Series Preview
When you lose 2 of your best hitters life gets tougher. That's the case for Washington (8-8) who enters this weekend's contest at .500 & tied for 3rd in the NL East. Star RF Bryce Harper & LF Jayson Werth are both on the DL with Harper not back for 2 more weeks. A bright spot for Washington has been Harper's replacement Brian Goodwin. The rookie has hit .364 since joining the club & helped Washington get out a 5 game losing streak. The Nationals enter the series coming off a solid series against last place Philadelphia taking 2 of 3 on the road. Atlanta is traveling to Washington to kick off a 10 game road trip that has them visiting 3 of their division rivals: Washington, Miami, & New York. The Braves are trying to decide what to do with struggling rookie RF Domingo Santana who is hitting under .200 & showing no signs of turning it around. The Braves will need more outstanding pitching this week from the middle of their rotation as they face off against the 2nd best pitching staff in the NL.
Expected Pitching Matchups
Game 1
RHP Max Scherzer 1-1, 2.25 ERA, 2.43 FIP, 0.7 WAR
vs
RHP Shelby Miller 1-0, 2.35 ERA, 3.68 FIP, 0.3 WAR
Game 2
RHP Jordan Zimmerman 1-2, 6.48 ERA, 4.86 FIP, 0.1 WAR
vs
RH Julio Teheran 1-1, 5.19 ERA, 5.21 FIP, 0.0 WAR
Game 3
LHP Gio Gonzalez 2-1, 2.50 ERA, 4.98 FIP, 0.0 WAR
vs
LHP Brett Anderson 0-1, 8.25 ERA, 3.73 FIP, 0.2 WAR
Primary Lineup
CF Michael A. Taylor .197/.229/.258 3 RBI
2B DJ LeMahieu .224/.237/.310 6 RBI
3B Anthony Rendon .293/.359/.448 HR 6 RBI
1B Ryan Zimmerman .200/.269/.267 7 RBI
LF Clint Robinson .222/.344/.259 2 RBI
SS Ian Desmond .211/.262/.298 HR 5 RBI
C Dioner Navarro .255/.314/.319 HR 3 RBI
RF Brian Goodwin .364/.400/.455 2 RBI