After a successful 5-4 road trip, the Nationals have returned home to begin a nine-game homestand, starting with four games this weekend against the Marlins.

A team they have struggled to beat since the start of last season, the Nationals finally won a series against the Fish, taking two of three against their division rivals in Miami last weekend. While the Nats have been winning over the last two months (29-19 in their last 47 games), the Marlins have been falling down the standings by dipping below .500 for the first time since May with a loss to the Rays last night.

Joan Adon will get his second start against the Marlins in less than a week. He impressed Friday by completing six shutout innings with no walks and three hits while earning just his third major league win. The young right-hander will try to reverse his fortunes at home tonight: He has a 10.29 ERA over two starts at Nationals Park compared to a 2.25 ERA in his two road starts.

Braxton Garrett will also get his second chance at the Nationals in less than a week, as he was Adon’s opposition last week in Miami. The left-hander turned in a quality start with three runs over six innings, but that was enough to charge him with the loss. He tossed six innings of one-run ball with eight strikeouts here back in June.

There was a pregame roster move to report: The Nationals placed MacKenzie Gore on the bereavement list and recalled Joe La Sorsa to the active roster. Gore was possibly in line to start Sunday if the Nats decided to give Josiah Gray extra rest after his bullpen session tomorrow. If not Gore nor Gray for Sunday, they could use a bullpen game instead, especially with rosters expanding to 28 players tomorrow.

TORONTO – It’s a dreary Wednesday here north of the border, so the roof at Rogers Centre will probably be closed for the first time this series as the Nationals and Blue Jays face off one more time. A win today for the Nats would incredibly make it six consecutive series won, eight of their last nine.

And if it’s a matinee series finale, that means Patrick Corbin is pitching, a product of the six-man rotation that has been used for several weeks now. Not that Corbin has been bothered by it. Quite the contrary, he’s been quite good this month, going 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA, the Nats winning three of his four starts. And the left-hander continues to pitch well against American League foes, going 4-0 with a 1.73 ERA against the Mariners, Rangers, Red Sox and Yankees this summer.

After getting a pair of big home runs Tuesday night from Carter Kieboom and Keibert Ruiz, the Nationals will try to keep the offense going today against Chris Bassitt, the former Athletics and Mets right-hander who enters 12-7 with a 4.00 ERA, having surrendered five homers over his last 24 2/3 innings.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Where: Rogers Centre
Gametime: 3:07 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Indoors

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
RF Lane Thomas
1B Joey Meneses
DH Keibert Ruiz
3B Carter Kieboom
LF Jake Alu
3B Ildemaro Vargas
C Riley Adams
CF Jacob Young

The Orioles can exceed last year’s win total of 83 with a victory today over the White Sox, in a game that concludes their homestand. They also can register their ninth sweep.

Adley Rutschman is on the bench this afternoon. Gunnar Henderson is leading off and playing third base.

Adam Frazier is in left field, with Austin Hays also working in a reserve role. Jordan Westburg is the second baseman.

Kyle Gibson is seeking his team-leading 14^th win, which also would be a career high. He has 14 quality starts, and he worked eight innings against the Blue Jays in his last outing.

Yoán Moncada is 8-for-22 with three doubles against Gibson. Tim Anderson is 7-for-22 with a double and home run.

TORONTO – The Nationals have won five series in a row. They had also won three series openers in a row before dropping Monday night’s game to the Blue Jays. And they haven’t lost three games in a row since early July, when they were swept in a four-game series by the Reds and then lost the following day to the Rangers before embarking on this current 27-17 run.

So this has surprisingly become unfamiliar territory for the Nats, looking to bounce back and recapture control of a series. They’ll attempt to do that tonight, looking to take an early lead on José Berríos and then get a quality start out of MacKenzie Gore.

Gore was not good in his last outing, surrendering a pair of homers (including a grand slam) to Aaron Judge at Yankee Stadium and departing after 80 pitches in four innings. He was hurt by his defense that night, but he didn’t pick up his teammates when he had the chance. And he expects more of himself.

