Josh Bell will sit for the third straight game while dealing with a groin issue that kept him out of the lineup for the final two matchups in Cincinnati.

The Nationals designated hitter tweaked his right groin muscle running out a ground ball in the seventh inning of Friday night’s loss to the Reds. Manager Davey Martinez kept the 32-year-old out of the lineup for the final two games against the Reds as a precaution, especially due to the bad weather all weekend at Great American Ball Park.

But although Bell is feeling better, Martinez continues to practice caution, sitting him again for the opener against the Guardians, his former team.

“He's doing better. I'm being very cautious,” the skipper said during his pregame media session. “We have played in some bad weather. He's a big guy, so I want to make sure that he's OK. But he's definitely doing better. Yesterday he said he was a lot less sore than he was the day before, so that's good.”

Bell has struggled to start the season, hitting .139 with a .528 OPS in 30 games. Although, he is third on the team with five home runs and 14 RBIs. With him sidelined, Alex Call (and his .875 OPS) has the chance to play more, and is manning left field tonight while James Wood serves as the designated hitter.

After three straight rain-delayed games in Cincinnati, the Nationals return home to … more rain.

Yes, the weather for tonight’s series opener against the Guardians does not look promising, with thunderstorms projected to hit the area all night. The good news is this is the first game of this three-game set. The two teams play again tomorrow night and are scheduled to play a 12:05 p.m. game on Wednesday, leaving plenty of room for a possible doubleheader.

And although they would prefer not to lose an off-day, neither team is scheduled to play on Thursday, so could play each other then if need be.

Jake Irvin is slated to make his eighth start of the season tonight, bringing a 2-1 record, 4.01 ERA and 1.125 WHIP to the mound. After a stretch of three consecutive strong outings, the right-hander was roughed up in his last start, allowing six runs in six innings against the Phillies.

Luis Ortiz will take the mound for the Guardians. The 26-year-old right-hander is 2-3 with a 4.78 ERA and 1.406 WHIP in his first six starts with Cleveland since being acquired via trade in the offseason.

CINCINNATI – The Nationals’ 4-1 victory over the Reds early Sunday evening was made possible by MacKenzie Gore’s gutsy five innings in the rain, and by Luis García Jr. and CJ Abrams’ clutch hits in the seventh that gave them the lead for good.

But the only way the Nats were going to be able to celebrate the win at the end of a long weekend and an even longer road trip was for their bullpen to protect that three-run lead.

It may not sound like much of an accomplishment. Bullpens should be counted on to protect three-run leads, yes? This bullpen, of course, did very little in the season’s first month to deserve that kind of trust.

But over the last several days, beginning Thursday in Philadelphia and continuing throughout the weekend in Cincinnati, the Nationals relief corps started pitching like a more reliable unit. And so by the time they took the mound at Great American Ball Park on Sunday, there seemed to be less fear of pending disaster and more confidence about a job well done than there had been at any previous point this year.

It all started with Jorge López, who was given the ball for the bottom of the sixth in relief of Gore. Like the bullpen as a whole, the veteran right-hander endured through a miserable opening month, owner of a 10.57 ERA on April 16 after he was ejected for allegedly throwing at the Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen.

The Orioles won’t face a left-handed starter this week in Minnesota, denying them a chance to improve on a 2-9 record but also eliminating the possibility that it gets worse.

They couldn’t score Saturday in a combined seven innings against Kris Bubic and Daniel Lynch IV. Of course, the two right-handers who followed also shut them out.

Yesterday began with the club batting .174 with a .490 OPS against lefties, the lowest in baseball. The Royals started veteran right-hander Michael Lorenzo and he surrendered a career-high four home runs to match his season total. So yes, the Orioles lost but they did better against righties.

“Obviously, been a bit of a struggle for us,” said major league coach Buck Britton, in his first season on the staff after managing at Triple-A Norfolk. “We actually just had a conversation in the clubhouse today with the hitting coaches and it’s back to the drawing board.

“I feel like we’ve got a great training environment. But yeah, it’s out there and we’ve got to get out in front of it. I don’t know if there’s an easy fix, but we have the talent in there to make adjustments and get this ship back on the right track, so I’m looking forward to that.”

CINCINNATI – MacKenzie Gore survived the rain and mud, digging deep to keep this afternoon’s series finale under control just as it looked like it might slip away.

And because the burgeoning ace was able to do that, Luis García Jr. and CJ Abrams were able to provide the necessary late offensive fireworks that allowed the Nationals to celebrate a 4-1 victory with the sun finally shining at the end of a long, rain-soaked weekend at Great American Ball Park.

