Today's Nats lineup vs. Mets

VIERA, Fla. - Davey Johnson had hoped to write in his opening day lineup for this afternoon's game against the Mets, but that's kind of tough to do when two of your middle-of-the-order hitters are banged up and your center fielder is still recovering from a quad injury. Instead, this is the lineup Johnson will send out today against New York: SS Ian Desmond 2B Danny Espinosa 3B Ryan Zimmerman RF Jayson Werth 1B Mark DeRosa C Jesus Flores CF Roger Bernadina LF Steve Lombardozzi P Stephen Strasburg Hey, Strasburg's hitting 1.000 this spring. What's a guy got to do to get moved up in the order? Strasburg will be making his second straight start against the Mets, which is also the team he will face in his second regular season start. That will mark three outings against the boys from New York in a span of five starts for the Nats' opening day starter. Rick Ankiel appears to have been scratched from today's lineup with Bernadina taking over for him in center, but when asked how he's feeling in the Nats' clubhouse a bit ago, Ankiel replied, "We're good." Since returning from a quad injury last Tuesday, Ankiel has played four games in a span of five days. Here's the Mets' lineup for today: SS Ruben Tejada 2B Daniel Murphy LF Jason Bay 1B Ike Davis 3B Vinny Rottino CF Jordany Valdespin RF Adam Loewen C Lucas May P Matt Harvey