PHILADELPHIA – As the Nationals go for their third straight series win this afternoon, some of their young players are getting the day off.

CJ Abrams, Luis García and Keibert Ruiz are all out of the starting lineup for the rubber match against the Phillies. It’s not much of a surprise for the catcher after being behind the dish for the first two games this weekend, but having not one but both of the young middle infielders rest on the same day is a bit of a surprise.

Ildemaro Vargas, in the starting lineup for the second straight day, gets the start at shortstop while Michael Chavis is at second base. Riley Adams, of course, is catching starter Trevor Williams.

“Just to get them off their feet,” manager Davey Martinez said of his reasoning in giving Abrams and García the same day off. “Day game, get them off. We got a crazy schedule coming up with this next week. We got different times: six o'clock, 11 o'clock, 12 o'clock, so I just want to give those guys a day. Like I said, these guys, they got to get a day here and there. So today was a good day. It was scheduled coming into the series. So they'll get the day today and get some of these other guys in there.”

The Nationals have six different scheduled start times over their final seven games this week leading into the All-Star break: They’ll open their four-game series with the Reds tomorrow night at 6 p.m., then they have the traditional 11 a.m. start on the Fourth of July, a 7 p.m. start on Wednesday, a 1 p.m. start for Thursday’s getaway game for Cincinnati, another 7 p.m. game Friday for the series opener against the Rangers, a 4 p.m. start Saturday and a noon start Sunday for a nationally televised first-half finale on Peacock.

PHILADELPHIA – It’s time to forget about yesterday and move on to today.

No matter how bad yesterday’s 19-4 loss was, it was still just a single loss. The Nationals, who have already sealed a winning road trip, still have a chance to win this three-game series against the Phillies.

Trevor Williams gets his shot at this Phillies lineup this afternoon. Josiah Gray had a lot of success Friday. MacKenzie Gore did not on Saturday. Williams is 4-4 with a 4.28 ERA and 1.413 WHIP in 16 starts this year. Handed an early lead Monday in Seattle, he couldn’t hold onto it while being charged with three runs and eight hits in four innings. When he faced the Phillies a month ago, he was charged with four runs in 5 ⅔ innings while striking out a season-high six batters.

Ranger Suárez will be the second lefty starter the Nats will see this weekend. The Phillies southpaw is 2-2 with a 3.18 ERA and 1.196 WHIP in nine starts this season. He was dominant in June, pitching to a 1.08 ERA and striking out 33 over five starts. That started with seven innings of one-run ball against the Nationals on June 4.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
Where: Citizens Bank Park
Gametime: 1:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 85 degrees, wind 8 mph out to right field

PHILADELPHIA – When Carl Edwards Jr. landed on the 15-day injured list on June 21 with right shoulder inflammation, the Nationals bullpen took a hit. One of their trusted late-inning relievers wasn’t going to be available for the foreseeable future.

Down an experienced arm, the back end of the Nats bullpen was expected to falter a bit. But instead, it has continued to thrive.

Kyle Finnegan and Hunter Harvey have been able to hold down the fort in the back end, usually pitching the final two innings of close games. And Mason Thompson has stepped up to fill Edwards’ setup role ahead of them.

“Yeah, they've been really, really awesome,” Martinez said. “If we can get the ball to those guys, we got a good chance to win ballgames at the end.”

That came true in Friday night’s win over the Phillies.

PHILADELPHIA – The Nationals were riding high into Saturday’s late afternoon game against the Phillies.

One of their young starting pitchers tossed perhaps his best game as a major leaguer when Josiah Gray shoved for six innings of one-run ball in last night’s 2-1 win.

That set the Nats up today to win their third straight series and to do something they haven’t done since June 27-30, 2021: Have a winning streak longer than three games.

But that all came crashing down with today’s 19-4 thrashing by the Phillies, much to the delight of the 42,784 fans at Citizens Bank Park.

Score aside, the story of this one for the Nationals was MacKenize Gore’s early departure.

PHILADELPHIA – The Nationals are trying to get Joey Meneses right.

Despite a lack of power from the everyday designated hitter, Meneses has been one of the Nats’ more consistent hitters this year.

He enjoyed a career-best 18-game on-base streak from May 21 to June 11, during which he slashed .357/.430/.443 with an .873 OPS, four doubles, one triple, 10 RBI and nine walks to eight strikeouts.