With Gore surviving a harrowing top of the fifth as the heavens unloaded on him, and his teammates rallying for three runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead for good, the Nats closed out an eventful road trip in enjoyable fashion. They took two of three from the Reds and salvaged a 3-3 week away from home that began with a tough series in Philadelphia.

“You look at it as: We played really well the last four games of the road trip,” said Gore of a ballclub that’s now 16-19 on the season and 15-13 since a miserable opening week. “We’re playing well. We’re a run away from being in a great spot. We just have to keep showing up and expecting to win every day, and good things will happen.”

The major league leader in strikeouts entering the day, Gore pretty clearly had sharp stuff from the get-go today. Even though he opened his start allowing back-to-back singles, each came on a ground ball that didn’t leave the infield. And he had little trouble getting out of the inning without anybody crossing the plate, recording his first strikeout of the afternoon to strand a pair on base.

Orioles reliever Yennier Cano stood with his hands on his hips. He did it once, twice, as if in a state of disbelief.

He had no other reaction. The season hadn’t prepared him for it.

Cano surrendered his first earned runs in 13 appearances and his first homers, with the Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino going back-to-back to break a tie in the seventh in an 11-6 victory over the Orioles before an announced crowd of 31,956 at Camden Yards.

Kansas City began the series ranked last in the majors with 15 homers, but they set the club record with seven today and have 10 over the past two games. The Orioles hit four, including a pair from Jackson Holliday, and fell way short, lowering their record to 13-20 as they ready for their next road trip following an off-day.

Every homer today was a solo on Star Wars Weekend until Michael Massey’s two-run shot off Matt Bowman in the ninth. The jokes write themselves.

CINCINNATI – The Nationals haven’t decided the plan for Michael Soroka yet, but they have decided to give Brad Lord at least one more start in the interim.

Lord is listed as Tuesday night’s starter against the Guardians, staying on turn behind Jake Irvin, who will pitch Monday night’s series opener at Nationals Park. The team has Wednesday’s starter listed as “TBA,” with Soroka a possible candidate to return from a five-week stint on the injured list.

Lord replaced Soroka in the rotation when the latter suffered a right biceps strain during his March 31 season debut in Toronto. The rookie, who opened the year in the bullpen, has slowly been building his arm up since then and Thursday night in Philadelphia reached the sixth inning for the first time in the majors.

Lord has allowed only two runs in each of his last three starts and overall has a 4.43 ERA in eight appearances (five of them starts). He’ll now get a chance to make his sixth start, after which the team will need to decide whether to keep him in the rotation, send him back to the bullpen or option him to Triple-A Rochester to keep him on a starter’s schedule in case the team needs him again in the near future.

Soroka was dominant Friday in his third minor league rehab start, striking out 11 batters over five innings of one-run ball, throwing 94 pitches. The 27-year-old, who was signed for $9 million over the winter, appears ready to go, but the Nationals aren’t making any declarations about the plan for him until they see him throw again Monday when the team returns home.

CINCINNATI – We’ve made it to the end of the series and the end of the road trip, and today’s finale feels like it carries some significance for the Nationals. A win today would secure a weekend series win over the Reds and a 3-3 trip overall against two opponents who are over .500 and have postseason visions. All things considered, that would be just fine for the Nats.

They’ve got their ace on the mound, with MacKenzie Gore looking for his sixth straight start of at least six innings. All but one of those have been a quality start – he gave up four runs in six innings to the Marlins – but he’s surrendered at least two runs in each of them. The point: Gore has been good, not necessarily great, so far this year. He does, of course, enter the day as the league leader in strikeouts, and he’ll have an opportunity to add to his lead in this one.

The Nationals face veteran right-hander Nick Martinez, who after several seasons as a reliever is now a full-time starter. He was the owner of a 6.00 ERA a couple weeks ago, but he’s been better since and in his last start held the Cardinals to one run over six innings to earn his first win.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CINCINNATI REDS
Where: Great American Ball Park
Gametime: 4:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 87.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Slight chance of rain, 57 degrees, wind 6 mph right field to left field

NATIONALS
SS CJ Abrams
3B Amed Rosario
DH James Wood
1B Nathaniel Lowe
C Keibert Ruiz
2B Luis García Jr. 
LF Alex Call
RF Dylan Crews
CF Jacob Young

The Orioles close out their series against the Royals today at rainy Camden Yards with Coby Mayo at third base and Maverick Handley catching.

This is Handley’s first major league start. Adley Rutschman is the designated hitter.

Ryan O’Hearn is in right field. Heston Kjerstad is in left.

Kyle Gibson makes his second start after signing with the Orioles and going through a buildup. He surrendered five home runs to the Yankees before the end of the second inning and allowed nine runs and 11 hits in 3 2/3.

