DENVER – The Nationals lineup just scored 28 runs over the weekend in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park. How many will they score over the next three nights at Coors Field, the greatest hitter-friendly park in major league history? The Nats haven’t hit for much power all season, even in San Francisco. So the thin air may not help them as much as the huge outfield dimensions here might.  

Davey Martinez will hope he can keep Josh Bell, Yadiel Hernandez and Victor Robles hot. He’ll also hope Juan Soto, Nelson Cruz and Keibert Ruiz can get going and start contributing on a more consistent basis. They’ll face Rockies right-hander Germán Márquez, who enters with a 5.57 ERA but has enjoyed success against the two Nationals he’s faced the most in his career: Bell (1-for-18 with a homer) and César Hernández (1-for-11).

Erick Fedde gets the start for the Nats; he was effective last time out against the Marlins, allowing only two runs on three hits. But he lasted only 4 2/3 innings because his pitch count was a whopping 91. He’s got to figure out how to finish off hitters once he gets ahead in the count and avoid those long at-bats that keep killing him.

The Nationals announced they have returned from rehab assignment and reinstated Dee Strange-Gordon, optioned Lucius Fox to Triple-A Rochester and transferred Aníbal Sánchez to the 60-day injured list.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at COLORADO ROCKIES
Where: Coors Field
Gametime: 8:40 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 61 degrees, wind 10 mph in from left field

Trey Mancini returns to the Orioles lineup tonight as the designated hitter after missing three games with bruised ribs.

Tyler Nevin is the third baseman. Anthony Bemboom is catching.

Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann has allowed only two earned runs, though seven total, in 19 1/3 innings in his four starts. He’s struck out 21 batters.

Zimmermann faced the Twins on June 1, 2021 and allowed two runs with seven strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. Kyle Garlick homered.

Orioles starters have a 1.72 ERA at home. They’ve held opponents to two earned runs or fewer in 19 of 23 games this season.

Trey Mancini is out of the lineup tonight for a third consecutive game as the Orioles begin their four-game series against the Twins at Camden Yards.

Mancini bruised his ribs Friday night while making a catch in right field and slamming against the fence.

Tyler Nevin is batting fifth and serving as the designated hitter, following by second baseman Rougned Odor.

Austin Hays is in left field and Anthony Santander is in right. Jorge Mateo is the shortstop.

The bench is down to three players: Mancini, infielder Chris Owings and backup catcher Anthony Bemboom.

SAN FRANCISCO – It’s been a strange series so far, with the Nationals blowing out the Giants on Friday night and then getting blown out Saturday afternoon. The end result of all that? They still have a chance to win the weekend series today if they can put everything together for nine innings.

Josiah Gray gets the ball for his fifth start of the season. His last three have been pretty good, the only issue the four runs he gave up to the Marlins last time out, though he offset that with 10 strikeouts. As has too often been the case for the young right-hander, the home run was killer: Joey Wendle got him for a three-run blast. Perhaps today, Gray will be able to keep the ball inside spacious Oracle Park.

The Nationals will try to keep their recent hitting surge going against Alex Cobb, who is coming off the injured list from a strained adductor muscle. The right-hander made two starts before suffering that injury, allowing five earned runs in 9 1/3 innings but striking out 14.

Most of the regulars are playing today, except for Alcides Escobar, who gets the day off after a world of struggles at shortstop on Saturday. It’ll be Lucius Fox getting the start instead, the rookie still seeking his first career hit. He enters the day 0-for-20.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
Where: Oracle Park
Gametime: 4:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly sunny, 64 degrees, wind 16 mph out to center field

The Orioles conclude the first of three series on the homestand this afternoon with Jordan Lyles starting and Trey Mancini on the bench.

Mancini wasn’t available last night after bruising his ribs Friday while making a catch in right field and slamming into the wall. He said yesterday that he was fine, but manager Brandon Hyde wanted to rest him.

Mancini is 1-for-14 with a home run against Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta.

Tyler Nevin is starting at first base. Ryan Mountcastle is the designated hitter.