But since that streak ended, he is slashing a paltry .179/.190/.250 with a .440 OPS, four doubles, seven RBIs and one walk to a staggering 18 strikeouts.

So for the fourth time in just over two weeks, Meneses will take a seat as the Nationals face Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler after he only missed a combined three games over the first 66 of the season (two of those games when he was placed on the paternity list for the birth of his first child).

PHILADELPHIA – Happy July, everyone! The second half of the Nationals' season is officially underway, as they have played 81 games with 81 to go, starting with this afternoon’s second game of a series against the Phillies.

The Nationals have a chance to do something they haven’t done since 2021: Go on a winning streak of more than three games. After winning their third straight last night behind a dominant start from Josiah Gray, the Nationals could also win their third straight series with a victory today.

To do so, they’ll hand the ball to MacKenzie Gore, who is 4-6 with a 3.89 ERA and 1.412 WHIP over his first 16 starts. The 24-year-old left-hander was strong in his last start, striking out nine Padres over five innings of one-run ball against his former team. He pitched a quality start against these Phillies a month ago in D.C., striking out six while allowing three runs over six innings. But ever his own biggest critic, Gore will be looking for more today.

Zack Wheeler will oppose Gore on the mound for the Phillies. The veteran right-hander is 6-4 with a 3.86 ERA and 1.179 WHIP over his 16 starts this year. He got crushed for seven runs and eight hits when he faced the Nats on June 2, the only game Washington won in that three-game series, so he too will be looking to improve today. 

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
Where: Citizens Bank Park
Gametime: 4:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 83 degrees, wind 10 mph out to center field

PHILADELPHIA – It was an easy move for the Nationals to make when they found out Patrick Corbin needed to go on the bereavement list for a family matter.

Corbin had just pitched a gem Wednesday in Seattle, leading the Nats to a 4-1 victory over the Mariners. His spot in the rotation won’t come up again until Tuesday against the Reds, so the Nats could add an arm to their bullpen for this weekend series against the Phillies.

Luck would have it Triple-A Rochester was playing a little over an hour away against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, the Phillies’ Triple-A affiliate. And with Jose A. Ferrer already on the 40-man roster, he could easily be activated to take Corbin’s spot on the active roster during the veteran starter’s time away from the team.

So it was that the Nats recalled Ferrer and had him meet the team in Philadelphia on Friday. After spending much of the season with no lefties in the bullpen, now Davey Martinez has two: Ferrer and Joe La Sorsa.

Ferrer flew up the Nats’ farm system last year. He went 3-2 with 11 saves, a 2.48 ERA, 0.995 WHIP, 78 strikeouts and just 11 walks in 65 ⅓ innings over 48 relief appearances between Single-A Fredericksburg, High-A Wilmington and Double-A Harrisburg last year. Among Nationals minor leaguers, the 23-year-old was third in saves and appearances.

PHILADELPHIA – The Phillies have been one of the hottest teams in June. Unfortunately, the Nationals can look back to when their rivals took two of three in D.C. at the beginning of the month as the turning point.

After the Nats won the first game on June 2, the Phillies won the next two to take the series. Entering this rematch at Citizens Bank Park, the Phils have gone 18-5 with a plus-39 run differential since June 3.

The Nationals needed to figure out a way to slow them down.

Enter Josiah Gray, who has had some past success in this ballpark in the form of a career-high 11-strikeout performance last July. The young right-hander didn’t quite reach that mark, but was just as impressive as he led the Nationals to a 2-1 win over the Phillies in front of 44,261 fans.

“It was a huge one," Gray said after the game. "Any win we get is huge. But yeah, this one definitely feels good. This is the last leg of our road trip and to start it off with a win, it means a lot.”

PHILADELPHIA – The Nationals have gone most of this season without a left-handed reliever in their bullpen.

Now they have two.

The Nationals recalled left-hander Jose A. Ferrer from Triple-A Rochester and placed Patrick Corbin on the bereavement list before tonight’s series opener against the Phillies.

“Patrick Corbin is on the bereavement list right now,” manager Davey Martinez said during his pregame meeting with the media. “So we thought we'd bring in Ferrer, one of our young left-handed relievers. Give him an opportunity, hopefully in the next couple of days. With all the lefties they got, get him in the game. So yeah, he'll be here and we'll see how it goes for him.”

