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Jim Riggleman got a handful of questions about the Nationals' odd-looking lineup today, which has Adam Kennedy leading off, Roger Bernadina hitting third, Adam Dunn hitting fifth and Nyjer Morgan hitting eighth. Essentially, Riggleman wanted to see Kennedy at the top of the lineup, and Ian Desmond has been hot this month in the No. 2 spot. He wanted to keep Dunn behind Zimmerman in the lineup, but the slugger continues to struggle, so both of them got dropped in the lineup, and Zimmerman is able to protect Bernadina this way. And Morgan, who is hitting .244 this month, doesn't have a great spot to play in the lineup when he's not at the top of it.
The overriding theme, though, is the need to shake things up: The Nationals have scored 11 runs in their last eight losses, and with an 8-17 record this month, August could turn out to be their worst month of the year.
"It's a results-oriented business, and we're in last place," Riggleman said. "I just don't feel like taking the attitude of, 'OK, we've got this. We're alright. We're in last, but we're alright.' I think you've got to, at some point, be a little proactive with it, just changing some things up there."