Ramón Urías is the third baseman, with Kelvin Gutiérrez out of the lineup for the third game in a row. Jorge Mateo is the shortstop.

Trey Mancini, Jorge Mateo and Kelvin Gutiérrez are on the bench for tonight’s game against the Red Sox at Camden Yards.

Anthony Santander is in right field after being out of last night’s lineup.

Tyler Nevin is the designated hitter. Ramón Urías is starting at third base and Chris Owings is the shortstop.

Austin Hays is in left field and batting fourth. He’s 8-for-18 (.444) with two home runs and six RBIs in his last five games.

Spenser Watkins is making his second career start and fourth appearance against the Red Sox. He’s allowed seven runs and 10 hits in seven innings.

SAN FRANCISCO – So, was Friday night’s 14-run explosion a sign of things to come, or a mere blip on the radar? We’ll start to get the answer to that question this afternoon when the Nationals take the field again at Oracle Park and try to pick up right where they left off about 14 hours earlier.

The challenge for Davey Martinez’s lineup: Have some success against Giants starter Logan Webb. The Nats did score three runs in 6 2/3 innings off the right-hander Sunday in D.C., but Yadiel Hernandez was responsible for all three of those runs (via an RBI single and a two-run homer). The rest of the batting order did very little against Webb.

Joan Adon opposed Webb that afternoon and struggled early. The rookie gave up two runs apiece in the first and second innings, then another in the fifth before departing. The good news for Adon? He doesn’t have to face Joc Pederson, who homered and doubled off him but now is sidelined with an adductor strain.

Bob Carpenter and Kevin Frandsen are here in San Francisco for the broadcast on MASN2, excited to call their first in-person road game of the season, so be sure to tune in!

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
Where: Oracle Park
Gametime: 4:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly sunny, 62 degrees, wind 20 mph out to center field

SAN FRANCISCO – Nobody’s ever going to say they prefer a nine-game road trip to a 10-game homestand, but this might just be the exception to the rule. After a dismal 2-8 stretch capped with eight consecutive losses in D.C., the Nationals now embark on a three-city West Coast trip against the Giants, Rockies and Angels. It’s a daunting stretch, to be sure, but at this point it can’t be any worse than what just happened, right? (He says cringing.)

The Nats were swept by the Giants last weekend, but San Francisco’s roster will look a little different this time. Joc Pederson, who had a huge series at Nationals Park, is out with an adductor strain. Also there appears to be concern about a COVID-19 outbreak in the home clubhouse, with at least three players impacted so far.

Aaron Sanchez makes his second start for the Nats, each of them coincidentally against the team he pitched for last season. The veteran right-hander was OK in his debut, allowing one run through four innings before hitting a wall in the fifth and ultimately taking a 5-2 loss. Sanchez’s arm should be built up for more than the 64 pitches he threw in that one, so hopefully he can at least complete five innings tonight.

It’s really about the lineup, though, a group that has scored a grand total of 16 runs during this eight-game losing streak. (And even the last game the Nationals won came by the score of 1-0.) Manager Davey Martinez continues to look for some combination that gets things going, but let’s be honest. Nothing’s going to happen until the triumvirate of Juan Soto, Nelson Cruz and Josh Bell are all hitting in sync. Soto and Bell have had their moments so far, but Soto has struggled of late. And Cruz continues to search at the plate, hitting a ton of balls into the ground instead of elevating them. He’ll hope to get on track tonight against Giants lefty Alex Wood, who faced Sanchez last weekend and allowed two runs in five innings (one of them on a homer by Riley Adams).

If you didn’t already know, tonight’s game is only on Apple TV+. Here's a link to watch directly on the device you're currently using …

NEW YORK – The Orioles are trying to avoid being swept today in a three-game series at Yankee Stadium for the first time since 2017.

The 10-day road trip wraps up in the Bronx cold with left-hander Bruce Zimmermann on the mound and Ryan Mountcastle still on the bench.

Mountcastle was scratched yesterday with neck stiffness.

Cedric Mullins is the designated hitter, Ryan McKenna is in center field and Trey Mancini is playing first base.

