Game 55 lineups: Nats at Braves

ATLANTA – A victory tonight will give the Nationals their second win in a four-game series this season, the first coming as a sweep in their only other four-game set to date in Miami last month. 

Trevor Williams will look to continue this dominant stretch by Nats starting pitchers. Nationals starters have pitched to a 2.36 ERA (11 earned runs in 42 innings) with 52 strikeouts and just five walks over the last seven games. Williams contributed to that with five innings of one-run ball, no walks and eight strikeouts on Saturday. He’s 4-0 with a 2.29 ERA and 1.078 WHIP in 10 starts.

Williams and Stephen Strasburg (8-0 in 2016) are the only two Nats starters (2005-present) to not suffer a loss through their first 10 starts of a season. Let’s see if Williams can make it 11.

Besides being shut out on Tuesday, the Nats have scored 15 runs this series. They were supposed to face former Nationals farmhand Reynaldo López, but will instead see lefty Ray Kerr. The 29-year-old made his first start on May 24 this season, where he allowed five runs in four innings against the Pirates. 

The original starter López was packaged with Lucas Giolito and Dane Dunning in the December 2016 trade with the White Sox for Adam Eaton. He and Giolito were then traded together again last year to the Angels, with López being selected off waivers by the Guardians a month later.

Nationals again look to build depth through draft

Nationals again look to build depth through draft
Sean Doolittle, Adam Eaton and Yan Gomes. All three players are prime examples of where the Nationals needed top-flight major league talent to compete for a title, but did not necessarily have that guy in their system at the time. All three made significant contributions on their road to winning the 2019 World Series. In the middle of 2019, Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo brought in relievers Roenis Elías and Hunter Strickland through trade. Rizzo sent minor league left-handers Taylor...

Revisiting the trade that brought Adam Eaton to the Nationals

Revisiting the trade that brought Adam Eaton to the Nationals
It was one of the big trades of the 2016 winter meetings at National Harbor, Md. The Nationals sent three pitchers to the White Sox for outfielder Adam Eaton. In exchange, Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López and Dane Dunning were traded to Chicago. Fast-forward to April 2020. Here is a quick look at how this trade in late 2016 affected both teams. The Nationals were in dire need of a starting outfielder who could be a workhorse at the top of the lineup. Eaton fit that bill. But a major injury to...

Game 60 lineups: Nats vs. White Sox

Game 60 lineups: Nats vs. White Sox
Don't blink or you might miss the Nationals' homestand. Seriously, it's only two games and tomorrow's finale against the White Sox is a matinee. Not sure I can ever remember a homestand that brief. The Nats and White Sox actually will face each other four times over the next week-plus, with a two-game series on the South Side coming up next Monday and Tuesday. So maybe it's better to think of this as a four-game series with a long break (in San Diego) in the middle. Whatever the case,...

Expect Nats to go for arms early in MLB's First-Year Player Draft

Expect Nats to go for arms early in MLB's First-Year Player Draft
The Nationals look to stockpile their team for the future as the 2018 First-Year Player Draft gets underway tonight. The club has the No. 27 and No. 65 selections in the first two rounds. According to Baseball America, the Nationals will have a bonus pool of $5,603,800 to work with, which ranks 27th in allotted monies league-wide. Due to the team's on-field success in recent campaigns, they have selected in the lower half of each first round: Erick Fedde (18th, 2014), Carter Kieboom (28th,...

For first time in six years, Nats lacking top 100 pitching prospect

For first time in six years, Nats lacking top 100 pitching prospect
Monday's release of Baseball America's top 100 prospects list for 2018 was notable, from the Nationals' perspective, for two reasons: Victor Robles' ascension into one of the sport's best prospects is complete, given his No. 5 overall ranking, and for the first time in a long time, the Nats have no pitching prospects on the list. Nope, no pitchers. Robles and fellow outfielder Juan Soto (ranked 56th) are the only Nationals in this year's top 100 at all. And that's quite unusual for this...

No. 2 Nats prospect: Erick Fedde

No. 2 Nats prospect: Erick Fedde
With Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning traded to the Chicago White Sox, one remaining pitching prospect who had his name brought up a lot in offseason trade talks takes center stage. Right-hander Erick Fedde appears to be close to making a big splash with the Nationals after gaining momentum with a solid 2016. The 23-year-old pitched in 18 games (17 starts) with high Single-A Potomac, then was promoted to Double-A Harrisburg. Fedde pitched well in five starts for the Senators....

No. 10 Nats prospect: Austin Voth

No. 10 Nats prospect: Austin Voth
Accelerating thanks to an incredible end to his Arizona Fall League play, right-hander Austin Voth comes in at No. 10 on the recently released released Baseball America Nationals top 10 prospects list. No. 10: RHP Austin Voth Voth tossed 15 scoreless innings to wrap up his season with the Glendale Desert Dogs. Teddy Cahill, Baseball America's national writer, said Voth's overall numbers this season in the Nationals system, plus his ability to accumulate a ton of innings, gives reason to...

Breaking down what the Nationals surrendered in Eaton deal - and why

Breaking down what the Nationals surrendered in Eaton deal - and why
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - Lucas Giolito didn't waste any time in embracing his new team after being traded to the White Sox in a deal that netted the Nationals outfielder Adam Eaton. Fans, media and baseball executives were still processing this afternoon's trade - right-handers Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning for Eaton - when Giolito changed his team affiliation on his Twitter account and posted a heartfelt goodbye to the organization that drafted and developed him. "Today is both an...

Rizzo on trade: "We certainly got what we wanted in Adam Eaton"

Rizzo on trade: "We certainly got what we wanted in Adam Eaton"
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - The Nationals knew all along the price tag to acquire the kind of impact players they were seeking in trades would be steep. And so when the opportunity arose this week to acquire one of their primary outfield targets, Adam Eaton, they knew they'd have to make the tough call to deal away not one, not two, but three of their most prized possessions: Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning. "You've got to give to get," general manager Mike Rizzo said in formally...