Though they needed to use four relievers to cover six innings Monday, the Nationals bullpen should be in decent shape if Gore can go at least five innings, preferably six. Kyle Finnegan, Hunter Harvey and Mason Thompson are all fresh, with Finnegan having not pitched since Saturday and Harvey having been off since Friday. 

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Where: Rogers Centre
Gametime: 7:07 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 69 degrees, wind 8 mph out to center field

Ryan O’Hearn is in right field again tonight, as the Orioles continue their series against the White Sox.

Gunnar Henderson is the shortstop and Adam Frazier is playing second base. Jordan Westburg stays on the bench.

Austin Hays returns to left field.

Anthony Santander, serving as designated hitter, is the first Orioles switch-hitter with at least 25 home runs in consecutive seasons since Eddie Murray in 1987-88.

Henderson is one stolen base shy of becoming the first rookie in team history and 20th in major league history with at least 20 doubles, five triples, 20 homers and 10 steals in a season.

TORONTO – Hello from Rogers Centre, up here north of the border. The Nationals are making their first trip to Canada since 2018, having technically played road games against the Blue Jays in both 2020 and 2021 even though both series were played at alternate sites due to COVID travel restrictions (2020 at Nationals Park, 2021 in Dunedin, Fla.).

This is the final leg of a four-city trip for the Nats that began eight long days ago in Williamsport, Pa., then continued to New York and Miami. They’ve gone 5-2 so far, so even if they got swept here they’d still head home with a .500 record. Not that anyone wants that to be the outcome.

You would think the Nationals will need to score a few more runs than they did in Miami, because Toronto’s lineup is more potent. The Nats have Keibert Ruiz back in the lineup, batting cleanup and catching for the first time since Wednesday at Yankee Stadium. They’ve also got three catchers on the roster for the first time this season, officially promoting Drew Millas from Triple-A Rochester.

Josiah Gray gets the start, hoping for similar success to that he had at Yankee Stadium (one run, one hit) while being a bit more efficient (five walks). Gray will need to avoid hard contact, because the ball flies here at Rogers Centre.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Where: Rogers Centre
Gametime: 7:07 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 68 degrees, wind 3 mph out to left field

MIAMI – Remember that time earlier this year when the Nationals were searching for their first series sweep in over two years to break the longest major league streak without one?

Well, here they are now in search of their fourth series sweep since the All-Star break. Oh, and have we mentioned the fact that the Nats are only four games behind these Marlins in the National League East and only seven games back from a Wild Card spot?

Trevor Williams will lead the charge as he looks to follow up one of his best starts of the season. He pitched six shutout innings of two-hit ball against the Phillies in Sunday’s Little League Classic. He’s 0-1 with a 6.97 ERA and 1.548 WHIP in two starts against the Marlins this year, including giving up three runs with five strikeouts over six innings in a start here in May.

Right-hander JT Chargois will start a bullpen game for the Fish. He’s 1-0 with a 3.56 ERA and 1.154 WHIP in 32 appearances this year. After pitching a scoreless ninth inning Friday, he has four shutout outings against the Nats in his career.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at MIAMI MARLINS
Where: loanDepot Park
Gametime: 1:40 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Indoors

MIAMI – The Nationals finally got the monkey that is the Marlins off their backs last night. The 7-4 victory was their first against the Fish this year, and first in Miami since last season.

Now they can focus on playing ball and winning a series.

Jake Irvin will look to make it three straight strong starts when he takes the hill this afternoon for the 20th outing of his rookie season. He’s allowed just two runs in 12 ⅔ innings over his last two starts against the Athletics and Phillies. At 3-5 with a 4.47 ERA and 1.397 WHIP on the year, the right-hander held the Marlins to one run in five innings during a home start on June 17.

Electric right-hander Eury Pérez makes his 15th start of his rookie season, where he has gone 5-4 with a 2.91 ERA and 1.074 WHIP. He pitched six shutout innings with 10 strikeouts his last time out against the Dodgers, and held the Nationals to one run over five innings with six strikeouts in his second career start in May.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at MIAMI MARLINS
Where: loanDepot Park
Gametime: 4:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Indoors

James McCann is catching tonight and Ryan McKenna is in center field for the start of a three-game series against the Rockies.

