JUPITER, Fla. – The first game of the spring is always a big event, everyone excited to get started and watch real baseball. Now, though, the grind begins.

The Nationals play their first road game this afternoon, making the short 15-minute drive north to Jupiter to face the Marlins. They’ll do so with a very different lineup from Saturday night’s opener.

Joey Meneses is the only returning starter, getting a chance to play first base after serving as designated hitter Saturday. James Wood, who homered off the bench, gets a chance to start in right field. And fellow prospect Trey Lipscomb also starts at second base, a nice opportunity for him to show what he can do. Riley Adams will do the catching after Keibert Ruiz and Drew Millas worked Saturday night.

MacKenzie Gore makes the start for the Nats, hoping to complete his two innings in a much more efficient manner than Patrick Corbin did in the opener. As was the case Saturday, there will be another starter coming out of the bullpen today, with Jake Irvin following Gore and scheduled to pitch two innings himself. Kyle Finnegan and Hunter Harvey are among the relievers on tap.

And another note: Jen Pawol, hoping to become the first female umpire in MLB history, will be calling balls and strikes today after handling the bases Saturday night.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Welcome to the 2024 Grapefruit League season, everyone! The Nationals open exhibition play tonight with a home game against their spring complex co-habitants, the Astros, at the newly renamed CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. The facility, which first opened in 2017, is being rededicated tonight, with special guest Travis Scott (who founded CACTI hard seltzers, in addition to being a Grammy-winning rap artist) throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to Josiah Gray.

As for the game itself, the Nationals will be trotting out what could be their Opening Day lineup. The batting order could be switched around from this, but for now it’s a 3-4-5-6 of Joey Gallo, Joey Meneses, Jesse Winker and Keibert Ruiz. Interesting twist: Gallo is at first base, with Meneses serving as designated hitter after a winter spent talking about how he may be a more productive hitter when he’s also playing the field. Again, this is just one game, so don’t draw any conclusions until we have more lineups to consider.

All of those starters are scheduled to take one or two at-bats before departing. That means plenty of playing time for backups, and tonight that will include three top outfield prospects: Robert Hassell III in left field, Dylan Crews in center field, James Wood in right field. That will be fun to watch.

Patrick Corbin gets the start, scheduled for two innings and 35 pitches. And he’ll be followed by two more starters: Jackson Rutledge and Joan Adon, each also scheduled for two innings and 35 pitches. Eventually, we’ll see a few relievers.

If you’re interested in watching tonight’s game, you can pick up the Astros’ TV broadcast on MLB.tv and tape-delayed at 10 p.m. on MLB Network. You can also listen to Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler on nationals.com.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Jackson Holliday is starting at second base this afternoon and batting seventh in the Orioles’ exhibition opener against the Red Sox at Ed Smith Stadium.

Jorge Mateo is the shortstop and serving as Holliday’s double play partner.

Anthony Santander is the designated hitter, Austin Hays is in left field and Cedric Mullins is in center. Ryan McKenna is playing right field.

Ryan Mountcastle isn’t in the lineup. Ryan O’Hearn gets the start at first base.

Adley Rutschman is catching Corbin Burnes.

ARLINGTON, Texas – A must-win Game 3 for the Orioles brings changes to their lineup against Rangers right-hander Nathan Eovaldi.

Ryan O’Hearn gets his first start, batting fifth and serving as designated hitter. Adam Frazier is playing second base and batting ninth.

Gunnar Henderson is leading off.

Cedric Mullins is batting seventh, followed by third baseman Jordan Westburg.

Dean Kremer gets the call over veteran Kyle Gibson. He’s posted a 3.59 ERA in his last 26 starts.

A rookie will try to pull the Orioles away from the brink of elimination in the American League Division Series.

Following their Game 1 loss to the Rangers, the Orioles are starting right-hander Grayson Rodriguez this afternoon at chilly Camden Yards. Rodriguez made his first major league appearance in Arlington on April 5, allowing two runs in five innings. He also made his last against the Rangers before being optioned, surrendering eight earned runs and nine total in 3 1/3 innings on May 26 in Baltimore.