Zimmermann has a 1.20 ERA and 1.133 WHIP in three starts and averages 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings. He faced the Yankees on April 17 and shut them out over five innings.

It’s a sunny day in D.C., though still pretty chilly for late April. Not unlike the weather the Nationals will see in San Francisco this weekend.

But before they leave for a three-city road trip out west, in which they’ll play nine games in 10 days, the Nats have to take care of business against the Marlins to wrap up this homestand while trying to end a seven-game losing streak.

Patrick Corbin will once again take the mound for the Nationals while looking for some sign of improvement. The left-hander only completed 1 2/3 innings during his last start on Friday against the Giants and sports an 0-3 record with an 11.20 ERA and 2.561 WHIP on the season. Corbin went 1-2 with a 6.19 ERA in three starts against the Fish last year and is 5-5 with a 4.29 ERA in 15 career starts against Miami.

Left-hander Trevor Rogers makes the start for the Marlins this afternoon. Last year’s National League Rookie of the Year runner-up is 0-2 with a 3.26 ERA in four starts against the Nats in his career and is 0-3 with a 6.94 ERA over his first three starts this season.

MIAMI MARLINS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 54 degrees, wind 15 mph in from left field 

What happened to that beautiful late spring/early summer weather we were enjoying over the weekend? It’s gone now, with rain Tuesday night and now a cold northerly wind sweeping through town. It’s going to make for a bundle-up kind of evening at the ballpark when the Nationals host the Marlins, seeking to end their six-game losing streak.

If past matchups mean anything, the Nats have a favorable one tonight. Erick Fedde is 4-0 with a 1.43 ERA in seven career starts against the Marlins, including 2-0 with a 1.61 ERA in four head-to-head matchups last season. He could certainly use a good one after getting torched by the Diamondbacks for seven runs (six earned) in only 3 1/3 innings his last time out.

Marlins right-hander Pablo López takes the mound with a league-leading 0.52 ERA in three starts so far this season. He also has been very good against the Nationals, at least over the last two years when he’s gone 3-0 with a 1.54 ERA.

MIAMI MARLINS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 55 degrees, wind 16 mph in from left field

NATIONALS
2B César Hernández
RF Juan Soto
1B Josh Bell
DH Nelson Cruz
LF Yadiel Hernandez
C Keibert Ruiz
CF Lane Thomas
3B Maikel Franco
SS Lucius Fox

It’s currently raining at Nationals Park, and it looks like it’s going to continue to rain on and off into the early evening hours. What that means for tonight’s series opener against the Marlins (scheduled for 7:05 p.m.) remains to be seen, but the sense so far is that while a delay is possible, a postponement is unlikely.

If and when they play, it’ll be Josiah Gray on the mound for the Nationals. The right-hander has been the team’s best starter to date, not that the competition has been particularly fierce. What would really be nice tonight, though, is not only quality from Gray but also length. One of these days, the Nats have to get through a game needing only two or three relievers, not four or five.

Some runs from the lineup would be nice as well, but the challenge is stiff tonight with Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara on the mound. The right-hander enters with a 1.86 ERA, and over the last two seasons he’s 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA against the Nationals.

MIAMI MARLINS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Rain ending, 62 degrees, wind 8 mph left field to right field

NATIONALS
2B César Hernández
RF Juan Soto
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Josh Bell
LF Yadiel Hernandez
C Keibert Ruiz
3B Maikel Franco
SS Alcides Escobar
CF Victor Robles

The Orioles are owed some good news on the health front, and it’s arriving from the minors.

Catcher Adley Rutschman and pitchers DL Hall and Rico Garcia are joining the high Single-A Aberdeen IronBirds this week, with the first game played Tuesday night against Jersey Shore at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium.

Rutschman, the No. 1 or 2 prospect in baseball depending on which outlet is posting the rankings, and Garcia are on minor league injury rehab assignments. Hall, the Orioles’ No. 3 prospect, is continuing his progression.  

Most of the attention falls upon Rutschman, who recovered from a strained right triceps sustained early in camp. His major league debut is fast approaching, but he’ll need to stop at a few other affiliates.

