Game 25 lineups: Nats at Marlins

MIAMI – If that Nationals homestand felt short, it’s because it was. They returned from a nine-game West Coast road trip for less than a week – with two off-days and only six games at Nats Park in between – before hitting the road again for South Beach.

And if the Nationals want to make a significant stride forward this season and build upon their 71-91 record from last year, beating the Marlins would be a good place to start. Over the past two seasons, the Nats are 6-26 against the Fish, including an abysmal 2-11 last year. Those two wins did come, though, in this building, where the Nats are 4-11 since 2022.

Trevor Williams will look to get the Nats off to a good start with his fifth outing of the year. Surprisingly, the veteran right-hander has been the best starter in the rotation to begin the season, with a 2-0 record, 2.91 ERA and 0.969 WHIP through his first four starts. But he did struggle last year against the team that drafted him, going 0-3 with a 7.59 ERA and 1.641 WHIP in four starts against the Marlins. That includes going 0-2 with a 3.46 ERA and 1.000 WHIP in two outings in Miami.

Meanwhile, the Marlins were supposed to start former Nationals farmhand Jesús Luzardo, but the young lefty was scratched this morning after experiencing discomfort in his elbow yesterday. The home side will instead throw a bullpen game, with 26-year-old right-hander Anthony Maldonado making his major league debut and first start in the bigs. Used almost exclusively as a reliever since the Marlins drafted him with their 11th-round pick in 2019, Maldonado is 3-0 with a 2.31 ERA and 0.771 WHIP in eight relief appearances with Triple-A Jacksonville.

And for the first time since I’ve been coming to loanDepot park, the roof is open for tonight’s game! It’s a beautiful night in Miami, but there are strong winds coming in from left field.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at MIAMI MARLINS
Where: loanDepot park
Gametime: 7:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 99.1 FM, DC 87.7 (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Mostly sunny, 77 degrees, wind 15 mph in from left field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
LF Jesse Winker
1B Joey Meneses
2B Luis García
C Keibert Ruiz
RF Edde Rosario
DH Joey Gallo
3B Trey Lipscomb
CF Jacob Young

RHP Trevor Williams

MARLINS
2B Luis Arraez
DH Bryan De La Cruz
CF Jazz Chisholm Jr.
1B Josh Bell
RF Jesús Sánchez
SS Tim Anderson
LF Nick Gordon
3B Vidal Bruján
C Nick Fortes

RHP Anthony Maldonado