“You know, that feels like it was a year ago, honestly,” he said yesterday of his debut. “But, you know, just kind of learning how to be a pitcher in the big leagues, how to go about each and every day, I think is the big thing.”

So is starting again against your hometown team.

“Watched them a lot as a kid, a lot of Rangers and Astros games,” he said. “Just being able to face a team like that is pretty special to me. It's something I've been dreaming of for a while.”

ATLANTA – The Nationals got their coveted 70th win of the season Friday night, and it took everything they had to get there. Davey Martinez used six relievers after pulling Trevor Williams in the fourth inning. Which means he may not have as many options tonight.

The problem: Joan Adon hasn’t exactly shown a propensity for pitching deep in games. The 25-year-old right-hander has reached the sixth inning in only three of his nine starts, and he’s taken the loss in his last three outings. If Adon can’t provide length tonight, Martinez may have no choice but to use the likes of Thaddeus Ward or Cory Abbott in a situation of consequence. We also could see Tanner Rainey make his season debut tonight.

The Nationals lineup exploded for 10 runs Friday night, blasting five homers to match a season high. That came against fill-in starter Allan Winans. Tonight, they face Spencer Strider, who seeks his 20th win and to get closer to the 300-strikeout mark in his final tune-up before the postseason. The Nats did score four runs in 5 2/3 innings against Strider last weekend, so it’s not necessarily a lost cause.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Truist Park
Gametime: 7:20 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 80 degrees, wind 3 mph in from left field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
RF Lane Thomas
DH Joey Meneses
C Keibert Ruiz
2B Luis García
1B Dominic Smith
3B Carter Kieboom
LF Jake Alu
CF Jacob Young

The Orioles are starting veteran Kyle Gibson on Saturday and remain undecided about Sunday, which would be Kyle Bradish under pre-clinching circumstances.

Uncharted territory for the franchise under the current regime.

“We’re still kind of playing with some things,” said manager Brandon Hyde.

Hyde isn’t ready to detail how the Orioles are handling their regular season finale or compensating for the extended break before Saturday’s Game 1 of the Division Series.

“It will be a lot of scheduled bullpen appearances for a lot of these guys,” Hyde said. “I didn’t want to schedule too much stuff, honestly, because I didn’t want to jinx anything. I wanted to make sure we clinched first. But now a lot of discussions are in place.”

BALTIMORE – Sure, the Nationals would love to win a game against the Orioles before season’s end. But first, they’d like to just score a run against them.

These two teams have played 27 innings against each other so far in 2023, and the Nats have yet to score in any of them. They’ve gone 0-3 by a combined score of 6-0, having twice been shut out 1-0, including Tuesday night here at Camden Yards. So perhaps tonight’s the night they finally see somebody in a curly W helmet safely cross the plate.

Patrick Corbin gets the ball for his final start of the season. The left-hander has been better this year, to be sure. But he still enters with a 5.13 ERA, 1.466 WHIP and league-leading 14 losses. In order to end his season with a sub-5.00 ERA, Corbin would need to either go seven innings allowing one earned run or five scoreless innings.

The Orioles, by the way, have a chance to clinch the American League East title tonight. They need to win and have the Rays lose to the Red Sox, so there will be plenty of scoreboard watching taking place at Camden Yards.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at BALTIMORE ORIOLES
Where: Camden Yards
Gametime: 6:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 68 degrees, wind 7 mph in from center field

BALTIMORE – Hello from Camden Yards, where we’ve got a rare late-September edition of the Battle of the Beltways. The stakes the next two nights are quite different for these teams, with the Nationals down to the final five games of their season and the Orioles trying to clinch their first division title since 2014. Their magic number is three, so it can’t happen tonight, but it could happen Wednesday night depending on what the Rays do against the Red Sox.