Gibson is 11-6 with a 4.00 ERA and 1.300 WHIP in 28 career games (26 starts) versus the Royals.

Coby Mayo was heading to Baltimore yesterday as the Orioles posted their lineup against Royals left-hander Kris Bubic, the owner of reverse splits and a dominant start against them last month in Kansas City.

Emmanuel Rivera started at third base with Jordan Westburg and now Ramón Urías on the injured list. The Royals close out the series today with right-hander Michael Lorenzen, who shows a slight reversal in career splits with right-handers batting .252 with a .715 OPS and left-handers batting .231 with a .705 OPS.

The splits are more pronounced this season. Right-handers are batting .279 with an .884 OPS and left-handers are batting .225 with a .559 OPS in his six starts.

Mayo has a chance to crack the lineup, whether at third base or first. He’s made an equal number of starts at each position with Triple-A Norfolk, and observers say he’s improved.

One of them sat in the Orioles’ clubhouse yesterday, with a better shot at starting today – weather permitting, of course – because Adley Rutschman caught last night.

The Orioles’ best starter warmed in the bullpen, retired the side in order in the first inning on only nine pitches and sat, waited and wondered if he’d get back on the mound.

Long rain delays are the enemy of every manager who detests an unplanned bullpen game.

Tomoyuki Sugano wasn’t done, warming again and returning after a 57-minute stoppage. Large puddles had formed in front of the home dugout area. Sugano looked for a while like he’d make the night’s biggest splash.

Sugano’s scoreless streak reached 14 innings before the Royals pushed across a run in the fourth. Cavan Biggio hit his first home run in the fifth, and the Orioles still couldn’t solve Royals left-hander Kris Bubic in a 4-0 loss before an announced crowd of 19,348 at soggy Camden Yards.

The Orioles were trying to win three in a row for the first time since the three-game series in Minnesota that ended the 2024 regular season. Instead, they were shut out for the fifth time.

CINCINNATI – Amed Rosario had already hit the ball hard three times tonight, with only minimal production to show for it. By the time he stepped up to the plate a fourth time to face Nick Lodolo, the veteran Nationals infielder had to like his chances of doing it again. And perhaps finally having something real to show for it.

Sure enough, Rosario delivered. His three-run homer to center in the top of the sixth gave the Nats a lead they would not relinquish during what wound up a satisfying, 11-6 victory over the Reds.

That big blast capped a four-RBI night for Rosario, who got the nod at third base against Cincinnati’s left-handed starter and got four chances to face him. His first two at-bats produced loud outs, both in the air to center field. His third found the gap in left-center for an RBI double. But it was his fourth that made the most impact, literally and figuratively.

Stepping to the plate with two on and one out in a tie game, with Lodolo still on the mound for the Reds, Rosario saw a belt-high changeup over the plate and belted it 408 feet to center field. He cruised around the bases to cheers from the visitors’ dugout.

“I was prepared since my first at-bat,” Rosario said, via interpreter Mauricio Ortiz. “But of course towards the second and third, I kind of knew what he was going to throw.”

The Orioles have made the following roster moves:

• Recalled INF Coby Mayo from Triple-A Norfolk.
• Placed INF Ramón Urías (right hamstring strain) on the 10-day Injured List, retroactive to May 1.

CINCINNATI – Josh Bell is out of the Nationals lineup tonight after tweaking his right groin muscle running out a ground ball during Friday night’s loss to the Reds.

Bell said he hurt himself trying to beat out a seventh-inning grounder to the right side of the infield, walking gingerly back to the dugout after making the out. Davey Martinez sent Amed Rosario out to pinch-hit for him in the top of the ninth.

Though Bell said he feels OK today, Martinez decided not to take a chance on a rainy night at Great American Ball Park.

“He’s better, but he’s a little sore,” the manager said. “So we’ll give him another day. And the weather, not wanting him to go out there in the wet, we’ll keep him down. He’s going to try to hit later, and hopefully he’s available to pinch-hit.”

Bell produced the Nationals’ lone run in their 6-1 loss, connecting for a solo homer in the fifth inning off Cincinnati ace Hunter Greene. The 32-year-old continues to endure through a rough start to his season, owner of a mere .528 OPS despite five home runs.

The Orioles lost one of their most versatile players and productive hitters in the latest injury to strike the club.

Ramón Urías is on the 10-day injured list with a hamstring strain that manager Brandon Hyde described today as “mild.” The move is retroactive to Thursday, making Urías eligible to return on May 11.

Coby Mayo, the No. 2 prospect in the system and 12^th in baseball per MLB Pipeline, was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk as the corresponding move.

Urías played Wednesday night and went 2-for-4 with a home run. He reached on an infield single in the eighth inning.

