Werth sits with injured left wrist, Taylor makes start in left (with lineups)

By Josh Land

Nationals

May 16, 2015, 1:37pm

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SAN DIEGO - The Nationals will be without Jayson Werth this evening after the left fielder was struck by a pitch in his left wrist during his second at-bat last night. Werth left the game and was taken for X-rays, which were negative.

Rookie Michael A. Taylor will start in left today and bat eighth. Taylor was the hero on Wednesday after coming off the bench to hit a grand slam in the top of the ninth inning to beat the Diamondbacks 9-6. In 24 games this season, Taylor is batting .264 with three homers and 13 RBIs.

Right-hander Max Scherzer takes the mound for his eighth start of the season with a 3-3 record. His sterling 1.99 ERA is good for fourth-best in the National League, while his 55 strikeouts rank fourth, despite pitching in one less outing than the leaders. Scherzer has only surrendered six walks in 49 2/3 innings, giving him the third-best strikeout-to-walk ratio (9.17) in the majors.

For the Nationals:

CF Denard Span
SS Ian Desmond
3B Yunel Escobar
RF Bryce Harper
1B Ryan Zimmerman
C Wilson Ramos
2B Danny Espinosa
LF Michael A. Taylor
RHP Max Scherzer

For the Padres:

3B Cory Spangenberg
CF Will Venable
RF Matt Kemp
LF Justin Upton
1B Yangervis Solarte
3B Will Middlebrooks
SS Alexi Amarista
C Austin Hedges
RHP Andrew Casher