The Nats will try to do their part to prevent the celebration from happening while they’re in town, beginning tonight with Josiah Gray on the mound. The right-hander is coming off a strong outing against the White Sox, allowing one run over five innings. He enters with an ERA of exactly 4.00, so a good start tonight could help him wrap up the year with an ERA that begins with a three, which would be nice.

Kyle Bradish gets the ball for the Orioles, looking to lower his ERA under 3.00, which would be quite the accomplishment for the 27-year-old right-hander. Bradish faced the Nationals way back on April 19 in D.C., tossing six scoreless for his first win of the season.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at BALTIMORE ORIOLES
Where: Camden Yards
Gametime: 6:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Cloudy, 62 degrees, wind 10 mph in from center field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
RF Lane Thomas
C Keibert Ruiz
DH Joey Meneses
2B Luis García
1B Dominic Smith
3B Ildemaro Vargas
LF Jake Alu
CF Jacob Young

A 3-2 win in the opener of today’s doubleheader against the Braves allows the Nationals to enter the nightcap feeling a little less pressure on themselves. Nobody expects them to sweep the twinbill, but if they can somehow come out and play loose and steal another victory, how impressive would that be?

To pull it off, they’ll need to take down one of the most dominant pitchers in the majors in Spencer Strider. The young right-hander entered the day leading the National League in both wins (18) and strikeouts (270). He overwhelmed the Nationals back on April 1 with six innings of scoreless ball, but they did beat him last summer with five runs in four innings here on South Capitol Street.

Seven of the nine guys who started the opener are back in Davey Martinez’s lineup, the only changes coming at third base and behind the plate, with Ildemaro Vargas and Keibert Ruiz replacing Carter Kieboom and Drew Millas, respectively.

Joan Adon gets the start, six days after the right-hander labored against the White Sox, giving up five runs and nine hits in five-plus innings. Most of the bullpen should be available tonight, but Robert Garcia (who went two innings in the opener) most likely isn’t.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 6:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Rain ending, 65 degrees, wind 6 mph in from left field

CLEVELAND – Heston Kjerstad is the Orioles' designated hitter tonight and Aaron Hicks is starting in center field.

Cedric Mullins is on the bench.

Gunnar Henderson is the shortstop and stays atop the order. Jordan Westburg is playing second base and Ramón Urías is at third.

Tyler Wells is in the bullpen tonight after the Orioles recalled him from Triple-A Norfolk. His four-seam fastball averaged 92.5 mph in the majors this season but topped at 95.7 mph while he pitched in relief with the Tides.

The Orioles bullpen has registered a 3.65 ERA in the eighth inning and later since Félix Bautista’s last appearance on Aug. 25, when it was 2.99.

It’s overcast but dry here on South Capitol Street. It doesn’t appear that will be the case Saturday. Or possibly Sunday, either. In other words, the Nationals and Braves sure better get tonight’s game in.

Patrick Corbin will try to hold Atlanta’s potent lineup in check, no small task. The left-hander has been better of late, with back-to-back quality starts against the Pirates and Brewers that brought his ERA down to an even 5.00. This is a much stiffer challenge, though. Corbin faced the Braves once this season, way back on Opening Day. And though he was only charged with two earned runs, he allowed four runs total and needed 85 pitches to complete three innings. That won’t get it done tonight.

Charlie Morton is on the mound for the Braves, and though he’s been good overall in his age-39 season (3.66 ERA, 182 strikeouts in 162 1/3 innings), he was hit around by both the Marlins and Phillies his last two starts.

If you missed the news earlier, Sean Doolittle announced his retirement today. The popular reliever will be here at Nationals Park for a pregame press conference and will be recognized on the field before the game. If you’ve got tickets, you’ll want to be in your seats by 6:40 p.m., according to the team.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Rain approaching, 69 degrees, wind 13 mph in from center field

Well, this final stretch for the Nationals isn’t going to be easy as they are only two wins away from their first 70-win season since 2019. Their last nine games come against the teams with two best records in the major leagues: The Braves and the Orioles, both of whom still have a lot to play for over the season’s last week.

