What you need to know about today's games in Baltimore

The 2020 season has already included, and will continue to include, some weird days. Today might end up ranking near the top of the list, though, from the Nationals' perspective.

The Nats are scheduled to open a three-game weekend series with the Orioles at Camden Yards. But before the two teams can do that, they first need to complete the suspended game they began at Nationals Park on Sunday. With the Nationals as the home team, even though they'll be playing in Baltimore. With a roster that has changed since Sunday.

At 5:05 p.m., two Orioles baserunners will take their positions at first and second base. There will be one out in the top of the sixth, Baltimore leading 5-2. The Nationals pitcher should be Sam Freeman, but he was placed on the injured list after hearing a pop in his left elbow upon throwing a pitch Wednesday night in New York.

So Davey Martinez will need to pick another reliever to take the mound and face Pat Valaika and Bryan Holaday in a big spot. Except he can't use Stephen Strasburg or Javy Guerra, because each already pitched in this game and each already was replaced.

Martinez could decide to go with Will Harris, even though the veteran right-hander wasn't on the active roster when the first five-plus innings of the game were played Sunday. Harris is now on the active roster, having taken Freeman's place. So that makes him eligible. The same goes for Seth Romero, also now on the active roster in place of Sean Doolittle. (Though the fact Romero threw 43 pitches Thursday in his major league debut all but guarantees he won't pitch today.)

Whoever ends up pitching, the Nationals need him to keep the deficit at 5-2 and give the lineup a chance to rally. Asdrúbal Cabrera, Eric Thames and Carter Kieboom are due up to bat in the bottom of the sixth, though Martinez is allowed to pinch-hit for anybody he wants along the way. And he's got his entire bench available, because there were no lineup substitutions before play was halted Sunday.

Left-hander Paul Fry is technically in the game for the Orioles, but manager Brandon Hyde might want to put a right-hander in instead, because Fry threw an inning of relief in Thursday night's win over the Phillies, and because Cabrera and Kieboom are better against lefties and because leaving the lefty in would only encourage Martinez to send Howie Kendrick up to bat for Thames.

Got all that? Good.

So the two teams will play the final four innings of the suspended game, making key bullpen and bench decisions in an attempt to pull off the win. Then when it's over, they'll have 45 minutes to prepare for Friday night's actual game, this one with the Orioles serving as home team.

Strasburg is starting for the Nationals, which means he'll technically have started both ends of the pseudo-doubleheader. Tommy Milone, who shut out the Nats last week in D.C., gets the start for Baltimore.

The managers will have to make sure they don't burn up all their best bullpen options in the earlier game, because they'll need quality relievers in the nightcap. But they'll also have an extra arm at their disposal, because Major League Baseball permits teams to add a 29th player to the active roster for the second game, just like a real doubleheader.

And there you have it. Just your regular, run-of-the-mill day and evening featuring 1 4/9 ballgames.

Let's just hope everyone is able to accurately keep track of everything.