Ferrer joins the Nats after his first taste of Triple-A ball, where he was 4-3 with a 3.83 ERA, 1.550 WHIP and 33 strikeouts in 40 innings over 34 appearances. The 23-year-old did not allow a run in his final five outings since June 17 while holding opponents to a .158 average (3-for-19) and striking out nine in six innings over that span.

PHILADELPHIA – Hello from the City of Brotherly love, where America’s pastime will be played by the team representing our nation’s capital and the team representing our nation’s former capital ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.

And welcome to the end of June and the actual midpoint of the major league season. Although some consider the All-Star break (the game's also known as the Midsummer Classic) as the halfway point of the season, after tonight’s game the Nationals will have played 81 of their scheduled 162 games.

The Nationals will turn to Josiah Gray to keep this 4-2 road trip going in a positive direction. The 25-year-old right-hander is 5-6 on the season with a 3.43 ERA and 1.399 WHIP. He pitched 5 ⅓ scoreless innings against the Padres in his previous start, but he was roughed up by this Phillies lineup for four runs over 5 ⅓ when he faced them at the beginning of the month. He has had some success in this ballpark, striking out a career-high 11 batters in a start last July.

Cristopher Sánchez gets the ball for the Phils in tonight’s opener. The 26-year-old southpaw is 0-1 with a 4.05 ERA and 1.050 WHIP over his three major league starts in 2023. Though this is his first time facing the Nats this year, he is 1-0 with a 7.11 ERA and 1.737 WHIP in five appearances (two starts) against them between 2021-22.

Tonight’s first pitch has apparently been delayed by a couple of minutes to accommodate the Phillies’ postgame fireworks. They want to make sure it’s actually dark outside for the show. Maybe the only downside to the pitch clock.

The Nationals will have two of their top prospects representing the organization at next month’s All-Star Futures Game.

Outfielder James Wood and third baseman Brady House have been selected to represent the Nats in the 2023 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, the announcement coming tonight on MLB Network.

Wood, 20, is the No. 5 prospect in baseball according to Baseball America and the No. 6 prospect per MLBPipeline.com’s recently updated rankings. As the Nats’ top overall prospect per both publications, he leads the Nats’ minor league system in home runs (12), RBIs (52), slugging percentage (.536), OPS (tied for first, .903), triples (six), extra-base hits (33) and total bases (128).

From April 25 to May 28, Wood posted a 30-game on-base streak, the longest active streak in all of Minor League Baseball at the time. He hit .299 with a .415 on-base percentage and a .626 slugging percentage during that stretch.

In 66 games between High-A Wilmington and Double-A Harrisburg, Wood has hit .272 with 15 doubles, six triples, 12 homers, 52 RBIs, 37 walks, 13 stolen bases and 46 runs scored. He was promoted to Harrisburg on May 28, an early promotion compared to some of the Nats’ top prospects of the past. In the week leading up his promotion to Double-A, Wood went 9-for-19 (.474) with a double, triple, three home runs, seven RBIs, four walks, two stolen bases and eight runs scored in his last five games with the Blue Rocks.

The Nationals made an interesting choice when placing Victor Robles back on the 10-day injured list with back spasms in the lumbar spine.

They could have recalled Alex Call, who was originally optioned down to Triple-A Rochester when Robles was activated Friday, even though it was within 10 days because he would have been replacing an injured player.

But they chose to select the contract of Derek Hill instead.

This is a developmental and evaluation year. The Nats have already seen 64 games of Call, who only hit .209 in the majors. Now it’s time to see what Hill has to offer. Plus, had he not strained his right hamstring in the beginning of March, Hill might have made the Opening Day roster out of spring training instead of Call or Stone Garrett.

“It feels great,” Hill said of being back in a major league clubhouse. “Obviously, this is the dream to play in the big leagues even if you've been here before. I'm just excited to come up here and do whatever I can to help the team.”

Although they lost an off-day, the Nationals were hoping to use this makeup game against the Diamondbacks to create some momentum before heading out on a nine-game road trip.

Yesterday’s win over the Cardinals was only their fourth since the start of June. Putting together back-to-back wins to end this homestand would have made for a happy flight out west.

Davey Martinez applauded his team for playing clean baseball during yesterday’s rainy conditions. But the Nats got sloppy again, committing two errors and allowing four unearned runs in a 5-3 loss to the D-backs in front of 13,251 fans who withstood the misty weather.

