Was Monday night’s ugly loss to the Rockies an aberration, or have the Nationals reverted back into the form they showed prior to their weekend sweep of the Giants? Guess we’ll find out tonight when they return to the field looking to bounce back.

They’re facing an opposing starter they’ve had some success against in Austin Gomber. The Colorado left-hander enters with a 6.18 ERA and 22 homers allowed in 102 innings this season, and that includes his start way back on April 8 when the Nats scored five runs in 4 2/3 innings off him. And that doesn’t include the two starts Gomber made against the Nationals last season, when they scored 10 runs on 14 hits across eight total innings.

Davey Martinez's lineup has a few wrinkles to it: Joey Meneses is playing first base tonight with Keibert Ruiz serving as designated hitter, opening the catching spot for Riley Adams. All of that bumps Dominic Smith to the bench. Also on the bench is Luis García, who takes a seat as Michael Chavis starts at second base.

Trevor Williams happened to oppose Gomber in that April 8 game at Coors Field and pitched much better than his counterpart, allowing two runs over 5 1/3 innings. Williams continues to give the Nationals a chance most times he takes the mound, though his record is only 5-5 thanks to a lot of no-decisions. He’ll hope to get back in the win column tonight.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. COLORADO ROCKIES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Chance of storms, 81 degrees, wind 6 mph out to left field

Jeimer Candelario tries his best not to think about it. There’s always another game to prepare for, batting practice to take, grounders to field. That’s how he keeps his mind off the subject everyone else wants to bring up with him: Next week’s trade deadline.

“You know how it is: I want to be able to live day by day,” the Nationals third baseman said. “I know the deadline is there, but I don’t want to pay attention to that. I want to keep going, helping my team where I’m at. Right now, I’m here. And I want to control what I can control right here.”

The Nationals have no superstars on the block this late July. Max Scherzer and Trea Turner were dealt two summers ago. Juan Soto and Josh Bell were dealt last year. The best chip they’ve got is Candelario, who is enjoying a strong season and is due to be a free agent, and that makes him far and away the most likely player on the roster to be moved before the Aug. 1 deadline.

Candelario, who signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Nats last winter after getting non-tendered by the Tigers, has professed his desire to stay in D.C. He’s performed well, and on Monday night delivered his 16th homer of the season to match Lane Thomas for the team lead, to go along with 28 doubles, 50 RBIs and an .821 OPS. He’s also played solid defense and would be a welcome addition for any contending team in need of help at third base.

Despite the noise surrounding him, Candelario has managed to continue to play well. He’s now hit six homers in July, more than any previous month.

Remember how everything went so well for the Nationals over the weekend? How they played crisp, clean, aggressive, winning baseball against the contending Giants and emerged with their first three-game sweep in more than two years?

Well, the Nats took the field tonight looking to keep those positive vibes going against the National League’s worst team and proceeded not to do anything they did well the previous three days.

During the course of a 10-6 loss to the Rockies, the Nationals looked nothing like the best version of themselves that had just been on display. They got a poor start out of Patrick Corbin. They did next-to-nothing at the plate against a couple of unheralded Colorado pitchers. They were charged with two errors in the field. They ran into one of the most egregious outs on the bases you’ll see all year. They were called for a balk when the pitcher turned to make a pickoff attempt at first base only to realize the runner wasn’t being held on.

"We made some mistakes," manager Davey Martinez said. "A couple of mistakes uncharacteristic to ourselves."

So it was the Nats failed to pull off their first four-game winning streak since June 27-30, 2021, back when Kyle Schwarber was launching home runs and Trea Turner was hitting for the cycle for a ballclub that believed it could compete for another World Series title.

Victor Robles bounded into the Nationals clubhouse this afternoon, bursting with the kind of energy that can mean only one thing: The injured outfielder is in a good mood about the current state of his body.

“Much better, thanks,” Robles said when asked how he’s feeling before making a beeline for Davey Martinez’s office to update the manager on the condition of his back.