Anthony Santander, with three home runs in two nights, is in right field. Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter.

Jordan Westburg is playing second base.

Opponents are batting .163 against Cole Irvin this month in five appearances.

The Orioles need two victories to clinch their first back-to-back .500 or better seasons since 2015-16.

MIAMI – Hello from outside downtown Miami, where the Nationals continue their inconvenient road trip up and down the North American East Coast. After starting north to Williamsport and New York, they headed to South Beach before going back north of the border to Toronto.

Rack up those miles.

The Nats have been playing great ball lately, winning nine of their last 12 games. But now they return to a place where they haven’t won a whole lot to face a team they have yet to beat this season. The Nats are 0-6 against the Marlins this year, including going 0-3 here in May. They are 4-21 against the Fish dating back to last year and are 2-10 at loanDepot Park since the beginning of last season.

Joan Adon will make his fourth start since rejoining the Nats rotation. He’s 1-0 with a 7.62 ERA and 1.154 WHIP over his last three. Amazingly though, the Nationals have won all three of those starts despite some rough performances over his last two. Adon is 0-2 with a 10.57 ERA and 1.826 WHIP in two career starts against the Marlins, both of which have come in Miami.

Left-hander Braxton Garrett starts for the home squad. He’s 7-4 with a 3.94 ERA and 1.172 in 25 games (24 starts) this season. The 26-year-old has been pitching well lately to the tune of a 2.57 ERA over his last five starts. Garrett gave up just one and four hits over six innings while striking out eight in a win over the Nats in D.C. back in June.

NEW YORK – After a difficult Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium, the Nationals are right back here for their series finale, hoping there’s at least some encouraging news about Stone Garrett and focused on trying to win the rubber game of the series.

Garrett was officially placed on the 10-day injured list with a fractured left fibula, so the Nationals replaced him on the active roster with infielder Jeter Downs, who was recalled from Triple-A Rochester only three days after he was sent down to allow Carter Kieboom to remain here in the big leagues. That does leave them with only three true outfielders (Lane Thomas, Alex Call, Blake Rutherford) but Ildemaro Vargas, Jake Alu, Michael Chavis and even Downs can play out there if needed.

The Nats need to do more at the plate than they’ve done so far this week. Since that four-run outburst in the first inning in Williamsport on Sunday night, they’ve scored a total of three runs, each of those via solo homers. Some more sustained offense would be a big help, especially on a day when the Yankees are throwing a bullpen game, with right-hander Michael King set to pitch first.

Patrick Corbin gets the start for the Nationals, facing another American League team. He’s been notably better in interleague games this season, going 6-3 with a 4.03 ERA. And he’s been great in his last three such starts, going 3-0 with an 0.90 ERA against the Mariners, Rangers and Red Sox. It’ll be fascinating to see if that trend continues today against what had been an awfully weak Yankees lineup before Wednesday night’s nine-run explosion.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at NEW YORK YANKEES
Where: Yankee Stadium
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Chance of rain, 71 degrees, wind 9 mph out to left field

NEW YORK – It’s been two years since the Nationals last won eight of 10 games. It’s been way longer since the Yankees last lost nine in a row. And way longer than that since they lost 10 in a row.

Tuesday night’s 2-1 victory secured the Nats’ first 8-2 stretch since June 2021. It also secured the Yankees’ first nine-game losing streak since 1982. One more tonight and the mighty Bronx Bombers would have their first 10-game losing streak since (gulp) 1913. (For what it’s worth, the Nationals haven’t lost 10 in a row since 2008, which isn’t a bad streak in itself, all things considered.)

MacKenzie Gore will try to do what Josiah Gray did Tuesday night and keep the Yankees from scoring runs in bunches. Gore was outstanding his last time out, shutting out the Red Sox on one hit over 6 1/3 innings before a blister opened up on his left middle finger and forced him from the game. The Nats hope that won’t be an issue again tonight but will keep an eye on it, for sure.