"We can't give good teams 28-29 outs. We can't," Martinez said after their 14th loss this month. "I think we had four unearned runs today. Take those away and we're right in the ballgame. So we gotta get better at that, we really do. And if we do that, we're going to be able to compete. So we got to just come back tomorrow and play a good, clean baseball game and see where we're at.”

Weird circumstances surrounded today’s getaway game, which technically was recognized as a one-game series since it was rescheduled from June 8 due to poor air quality in the D.C. area from the Canada wildfires.

Two weeks ago, the Nationals were looking at this date on the calendar and expecting to spend their off-day in sunny San Diego. But because of the postponement of the June 8 finale against the Diamondbacks due to the poor air quality from the Canada wildfires, they’re instead still in cloudy D.C. ready to play an early afternoon makeup game.

That made for an odd schedule this week to end this seven-game homestand before the team embarks on a nine-game road trip, which starts with six consecutive games on the West Coast. They had a late afternoon start on Monday for the Juneteenth federal holiday. They had another 4 p.m. start yesterday as it was still a getaway day for the Cardinals, who had a transatlantic flight to London to play two games against the Cubs. And now they have this early afternoon game against the D-backs, who arrived from Milwaukee last night and will also travel back to the West Coast tonight.

The lost off-day means the Nationals are in the middle of a stretch with games scheduled for 16 straight days. So Davey Martinez has to get creative in finding ways to give guys some rest.

“This would have been a nice day off for us, obviously,” the skipper said during his pregame press conference. “And it would have been in San Diego, which is kind of nice. But you know what, we got to play today. So I know these guys will be ready to play. But finding days off, we played so many days in a row.”

Today’s lineup against the Diamondbacks and left-handed starter Tommy Henry features some regulars getting the day off and some others playing in different positions.

And we’re back. After the Nationals finally got a win here yesterday to end their series against the Cardinals, they’re right back to play today’s makeup game against the Diamondbacks. What should have been the series finale between these two teams two weeks ago was postponed due to the poor air quality from the Canada wildfires to make this now a one-game series before both clubs head to the West Coast tonight.

Jake Irvin will make his ninth major league start this afternoon, seventh here at Nats Park. The rookie bounced back to pitch well on Saturday after having his spot in the rotation skipped the week before, tossing five innings of one-run ball against the Marlins. In his start against the D-backs two weeks ago, he gave up four runs (three earned), five hits and three walks in just four-plus innings.

In a rematch of that June 6 game against Irvin, Tommy Henry will start for the Diamondbacks. The 25-year-old left-hander was tagged for five runs over 4 ⅓ innings, including a grand slam by Stone Garrett in the second inning and a leadoff homer by Lane Thomas in the fifth. In his two starts since against the Phillies and Guardians, Henry gave up seven runs over 10 ⅔ innings for a 5.91 ERA.

While all day yesterday there was rain in the forecast for today, it now seems like we’ll be much drier this afternoon, with the rain supposedly not starting again until this evening.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, MLB.com
Weather: Cloudy, 67 degrees, wind 8 mph in from left field

There have been some very bizarre circumstances and confusing statements surrounding Victor Robles’ back injury.

It all started on May 7 when the 26-year-old first hurt his back while sliding into second base during a game against the Diamondbacks in Arizona. He was placed on the 10-day injured list the following day with what the team then called “back spasms.”

After a while, the injury was suspected to be more serious. It took Robles three weeks to start running and doing agility work. Then a few days later, he started taking full rounds of batting practice.

That was finally a sign he was improving and ready to start working his way back to the team. He started a rehab assignment with Triple-A Rochester on June 9 and reached base in all four games with the Red Wings, going 4-for-7 (.571) with a double, two home runs, five RBIs, a walk and five runs scored in his final two outings.

The time came Friday for Robles to be reinstated from the IL, with Alex Call being optioned down to Rochester. After his first three games back over the weekend, the oddities surrounding Robles were on display Monday and Tuesday.

The situation surrounding this afternoon’s finale between the Nationals and Cardinals was a tricky one.

Rain was in the forecast all day today in the District of Columbia, with only a brief window right around the 4:05 p.m. scheduled start time. The Nationals have a makeup game against the Diamondbacks scheduled for 1 p.m. tomorrow (with more rain in the forecast), with both teams traveling back to the West Coast afterward. And the Cardinals have a transatlantic flight out of D.C. tonight for their two-game weekend series against the Cubs in London.