Entering this four-game series – the last to be played at Nationals Park this year – the Nats have fared a lot better against the Braves this year than they did in 2022. They are already 2-4 against Atlanta this year, not having faced them since early June. Last year, they went an abysmal 5-14 against the division champs.

Jake Irvin has been one of the Nats’ most consistent starters during his rookie year. He’ll make his 24th start tonight, bringing a 3-6 record and 4.34 ERA, which is the second-best in this rotation.

The Nats will face Max Fried for the first time since Opening Day in which the lefty allowed one run over 3 ⅓ innings before departing early with a hamstring injury. He has only made 12 starts since, but is 7-1 with a 2.64 ERA on the season.

The Braves have locked up their sixth straight National League East title, but their magic number to claim the No. 1 seed in the NL is at seven as the Dodgers host the Giants this weekend. Coming into the weekend with the best record in baseball, the Braves’ magic number to clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs is eight against the Orioles.

HOUSTON – Ryan Mountcastle remains out of the Orioles lineup for the seventh game in a row, as the first leg of the road trip concludes this afternoon.

Heston Kjerstad is receiving his third consecutive start, again serving as the designated hitter.

Gunnar Henderson is the shortstop, with Ramón Urías at third base. Adam Frazier is at second base, and Jordan Westburg is on the bench.

The club didn’t announce any roster moves this morning.

Kyle Bradish is 11-7 with a 3.12 ERA and 1.087 WHIP in 27 starts. He’s registered 16 quality starts.

Who knows what the final week-plus of the season has in store for the Nationals, but we do know this: Today is probably their last best shot at winning a series. A victory today over the White Sox would complete their 18th winning series of the year, six more than they won last year. That would be a nice improvement.

To pull it off, they need the good version of Josiah Gray to show up this afternoon. That’s the version the Nats got last week in Pittsburgh, when Gray struck out 10, didn’t issue a walk and allowed two runs over 6 1/3 innings. He still didn’t emerge with the win, though, and he actually hasn’t won a game since July 22. It would be nice to end that streak today.

The Nationals lineup needs to show more patience today than it showed Tuesday night, when everybody seemed to be swinging at the first pitch and making outs. Well, that can’t be the case today against Michael Kopech, who leads the American League in walks. Plain and simple, the Nats have to work the count today. There’s no excuse not to.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 76 degrees, wind 3 mph out to center field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
RF Lane Thomas
DH Joey Meneses
C Keibert Ruiz
1B Dominic Smith
2B Luis García
3B Ildemaro Vargas
LF Jake Alu
CF Jacob Young

HOUSTON - Aaron Hicks is out of tonight’s Orioles lineup after leaving last night’s game in the ninth inning with cramping in his hamstring. However, Hicks is walking without a limp today and said he should be available.

“I feel good today,” Hicks said.  “I can play today. I’m good to go. Just got to hydrate and get things going a little quicker than normal.”

Hicks slid into second base last night and felt the hamstring grab, but it became much worse after he was ready to run onto the field for the bottom of the ninth.

“Obviously, it was enough to where I couldn’t finish the inning,” he said.

“I feel amazing because the last thing you want to happen is for it to keep happening. Today, I feel really good. I’ve been hydrating a lot. So, I’ll be good to go if I have to come in later in the game.”

There are 11 games remaining on the Nationals’ 2023 schedule. Nine of those come against the teams with the two best records in baseball. Which makes these final two games against the White Sox kind of important if they want to stockpile a couple more wins and inch closer to the 70-win mark.

It didn’t happen Monday night, not even close as Mike Clevinger went the distance and didn’t allow a run until Dominic Smith’s solo homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth (which set off a silly benches-clearing argument). At this point, it’s probably too much to expect this Nats lineup to get red-hot, but it would sure be nice to get just a little bit more production.

