walters was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. The Nats will keep both Tyler Moore and Greg Dobbs, deciding their bench...
There's something about the prospect of Stephen Strasburg facing the Pittsburgh Pirates that gets Nationals fans downright giddy.
Who could forget the hard-throwing right-hander's uber-hyped major league debut on June 8, 2010, when Strasburg fanned 14 Pirates in front of a sellout "Strasmas" crowd at Nationals Park. Yep, that 14-strikeout performance in his first big league game still stands as Straburg's career high in strikeouts.
Who better to turn to when you've lost three straight and...
PITTSBURGH - Matt Williams is shaking up his lineup a bit a day after the Nationals put up just one run in a 3-1 loss to the Pirates.
Danny Espinosa and Tyler Moore are out of the starting lineup tonight, with Zach Walters getting the start at third base and Greg Dobbs in there at first.
Jordan Zimmermann will toe the rubber for the Nats, opposed by righty Charlie Morton.
For the Nats CF Denard Span 2B Anthony Rendon RF Jayson Werth C Wilson Ramos SS Ian Desmond 1B Greg Dobbs 3B Zach...
The Orioles just posted their lineup for tonight's game against the Indians at Camden Yards, and Ryan Flaherty is starting at third base. Manny Machado, who exited last night's game in the 11th inning with tightness in his right groin, is listed among the reserves.
Delmon Young is serving as the designated hitter.
The Orioles haven't announced a roster move. Still waiting on that one.
For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Jonathan Schoop 2B Adam Jones CF Chris Davis 1B Nelson Cruz LF J.J. Hardy...
Kevin Frandsen will play left field and Tyler Moore will be at first base for the Nationals in tonight's game against the Reds.
Right-hander Doug Fister makes his Nationals Park debut tonight and gets a stern test in going up against Reds righty Johnny Cueto, who owns a 4-2 record and a 1.25 ERA.
For the RedsCF Billy HamiltonRF Skip Schumaker2B Brandon Phillips1B Todd FrazierC Brayan PenaLF Chris HeiseySS Zack Cozart3B Ramon SantiagoRHP Johnny Cueto
For the NationalsCF Denard Span3B Anthony...
After getting 14 plate appearances as a pinch-hitter this season between the Marlins and Nationals, Greg Dobbs is in a starting lineup for the first time in 2014.
The veteran utilityman will play first base for manager Matt Williams tonight. Dobbs has gone 2-for-14 this season, but singled up the middle on Friday in his first at-bat with the Nats.
The Reds will send right-hander Mike Leake to the mound, while the Nats will go with Stephen Strasburg in the opener of this three-game set.
For the...
David Lough is getting another start in left field tonight and Ryan Flaherty is starting at second base, as the Orioles and Royals play the second game of a four-game series at Kauffman Stadium.
Nelson Cruz is serving as the designated hitter again after belting his team-leading 12th home run last night, a two-run shot that keyed the Orioles' 2-1 win.
For the Orioles Nick Markakis RF Manny Machado 3B Adam Jones CF Chris Davis 1B Nelson Cruz DH Steve Clevenger C J.J. Hardy SS Ryan Flaherty 2B...
With left-hander Jonathon Neise on the mound for the Mets, Scott Hairston will return to left field for tonight's opener of a three-game series at Nationals Park.
Right-hander Tanner Roark starts for the Nationals in the 7:05 p.m.
For the Mets
LF Eric Young Jr.2B Daniel Murphy3B David WrightCF Curtis GrandersonRF Bobby Abreu1B Lucas DudaC Anthony ReckerSS Ruben TejadaLHP Jonathon Niese
For the Nationals
CF Denard Span3B Anthony RendonRF Jayson WerthC Wilson RamosSS Ian DesmondLF Scott...
PHOENIX - The Nationals face veteran right-hander Bronson Arroyo tonight here at Chase Field in the second game of this three-game set against the Diamondbacks.
Manager Matt Williams is going with Kevin Frandsen in left field today, this after Frandsen slugged a game-winning homer in the top of the ninth last night.
Stephen Strasburg makes his ninth start this season, looking to improve upon his 3-2 record and 3.42 ERA.
Arroyo is also 3-2 this season, but sports a 4.89 ERA.
He started the...
Looking to stack his lineup with right-handers tonight, Orioles manager Buck Showalter decided to start Steve Pearce as his designated hitter and put Caleb Joseph behind the plate.
The DH choice came down to Pearce or Delmon Young.
For the Orioles
Nick Markakis RF
Manny Machado 3B
Adam Jones CF
Chris Davis 1B
Nelson Cruz LF
J.J. Hardy SS
Steve Pearce DH
Jonathan Schoop 2B
Caleb Joseph C
Ubaldo Jimenez RHP
For the Tigers
Ian Kinsler 2B
Torii Hunter RF
Miguel Cabrera DH
Victor Martinez...
Scott Hairston is in the Nationals lineup tonight, making his first start since coming off the 15-day disabled list yesterday after missing time with a strained left oblique. He will bat fifth and play left field.
Right-hander Blake Treinen will make his first start for the Nationals tonight, opposing Dodgers lefty Clayton Kershaw, the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner.
Here's the Nationals lineup:
CF Denard Span3B Anthony RendonRF Jayson Werth1B Adam LaRocheLF Scott HairstonSS...