Game 14 lineups: Nats at Mets

When last we saw him on the mound, Max Scherzer was slogging his way through a 27-pitch top of the first against the Mets, clearly not right. Turns out he had "tweaked" his right hamstring the previous day and decided he shouldn't try to continue to pitch through it.

Six days later, Scherzer is back on the mound, back facing the Mets, believing the same thing won't happen again. He passed all his required tests during the week, but the real test will come in the bottom of the first tonight at Citi Field, when he has to actually pitch with full effort and hope nothing feels off. If he can get through the first inning in good shape, that should bode well for the rest of his outing. If not, the Nationals have a real problem on their hands.

When last we saw him on the mound, Rick Porcello was carving up the Nats lineup. The same night Scherzer couldn't make it past the first inning, Porcello tossed seven innings of one-run ball. The Nationals had no answer for him, other than first-inning doubles by Adam Eaton and Juan Soto.

The challenge in tonight's rematch is for that group of hitters to have learned how better to attack Porcello and then implement it in the game. As he so often pleads with them, manager Davey Martinez's solution is simple: Just try to hit the ball back up the middle. We'll see if they can do that and build off Monday night's 16-run explosion.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at NEW YORK METS
Where: Citi Field
Gametime: 7:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 81 degrees, wind 14 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
SS Trea Turner
RF Adam Eaton
2B Starlin Castro
LF Juan Soto
DH Howie Kendrick
3B Asdrúbal Cabrera
1B Eric Thames
C Kurt Suzuki
CF Victor Robles

RHP Max Scherzer

METS
LF Brandon Nimmo
DH Jeff McNeil
3B J.D. Davis
RF Michael Conforto
1B Dominic Smith
C Wilson Ramos
SS Andrés Giménez
2B Luis Guillorme
CF Billy Hamilton

RHP Rick Porcello