Davey Martinez would probably like more than two runs (each via solo homer) tonight, even though that was barely enough offense to win Tuesday. His lineup will be facing Luis Severino, who enters an astonishing 2-8 with a 7.98 ERA and 1.88 WHIP.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK YANKEES
Where: Yankee Stadium
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 74 degrees, wind 7 mph out to left field

The Orioles are back home tonight and trying to improve their record to 28-13 in series openers.

Anthony Santander is out of the lineup again with lower-back soreness. Ryan McKenna is in right field.

Gunnar Henderson is batting third. Austin Hays is the cleanup hitter.

James McCann is catching, with Adley Rutschman serving as designated hitter.

Ryan Mountcastle has reached base in 26 consecutive games. He went 11-for-13 against the Blue Jays during a four-game series in Toronto.

NEW YORK – After an eventful day in Williamsport and then an eventful off-day in New York, the Nationals get back to work tonight with the opener of a three-city trip that will take them up and down the East Coast and even across international borders.

It begins tonight at Yankee Stadium, where the home team is in a freefall, having lost eight in a row, falling four games under .500 and 9 1/2 games out of the American League wild card race. Yes, the Nats are closer to a playoff berth (eight games) than the Yankees. Strange times, indeed.

Davey Martinez (whose new two-year contract was officially announced today) has a lineup loaded with eight right-handed bats, including Carter Kieboom, who makes his first appearance in a big league game since 2021. He’s also got both Keibert Ruiz and Riley Adams in the lineup together, something we’re seeing most of the time now when the Nats are facing a lefty like Carlos Rodón.

Josiah Gray, meanwhile, makes his first career start at Yankee Stadium, just a stone’s throw away from his childhood home in New Rochelle. The young right-hander has been teetering a bit in recent outings. He’ll surely be motivated tonight, but the Nationals need quality from him.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK YANKEES
Where: Yankee Stadium
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 77 degrees, wind 7 mph in from left field

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Hello from Muncy Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field, the longtime home of the minor league Williamsport Crosscutters and home tonight of the MLB Little League Classic between the Nationals and Phillies.

For the first time in club history, the Nats are playing in a neutral-site location, selected last year to participate in the sixth edition of the Little League Classic. They are still considered the home team, so they’ll bat last just like the game was being played back in D.C.

It’s already been a long and exciting day, with both teams arriving at the local airport to awaiting kids and media members, then spending a couple hours at the actual Little League World Series just a few miles away from here. Much of tonight’s very small crowd will be comprised of those Little Leaguers, so it should make for a very different environment than any of these big leaguers are used to.

As for the actual game, the Nationals are looking to bounce back from Saturday’s game, which they led 3-0 in the seventh and saw fall apart before their eyes as an overworked bullpen finally crumbled. The good news: All the top relievers should be available to pitch tonight if the situation calls for it.

To get there, they’ll first need a better start out of Trevor Williams, who has struggled big-time of late. The right-hander gave up five runs via three homers and threw 93 pitches in 4 1/3 innings against the Athletics his last time out. Prior to that, he gave up six runs via three homers and threw 103 pitches in 4 2/3 innings against the same Phillies lineup he’ll face tonight.

The Nationals faced Michael Lorenzen nine days ago, and it didn’t exactly go so well for them. Like, they didn’t even record a hit off the Phillies right-hander, who became the first pitcher to ever throw a no-hitter against the Nats since they arrived in D.C.

So wouldn’t you know Lorenzen’s next start would just so happen to come tonight against the same team he no-hit in Philly? Yes, after getting some extra rest, Lorenzen returns tonight and will attempt to do what only Johnny Vander Meer has ever done in major league history. The chances of him doing it again are awfully slim. Still, it would be nice if the Nationals could just get one early hit and not even let the thought of it creep into anyone’s head.