Robles has played in only 36 games this season, only five since May 6 when he suffered his initial back injury sliding into second base in Arizona. After rehabbing that injury and returning to the active roster about six weeks later, he reinjured himself trying to make a lunging catch in center field before crashing into the wall.

That was five weeks ago. Robles has spent the bulk of that time at the Nationals’ spring training complex in West Palm Beach, Fla., rehabbing and getting treatment. He still hasn’t progressed to the point where he’s doing any baseball activities, but the team is moving his home base back to D.C. to keep a closer eye on him and monitor his progress in person.

“I talked to him for a little bit in my office and he said he feels much better,” Martinez said. “We want to get eyes on him, get him moving around a little bit, and then we’ll go from there. He always has that bubbly energy, but it’s good to see him here.”

Anything interesting happen over the weekend? Sheesh, you take a few days off for a quick family vacation, and look what happens. The Nationals sign and introduce first-round pick Dylan Crews, then go and pull off their first three-game sweep in more than two years. At this point, I’m just hoping they let me back in the ballpark today.

The weekend sweep came against a good Giants team. Next up is a three-game series with the Rockies, the worst team in the National League. That guarantees nothing, of course, but the matchup on paper should favor the home team.

The Nats lineup really produced against San Francisco and will now try to continue that trend against a Colorado pitching staff that ranks last in the league in most categories. Right-hander Jake Bird will open tonight’s game, but based on past usage don’t expect him to go more than an inning or two.

Patrick Corbin gets the start for the Nationals, who would love to get at least six innings out of their veteran left-hander. Corbin was excellent for five innings last week against the Cubs before faltering in the sixth.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. COLORADO ROCKIES
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 7:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 82 degrees, wind 8 mph out to left field

CHICAGO – Rarely does a team deal away two stars, one of them a surefire Hall of Famer, in one trade deadline transaction. Now consider how rare it is for a team to do that two years in a row.

Suffice it to say, the Nationals’ 2021 and 2022 trade deadline moves were highly unusual. Teams just don’t generally put the likes of Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, Juan Soto and Josh Bell all on the trade block in the span of 12 months. Whether they should’ve done that or not is an old debate at this point. It’s too late now to change history.

What isn’t debatable is the significance of the Scherzer/Turner deal to the Dodgers in 2021 and the Soto/Bell deal to the Padres in 2022. Those two moves alone netted the Nationals four current young major leaguers, one of the highest-rated prospects in baseball, two more who could reach the majors in the coming years and two others who to date haven’t panned out.

“I think we impacted our franchise greatly,” general manager Mike Rizzo said this week when asked to look back at his last two deadlines. “I think that we put the rebuild process in overdrive. And I think that we’re further along than if we hadn’t done those two trade deadlines.”

We’re now 12 days away from this year’s trade deadline (Aug. 1), and this much is clear: While the Nationals do have a few quality players who could be attractive to contenders, they don’t have anyone who compares to the aforementioned fabulous four. There are no franchise-altering deals to be made this time, only some calculated transactions and some interesting decisions to be made on a few guys who still could or could not be part of the Nationals’ long-term plans.

CHICAGO – With a chance to win another road series, with a chance to use their few remaining reliable relievers late, the Nationals yet again put themselves in position to emerge victorious.

This time, despite an inspired rally to tie the game in the eighth, they watched as one of those few trusted relievers gave up the eventual winning run minutes later. Then they watched as one of the unproven relievers turned this game into another rout in a matter of seconds.

Mason Thompson, entrusted with a tie game in the bottom of the eighth, was the pitcher of record in what finished as an 8-3 loss to the Cubs. Cory Abbott gave up the grand slam that blew things wide open after Thompson was pulled with the bases loaded later in the inning.

Through injuries, demotions, promotions and a flurry of transactions in recent weeks, the Nats bullpen has devolved into a mess in its current incarnation. There's no immediate help coming. They have no choice but to keep putting the same group on the mound and hope things will finally click.

"It's still the same game," Thompson said. "At the end of the day, we've just got to go out there and do a better job of helping the team win."