Nationals acquire Eaton for Giolito, Lopez, Dunning

Nationals acquire Eaton for Giolito, Lopez, Dunning
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - The Nationals are about to acquire their much-desired new outfielder in a trade, but it's not the guy who has drawn most of the headlines over the last week. The Nats and White Sox have agreed to a deal that would bring Adam Eaton to Washington in exchange for pitching prospects Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning, according to a source familiar with the talks. The trade's completion is still contingent upon the review of all players' medical records, but...

Source: Talks back on between Nats and Pirates for McCutchen

Source: Talks back on between Nats and Pirates for McCutchen
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - Following the White Sox's decision to trade Chris Sale to the Red Sox, the Nationals' focus has shifted to the possibility of dealing for Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen. Talks with the Pirates regarding McCutchen were back on and a meeting was scheduled in the afternoon, according to a source with knowledge of the talks. The source also confirmed the Dodgers continued to express interest in McCutchen, that no deal was imminent,and talks were "fluid." Last...

MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis sees big value in Nats' starting pitching prospects (video)

MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis sees big value in Nats' starting pitching prospects (video)
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - Despite losing out to the Red Sox in the Chris Sale sweepstakes, the Nationals are still bargaining from a position of strength as far as minor league starting pitching prospects go here at the Winter Meetings. One big question after last season: Had the Nationals' top pitching prospect, right-hander Lucas Giolito, lost some of his luster because of some lukewarm starts in the majors? MLBPipeline.com writer Jim Callis believes that Giolito is still an extremely coveted...

In Nats' blockbuster trade talks, how much is too much?

In Nats' blockbuster trade talks, how much is too much?
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - Front office personnel and media members are streaming into the Gaylord National Resort & Conference Center for baseball's Winter Meetings. There's a significant presence of curious Nationals fans, too, which is good to see. Well done, NatsTown! Even before early arrivals to the Winter Meetings - which don't officially kick off until Monday, save for the occasional big and unexpected Sunday night announcement (see: Nationals, Jayson Werth, 2010) - lots of eyes have...

Sources: Nats, Pirates engaged in McCutchen trade talks

Sources: Nats, Pirates engaged in McCutchen trade talks
The Nationals and Pirates have progressed in talks about a trade that would bring star outfielder Andrew McCutchen to D.C., but the two sides haven't yet agreed on the full package of players the deal would require, and the cost figures to be extensive. Two names that have come up, according to sources familiar with the discussions, are Reynaldo Lopez and Victor Robles, two of the Nationals' top prospects. Even then, one source said the Pirates might not agree to the trade unless a third...

How much are Nats willing to give up in a blockbuster trade?

How much are Nats willing to give up in a blockbuster trade?
There's been a lot of chatter already this offseason about blockbuster trade possibilities, with White Sox ace Chris Sale at the top of the list and the Nationals among the clubs widely speculated to be contemplating a deal for the left-hander. It's a long and winding path, of course, to get from the kind of preliminary chatter we've heard so far to an actual trade taking place. The same applies to any other possible big-name players the Nats may or may not be intrigued by this winter, such...

Drew Ward continues to produce in first full season for AFL Glendale

Drew Ward continues to produce in first full season for AFL Glendale
Third baseman Drew Ward is tied for second in hitting for the Glendale Desert Dogs with a .333 average after 17 games. Ward and teammate Andrew Stevenson, alongside Garrett Stubbs and Carson Kelly, have played more games than any other D-Dogs. In 117 games this season, the soon-to-be 22-year-old Ward (Nov. 25) demonstrated his power capabilities with 23 doubles, 14 home runs and 56 RBIs for high Single-A Potomac and Double-A Harrisburg. Early in Arizona Fall League play, pitching coach Sam...

How does Reynaldo Lopez figure into Nats' 2017 plans?

How does Reynaldo Lopez figure into Nats' 2017 plans?
As we transition into offseason mode here, we're reviewing each significant player on the Nationals roster. We continue today with Reynaldo Lopez, who impressed in his abbreviated rookie stint. PLAYER REVIEW: REYNALDO LOPEZ Age on opening day 2017: 23 How acquired: Signed as amateur free agent, June 2012 MLB service time: 43 days 2016 salary: $507,500 Contract status: Under club control in 2017, arbitration-eligible in 2020, free agent in 2023. 2016 stats: 5-3, 4.91 ERA, 11 G, 6 GS, 0 CG, 44...

Baker on how scheduling affects his pitching staff for Game 4 and beyond

Baker on how scheduling affects his pitching staff for Game 4 and beyond
LOS ANGELES - One major theme of this National League Division Series has been scheduling and how it has affected the players, managers and coaching staffs. Major League Baseball eliminated its scheduled off-day Sunday when Game 2 was postponed in Washington, D.C., due to inclement weather on Saturday. Game 2 was rescheduled and played Sunday in blustery conditions at Nationals Park. Both clubs then ventured 2,300 miles to Los Angeles and arrived around 11 p.m. PDT Sunday night. Game 3 was...

It's Ross vs. Kershaw in Game 4

It's Ross vs. Kershaw in Game 4
We now know who will take the mound for Game 4 of the National League Division Series between the Nationals and Dodgers, set to begin at 5:05 p.m. EDT. Dusty Baker will send out right-hander Joe Ross for his first career postseason start, while Dave Roberts will call upon left-hander Clayton Kershaw on short rest and facing elimination. The Nationals' 8-3 win in Game 3 on Monday not only gave them a 2-1 edge in the best-of-five series, but also gave them flexibility in setting their rotation...