Baker on Nationals' "upside-down" pitching options

The skies have cleared - apparently, all of those gusty winds are good for something - and there will be baseball today at Nationals Park. But there's little clarity in the Nationals' postseason rotation past left-hander Gio Gonzalez's start in Game 3 of the National League Division Series on Monday at Dodger Stadium.

Manager Dusty Baker said during his Sunday morning media briefing that the Nationals remain undecided who will start Games 4 and 5 of the NLDS, and that how the Nationals structure their postseason rotation moving forward will depend on how Game 2 starter Tanner Roark and Game 3 starter Gio Gonzalez fare.

"It all depends on what happens in these games," Baker said. "I'd like to give you the starter, but I can't. ... Because of injuries, we're kind of upside-down, you know, in our pitching. You know, after Gio, then until we get to game No. 5, we really don't know."

Losing Sunday's scheduled off-day for travel because of Saturday's rainout definitely hinders the Nationals' ability to plan ahead - and not just because Baker has to hope and pray that right-hander Roark goes deep into Game 2 so he doesn't have to count on his bullpen for more than a few innings.

"Like I said, we're just mixing and matching and trying to piece this thing together," Baker said. "And if I could give you a definitive answer, I'd love to. I'd love to give it to myself."

Game 1 starter Max Scherzer could come back on three days' rest to start Game 4, but the Nats might prefer to save him for a possible Game 5. Unless, of course, Game 4 looms as an elimination game. If Scherzer doesn't pitch Game 4, the assignment would probably go to right-hander Joe Ross, though there are questions about how many pitches he can throw and the Nats might not want to trust him in a possible elimination game.

Scherzer has made one career postseason start on three days' rest. Pitching for the Tigers in the 2011 American League Division Series at Texas, he allowed three runs on six hits with a walk and six strikeouts.

The Saturday rainout means the Nationals would be asking Roark to come back three days' rest to start Game 5, and that may be asking a lot. Roark has never started on three days' rest in 81 career starts.

"Do we go to a combination of guys?" Baker said. "Do we go with Ross (who) is coming off an injury himself?"

The biggest question mark seems to be how much the Nationals could get out of Ross, who was on the disabled list from July 3 to Sept. 18 with right shoulder soreness and has never appeared in the postseason. Though he made three September starts after being activated from the DL, he never threw more than the 90 pitches he needed to labor through four innings on Sept. 29.

All of this means rookie right-hander Reynaldo Lopez looms as a very important arm out of the bullpen if Gonzalez fails to go deep into Game 2 or as a potential piggyback candidate should Ross start Game 4. And that's assuming Lopez isn't needed today. Lopez has shown the ability to give the Nationals length - he threw at least 100 pitches in three of his six starts - but he has no postseason experience and only 11 major league appearances under his belt.

Baker loved the idea of a power pitcher like Lopez as a multiple-inning weapon out of the bullpen in the NLDS, but Lopez took the place of veteran long man and spot starter Yusmeiro Petit on the roster for the first series.

The rotation considerations aside, the Nationals and Dodgers must now potentially play three games in three days (barring a Dodgers sweep) with a cross-country trip from D.C. to L.A. after today's game.

"You know, we're both at a disadvantage without a day off," Baker said.

However, if both American League Division Series end today with sweeps by the Indians and Blue Jays, respectively, the Nationals' scheduled 1:08 Pacific Time game on Monday would be moved to 3:08 p.m. Pacific Time.

"I'm just hoping that we play the late game rather than the early game," Baker said. "I would wish that. But, hey, whatever time they say we've got to play, we've got to play."