Joan Adon takes the mound for the Nats, and it will be interesting to see how the right-hander handles the situation. He departed his last start with leg cramps, something he also experienced at the end of his dominant start in Cincinnati, and Davey Martinez said they might try an old-school remedy in advance of this outing to combat the issue: pickle juice. We’ll see if it works.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 88 degrees, wind 10 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
CF Lane Thomas
DH Joey Meneses
C Keibert Ruiz
1B Dominic Smith
RF Stone Garrett
2B Jake Alu
3B Ildemaro Vargas
LF Blake Rutherford

The Nationals have already gone 4-1 on this homestand. They’ve got a chance to add to that today and reach a significant milepost for the season. Their next win will be No. 55, which would match their 2022 total. Yeah, there are still 40 games to go after today. That would be quite the accomplishment by mid-August.

It’s a couple of veteran left-handers who have seen better days on the mound against each other. Patrick Corbin enters with a 4.85 ERA and league-high 162 hits allowed, but he comes off a really weird start in Philadelphia in which he walked a career-high seven batters but allowed only one (unearned) run on one hit over five innings. He’ll need to be more around the strike zone today to have a chance against Boston.

Chris Sale, meanwhile, enters with a 4.52 ERA and only returned last week from a two-month stint on the injured list. The 34-year-old was good in his return, though, holding the Tigers to two runs on one hit while striking out seven in 4 2/3 innings.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. BOSTON RED SOX
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 4:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 88 degrees, wind 10 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
1B Joey Meneses
DH Keibert Ruiz
LF Stone Garrett
C Riley Adams
2B Michael Chavis
3B Ildemaro Vargas
CF Alex Call
SS Jeter Downs

SAN DIEGO – Aaron Hicks is out of tonight’s lineup as the Orioles attempt to win their 24^th series.

Hicks didn’t play last night after leaving Monday’s game with back soreness.

Adley Rutschman is serving as the designated hitter. Gunnar Henderson is the cleanup hitter and third baseman. Jordan Westburg is playing second base.

Austin Hays is in left field. Hays homered last night in the ninth inning but is batting .192 since the break.

Ryan Mountcastle has reached base in 22 consecutive games, the longest Orioles streak since Trey Mancini’s 23 from Sept. 5, 2019 to April 2, 2021, and the longest in a single season since Mancini reached in the last 22 games in 2019.

SAN DIEGO – Aaron Hicks is starting in left field and batting eighth tonight after his reinstatement from the injured list earlier today.

Cedric Mullins is in center field and batting sixth. Austin Hays sits against Padres right-hander Yu Darvish.

Adley Rutschman stays in the leadoff spot, followed by shortstop Gunnar Henderson.

Jordan Westburg is playing second base and batting ninth.

Ryan Mountcastle, the designated hitter tonight, is slashing .418/.488/.672 with four home runs and 13 RBIs during his 20-game on-base streak.

Hello from Nationals Park. Yes, I’m back to work. In person. Many thanks to Bobby Blanco for jumping in to cover in my absence during what proved to be a very eventful week. And many thanks to all of you who offered well wishes while I was recovering from COVID.

The Nationals, as you know, are playing their best baseball of the year. Really, their best baseball in more than two years. They’ve gone 14-8 over the last 3 1/2 weeks, and today they have a chance at their third series sweep in that time, having already disposed of the Giants and Reds.

To do the same to the Athletics, they’ll need a bounce-back start from Trevor Williams, who was roughed up in Philadelphia on Tuesday to the tune of six runs and eight hits in only 4 2/3 innings. The home run has become Williams’ biggest problem; he enters today’s start having surrendered 25 of them this season, second-most in the National League.

The Nats lineup came through with two big hits during Saturday night’s win – Lane Thomas’ game-tying RBI single in the eighth, Keibert Ruiz’s walk-off homer in the ninth – but overall that group went 2-for-15 with runners in scoring position. That’s not usually a recipe for success. They’ll hope to convert in the clutch more this afternoon against A’s left-hander Ken Waldichuk, who enters with a 6.30 ERA and a whopping 5.2 walks issued per nine innings.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. OAKLAND ATHLETICS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 88 degrees, wind 11 mph left field to right field