Garcia underwent Tommy John surgery in 2021 before signing a minor league deal with the Orioles.

This homestand began in uplifting fashion, with the Nationals sweeping a day-night doubleheader from the Diamondbacks behind the strong performances of two young starting pitchers. Four consecutive losses later, the vibe has changed dramatically around here. Now the Nats need a win this afternoon just to avoid a series sweep at the hands of the Giants.

We usually focus on the pitching matchup, but let’s start today with the importance of a more well-balanced offensive performance from the Nationals. They’ve scored only nine runs over their last five games, totaling only 31 hits. That’s just not going to cut it, not unless they get ridiculously good pitching to overcome their own lack of scoring.

Seventeen games in, only two players sport an OPS over .750: Josh Bell (.955) and Juan Soto (.893). And Bell had to depart Saturday’s game with a tight hamstring, requiring an MRI this morning. That MRI came back "pretty clean," per Davey Martinez, but Bell won't be in today's lineup out of caution. It's possible he'll be available to pinch-hit later. The Nats simply can’t afford to lose their cleanup hitter for any length of time, but even if they don’t, they need other guys to start producing on a regular basis. They’ll try to get it going this afternoon against Logan Webb, who owns a 2.55 ERA through three starts this season and has yet to surrender a home run.

Martinez had his choice of starters for today’s game, because both Josiah Gray and Joan Adon were on schedule after pitching both ends of the aforementioned doubleheader. He selected Adon for this assignment, holding Gray back for Tuesday’s series opener against the Marlins. Adon was outstanding last time out, shutting out the D-backs on three hits for 6 1/3 innings, still the longest outing of the young season for the Nats. He’ll look to continue that positive momentum today and avoid the big inning that cost him in each of his first two starts.

The Giants, meanwhile, learned this morning outfielder Mike Yastrzemski tested positive for COVID-19. As of this moment, nobody else on either team is impacted, but San Francisco will be playing a man down this afternoon.

Hope you slept fast because we’re right back at Nationals Park for a rare early Saturday afternoon game. The Nationals are looking to bounce back after last night’s 7-1 series-opening loss to the Giants in which Patrick Corbin gave up seven runs in just 1 2/3 innings. 

The Nationals needed to make some changes to their roster this morning in order to bring up a pitcher for today’s start. Although Monday’s rainout gave the staff a needed break, Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Diamondbacks created a conundrum for today. And after Paolo Espino’s two innings of work last night, the Nats needed reinforcements for their second game against the Giants.

Aaron Sanchez, who made his way to D.C. from Triple-A Rochester last night, is set to make his Nationals debut against his former team. The 29-year-old right-hander is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA in three starts with the Red Wings. He has a 3.93 ERA over his seven-year major league career, including a 1-1 record and 3.06 ERA over nine appearances (seven starts) with the Giants last year.

In order to select Sanchez's contract and make room on the 40-man roster, the Nats designated right-hander Patrick Murphy for assignment.

Manager Davey Martinez has made a significant change to the top of his lineup this afternoon. Lane Thomas is in the leadoff spot with César Hernández moving down to the sixth spot. After posting a .364 on-base percentage in 45 games with the Nats last year, Thomas gets his first chance to lead off this season.

The Orioles flew into Anaheim last night after losing three of four games in Oakland, and they’re starting left-hander Bruce Zimmermann in the series opener against the Angels.

Zimmermann hasn’t allowed a run in nine innings. He’s never faced the Angels.

Catcher Robinson Chirinos returns to the lineup after being hit by a pitch Wednesday that struck his shoulder and the side of his face.

Trey Mancini, ejected yesterday for the first time in his career, is batting second as the designated hitter. Anthony Santander is the left fielder and cleanup hitter.

Ramón Urías starts at second base, Jorge Mateo at shortstop and Kelvin Gutiérrez at third.

After a disappointing finish to their four-game series with the Diamondbacks, the Nationals tonight open a three-game weekend set with the Giants. The defending National League West champs are off to a strong 8-5 start, though they did just lose three of four to the Mets at Citi Field.