All of that made for a lot of uncertainty on South Capitol Street.

But as if both teams understood the assignment of playing fast, the Nats and Cards were able to complete this one in a swift 2 hours and 12 minutes, with the home team finally emerging victorious 3-0 in front of a damp 16,191 fans.

This one couldn’t have been scripted better when it came to the weather. A drizzle started in the top of the second inning and had turned into actual rainfall as the game moved into the third.

An odd Tuesday night has turned into a busy Wednesday afternoon here at Nationals Park.

After some misplays in the field, a confrontation with MacKenzie Gore in the dugout and questions about his health, Victor Robles was placed back on the 10-day injured list today with back spasms in the lumbar spine, with the Nationals selecting the contract of Derek Hill from Triple-A Rochester to take his spot on the active roster

It was a rough couple of days in the field since Robles was reinstated from the IL on Friday after he seemingly recovered the same back spasms that had him inactive since May 8. On Monday, he got a late break on a ball over his head that turned into an RBI triple after he crashed into the wall trying to get back to make the catch. Then last night, he let a ball land in front of him while slowly moving to his left, leading to the animated discussion with Gore. Later in the game, he only made it to first base on a line drive off the left field wall and then struggled to go first-to-third on CJ Abrams’ double to right-center.

Davey Martinez mentioned after the game that he was going to have a discussion with Robles to see how he felt.

“We made a move today. We put Victor on the IL,” Martinez said before this afternoon’s finale against the Cardinals. “As I said last night, I was gonna have a conversation with him. I talked to him last night. I had to really stress that he needed to be honest with me. And he said he was a bit sore and that it bothered him running. It doesn't bother him hitting, it bothers him running.

It doesn’t get any easier to say, but it remains true: The Nationals need a win. Ideally, they would win their next two games to end this homestand on a somewhat positive note. They’re 0-5 since returning to D.C. last week and have only won two of their last 15 games.

Trevor Williams gets the start this afternoon in the finale against the Cardinals. The right-hander is 3-4 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.414 WHIP in his first 14 starts. He was roughed up for five runs over 4 ⅓ innings Friday against the Marlins.

Miles Mikolas gets the ball for St. Louis. The 34-year-old right-hander is 4-4 with a 4.36 ERA and 1.362 WHIP over his first 14 starts this season. He too has been beat up by opposing lineups recently, giving up 11 runs over 12 innings for an 8.25 ERA over his last two starts against the Reds and Mets.

The Nationals made a roster move this afternoon, placing Victor Robles back on the 10-day with back spasms in the lumbar spine and selected the contract of Derek Hill from Triple-A Rochester. Hill is immediately in the lineup, batting eighth and playing center field.

Unfortunately, there is rain in the forecast all day in the District. The Cardinals depart D.C. tonight for their two-game series against the Cubs in London this weekend, while the Nats have to bounce back for a makeup game against the Diamondbacks here tomorrow afternoon (which also has rain in the forecast) before they head to the West Coast for the fourth time.

After missing 33 games, Victor Robles finally returned to the Nationals lineup last night.

Before the series opener against the Marlins, a 6-5 loss, the Nationals returned Robles from his rehab assignment and reinstated him from the 10-day injured list while optioning Alex Call down to Triple-A Rochester. Robles had been on the IL since May 8 with what the team originally called back spasms.

But it turned out to be a slightly more serious back injury that kept him sidelined for over a month.

“When I first hit the injured list, the biggest thing I was very frustrated,” Robles said via interpreter Octavio Martinez. “Frustrated with the fact that I wasn't able to swing. I felt like my back was real tight and it made me immobile a little bit. But with the hard work of our trainers here, they've done a great job of trying to get me back on the field. And I still feel it a little bit running, but overall I feel good swinging the bat.”

He had no problem swinging the bat before the injury, hitting .292 with four doubles, a triple, eight RBIs, 10 walks, 13 runs and eight stolen bases in 31 games to start the season. And he picked up right where he left off when he was finally able to start a rehab assignment with Rochester, reaching base in all four games and going 4-for-7 (.571) with a double, two home runs, five RBIs, a walk and five runs scored in his final two outings with the Red Wings.