Perhaps it will happen against José Ureña, who has had quite the interesting season. You may or may not remember he opened the season with the Rockies, then was released after going 0-4 with a 9.82 ERA in five starts, one of which saw the Nationals knock him out after 2 2/3 innings at Coors Field. The right-hander then signed a minor league deal with the Nats and proceeded to make 15 starts for Triple-A Rochester, going 1-3 with a 6.31 ERA. He was released in August, signed with the White Sox and now finds himself in their September rotation, going 0-2 with a 6.10 ERA in two starts.

Jackson Rutledge was a teammate of Ureña in Rochester and now faces him tonight in his second career start. Rutledge’s debut was kind of a nightmare, and he surely will be motivated to flip the script tonight and perhaps emerge with his first career win in his first career start in D.C.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 72 degrees, wind 6 mph in from left field

HOUSTON – John Means is making his second start tonight since returning from Tommy John surgery, as the Orioles begin their last road trip of the regular season in Houston.

Means faced the Cardinals on Tuesday and allowed three runs in five innings. The Astros and Orioles are the only teams that he’s never faced in the American League.

Means has a 1.99 ERA in 11 career starts against AL West opponents. His last road start in the West was the no-hitter in Seattle in 2021.

José Abreu is 3-for-7 with a double and home run against Means.

Ryan Mountcastle is out of the lineup for the fifth game in a row with left shoulder discomfort. Heston Kjerstad makes his second start, serving as designated hitter.

Two weeks from tonight, there will be no more Nationals baseball in 2023. So let’s soak in these last 12 games as much as we can.

Joan Adon will make his eighth start since joining the rotation as the sixth man in August. Over his first seven outings, he’s 2-2 with a 6.00 ERA, but the Nats are 5-2 in those games. He gave up four runs on eight hits and a career-high six walks last week in Pittsburgh. Adon has never faced the White Sox, but he is 0-1 with a 5.51 ERA in four interleague games, including three starts.

Mike Clevinger takes the mound for Chicago. One of the White Sox’s better starters, the veteran right-hander is 7-8 with a 3.61 ERA over his 21 starts this year. He has given up just two runs with 14 strikeouts in 13 innings over his last two starts against the Tigers and Royals. Clevinger is 1-1 with a 5.91 ERA in two career starts against the Nationals, including five innings of one-run ball here last year.

The Nationals have officially been eliminated from playoff contention. Although their elimination number is one in the National League Wild Card race, the best they can do is tie the Marlins for the last spot and Miami holds the head-to-head tiebreaker 11-2.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 72 degrees, wind 9 mph from left to right field

MILWAUKEE – The Nationals have lost 15 of their last 19 games. A win over the Marlins way back on Aug. 26 left them only eight games under .500, and talk of a 75-win season was legitimate. A loss today, however, would drop them to 20 games under .500, and all of a sudden a 70-win season is no longer a sure thing.

They can help their cause this afternoon with a victory over the Brewers to avoid a series sweep, but it’s a tall task against Brandon Woodruff. The right-hander missed the majority of the season with a shoulder injury, but he’s been dynamite since returning last month. In nine total starts, he’s 5-1 with a 1.93 ERA, and he hasn’t allowed a run in either of his last two outings. Good luck to the Nats lineup today.

And good luck to Patrick Corbin, who is going to have to provide some length after Trevor Williams lasted only two innings and Davey Martinez had to ask a whole lot out of his bullpen Saturday night. Corbin was solid in Pittsburgh to begin this road trip, allowing two runs over 6 2/3 innings while striking out eight. But that came on the heels of back-to-back ugly showings against the Blue Jays and Mets, so who knows which version of the left-hander will show up today.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at MILWAUKEE BREWERS
Where: American Family Field
Gametime: 2:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Indoors

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
RF Lane Thomas
DH Joey Meneses
1B Dominic Smith
3B Ildemaro Vargas
2B Luis García
C Drew Millas
LF Jake Alu
CF Jacob Young