The Orioles had Urías starting at third base yesterday but he was scratched due to the sore hamstring. Emmanuel Rivera replaced him, had an RBI single in the seventh inning and is at third base again tonight.

CINCINNATI – It’s been raining here all day, but there might be just enough of a break in the precipitation for the Nationals and Reds to get tonight’s game in as scheduled, or perhaps slightly delayed. Fingers crossed.

The Nats look to bounce back after Friday night’s rain-delayed, 6-1 loss that featured very little offense and an early deficit created by Mitchell Parker. They really need to flip the script, getting Trevor Williams through the early innings with zeros on the board and plating a run or two so they have a chance to play with the lead.

Williams is coming off a rough one against the Mets in which he surrendered five runs in 5 1/3 innings, suffering his third loss of the season. (Notably, he was charged with only one loss in 13 starts last year.) Williams has actually thrown 99 pitches each of his last two starts; it will be interesting to see if Davey Martinez pushes him that far again or pulls the plug around the 80-pitch mark, hoping to avoid late damage. The good news: All of his so-called top relievers are available, including Kyle Finnegan, Jose A. Ferrer, Jorge Lopez and the newly acquired Andrew Chafin.

A Nationals lineup that was mowed down by right-hander Hunter Greene on Friday faces left-hander Nick Lodolo tonight. The 27-year-old has been excellent so far this season, with a 2.25 ERA and 0.861 WHIP in six starts. Interestingly, though, he has only 27 strikeouts in 36 innings. He has also walked only five batters. Point is: Look for plenty of contact tonight.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CINCINNATI REDS
Where: Great American Ball Park
Gametime: 6:40 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 87.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Rain diminishing, 54 degrees, wind 10 mph left field to right field

The Orioles have posted their lineup but didn’t announce a roster move.

Coby Mayo is in Baltimore.

Ramón Urías isn’t in the lineup after the Orioles scratched him yesterday with a sore hamstring. Emmanuel Rivera is starting at third base and Jorge Mateo is at second versus Royals left-hander Kris Bubic.

Ramón Laureano is in left field and Heston Kjerstad is in right.

For the Orioles

Corner infielder Coby Mayo is heading to Baltimore today, which could lead to another promotion to the majors or placement on the 24-hour taxi squad.

Update: Mayo is expected to be recalled.

Ramón Urías was scratched from last night’s lineup with a sore hamstring. Manager Brandon Hyde said after a 3-0 win over the Royals that the Orioles weren’t sure about Urías status moving forward.

“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow,” Hyde said.

Urías would be the 14^th player to go on the injured list. His playing time increased with Jordan Westburg sidelined by a hamstring strain, and he’s batting .292/.354/.403 with two doubles, two home runs and nine RBIs in 22 games.

Tomoyuki Sugano starts tonight against the Royals at Camden Yards and Kyle Gibson takes his second turn on Sunday, hoping to make a much better second impression. The Orioles are off again Monday and fly to Minnesota for a road trip that also makes a stop in Anaheim.

Charlie Morton will sit in the home and visiting bullpens, where he’s operated since Game 2 of last weekend’s doubleheader in Detroit. He was listed as the starter but followed Keegan Akin.

Morton fell to 0-6 after allowing three runs and walking five batters in 3 2/3 innings. It took until his seventh appearance to avoid a losing decision after holding the Yankees to an unearned run in 2 1/3 innings.

The relief unit could use a long man with Albert Suárez out for an extended period with a shoulder strain. Morton wasn’t supposed to be a candidate, but the Orioles are trying to fix the 18-year veteran.

“We moved him to the bullpen in an attempt to get him going,” said executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias. “There’s still things, his stuff, basically, that presents some reason for optimism. But he’s extremely frustrated and disappointed with his start.

CINCINNATI – One starter couldn’t throw strikes. The other was blowing away hitters with one of the best arsenals in baseball. Together, it made for a bad combination for the Nationals.

With Mitchell Parker issuing five walks in his second consecutive shaky outing, and with Hunter Greene racking up 12 strikeouts in six innings against a helpless lineup, the Nats stood no chance tonight in their series opener at Great American Ball Park, falling 6-1 to the Reds in a game that never really felt within reach.

Parker dug his team into an early hole and didn’t make it to the fifth inning for the first time this season. Greene took full advantage of the cushion his teammates provided him and went right after the Nationals, who could only muster a ton of foul balls against the young Cincinnati hurler on a frustrating night that also included a lengthy rain delay.

“He’s their ace,” manager Davey Martinez said. “He was good tonight.”

Command hadn’t been a problem for Parker through the season’s first month. He issued only 11 walks through his first 32 innings, and not surprisingly boasted a 1.39 ERA at the time.