The Nats are still figuring out their pitching plans for Saturday and Sunday. Some of those plans may depend on how things go tonight. If Patrick Corbin can give them quality innings, they can probably save Paolo Espino to make a spot start Saturday. If Corbin gets knocked out early, Davey Martinez may have to use Espino out of the bullpen tonight, and that would probably require a roster move before Saturday’s game.

The Giants are using their own spot starter this evening: Left-hander Sam Long. He’s made three relief appearances, totaling 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Five of his 12 outings last year came as a starter, but it doesn’t appear he’s stretched out to go very far tonight.

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 70 degrees, wind 6 mph in from center field

NATIONALS
2B César Hernández
RF Juan Soto
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Josh Bell
C Keibert Ruiz
LF Lane Thomas
3B Maikel Franco
SS Alcides Escobar
CF Victor Robles

The Nationals have a chance to win a series this afternoon. If they can beat the Diamondbacks, they will have taken three of four and will improve to 7-8 on the young season. All things considered, that wouldn’t be bad at all.

As we’ve seen time and again, and as we certainly saw Wednesday night, the starting pitcher will probably have as much impact on the final outcome as anyone. The Nats continue to win when they get five or more quality innings from their starter (aside from one game, Sunday in Pittsburgh). They continue to lose when they don’t get that.

So, Josh Rogers: What do you have for us today? The lefty was outstanding in his season debut in Atlanta, then struggled his next start against the Pirates. He needs to get ahead in the count today, avoid walks and induce some weak contact out of an admittedly weak-hitting Diamondbacks lineup.

Here's some good news: Josh Bell is in the lineup, the MRI on his left knee having come back clean. Bell, who came out of Wednesday's game in the fourth inning, tested it out pregame and was cleared to play first base and bat cleanup as usual.

There was, however, another roster move before today's game: The Nationals have placed reliever Hunter Harvey on the 10-day injured list with a right pronator strain and selected the contract of fellow right-hander Erasmo Ramirez from Triple-A Rochester. (They transferred Ehire Adrianza to the 60-day IL to clear a spot on the 40-man roster.) So the bullpen, which already lost Sean Doolittle to an elbow sprain Wednesday, has now also lost Harvey for some period of time.

The Orioles close out their series in Oakland this afternoon with Tyler Wells on the mound and a chance to gain a split after last night’s 1-0 win – the team’s third shutout of the season.

Wells is making his third start after tossing four scoreless innings against the Yankees. He’s been stretched out to 64 pitches.

The rotation has registered a 1.13 ERA since April 11, the lowest in the majors, with five earned runs in 39 2/3 innings.

The Orioles and Giants have allowed three home runs, fewest in the majors. The Orioles and Mets are the only staffs with three shutouts.

On the offensive side, the Orioles’ four home runs and 24 runs scored are the fewest in baseball. The .585 OPS is the lowest in the American League and third-lowest in the majors.

The Nationals seemed to get through Tuesday’s doubleheader in great shape, sweeping the Diamondbacks and holding them to one run over 18 innings. It may have come at a price, though, because there are roster changes today.

Sean Doolittle, who retired two of the three batters he faced in the sixth inning of Game 1, is going on the 10-day injured list with a sprained left elbow, which obviously is a concern. Sam Clay has been called up from Triple-A Rochester to take his spot. Additionally, the Nationals have kept lefty Francisco Perez (yesterday's 29th man for the doubleheader) in their bullpen and optioned Donovan Casey back to Rochester before the outfielder ever had a chance to make his major league debut.

So the roster looks a little different for tonight’s game, the third in this four-game series. The pressure will be on Erick Fedde to do what Josiah Gray and Joan Adon did Tuesday and provide quality innings, taking pressure off the bullpen. Fedde was solid in his last outing against the Pirates, allowing only two runs in five innings, but his pitch count of 96 was too high for Davey Martinez’s likes.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 59 degrees, wind 5 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
2B César Hernández
RF Juan Soto
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Josh Bell
C Keibert Ruiz
LF Yadiel Hernandez
3B Maikel Franco
SS Alcides Escobar
CF Victor Robles