CHICAGO – The Nationals made yet another bullpen move today, calling up recently acquired right-hander Rico Garcia from Triple-A Rochester and placing Paolo Espino on the 15-day injured list with a flexor strain in his right ring finger.

It’s the club’s 10th bullpen change in six weeks, evidence of a revolving door unit that has dealt both with injuries and poor performances from those who have tried to fill the void.

Garcia only joined the organization one week ago when he signed a minor league deal after getting released by the Athletics, for whom he posted an 8.31 ERA in seven appearances. The 29-year-old wound up pitching only twice for Rochester before getting the call he was reporting to Chicago to join the big league staff.

“Everything kind of happened so quickly,” Garcia said. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity to be here.”

The 5-foot-9 Hawaii native has endured through a winding professional career that has included major league stints with the Rockies, Giants, Orioles and A’s. In total he’s pitched 27 big league games, producing a 6.89 ERA and 1.837 WHIP.

CHICAGO – As ugly as Tuesday night – and oh boy was it ugly – the Nationals still arrive at Wrigley Field today with a chance to win this series and head home with a 3-3 record on the second-half-opening trip. Even better news: The two semi-reliable relievers they still have are both available.

Kyle Finnegan and Mason Thompson are good to go if the situation presents itself in the late innings. So is Jordan Weems, who hasn’t appeared since Sunday in St. Louis. So the key, then, is for Trevor Williams to at least provide five (ideally six) quality innings and give his a team a chance, which is basically what he’s done all year. Williams is plenty fresh, because his last start was cut short after 2 2/3 innings due to rain. So there’s no reason he can’t reach, or even top, 100 pitches tonight if he’s performing well enough.

Veteran right-hander Kyle Hendricks starts for the Cubs, and he has allowed nine runs, 18 hits and six homers over his last 10 1/3 innings after pitching quite well prior to that. Hendricks isn’t an overpowering guy; his changeup is his go-to pitch. It’s imperative for these Nationals hitters to stay patient with him and not get jumpy at the plate.

The Nationals announced some roster moves this afternoon, selecting the contract of right-hander Rico Garcia from Triple-A Rochester, placing Paolo Espino on the 15-day injured list with a flexor strain of his fourth right finger and transferred Israel Pineda (right finger fracture) to the 60-day IL.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CHICAGO CUBS
Where: Wrigley Field
Gametime: 8:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 76 degrees, wind 7 mph right field to left field

CHICAGO – It's been quite an eventful start to the second half of the season. The Nationals experienced three rain delays in St. Louis, winning a suspended game in extra innings before dropping the other two. They saw their closer land on the injured list and their best trade chip suffer an injury that fortunately didn't linger for long.

Since arriving in Chicago, the Nats have won a game behind the efforts of their two remaining reliable relievers, then lost the next night after the rest of that bullpen allowed 14 runs in two innings. Yes, that's 14 runs in two innings.

On the minor league level, they promoted one of their top prospects to Double-A, they signed a bunch of recent draft picks (including two guys well above slot value) and are now just trying to lock up their No. 1 pick before next week's deadline.

Oh, and the trade deadline is fast approaching, as well.

Given all that, this seems like a good time to take your questions. Submit them in the comments section below, then check back throughout the morning for my responses ...

CHICAGO – Davey Martinez knew it was probably going to come to this tonight. With Mason Thompson and Kyle Finnegan having both pitched 1 1/3 innings in order to seal Monday night’s win over the Cubs, the Nationals manager was going to have to entrust some high-leverage situations to young, untested relievers in this game.

So it was no surprise when the bullpen door underneath the right field bleachers opened up in the sixth and seventh innings of a tight ballgame and out trotted Amos Willingham and Jose A. Ferrer. Sadly, it may not have surprised many when those two rookies – and then journeyman Paolo Espino – imploded before everyone's eyes, combining to allow an astounding 14 runs and turn a tight ballgame into a farcical, 17-3 loss.

This is the current state of the Nationals bullpen. With Hunter Harvey (elbow strain) and Carl Edwards Jr. (shoulder inflammation) on the injured list, Martinez has only two semi-proven late-inning options in Thompson and Finnegan. And when he needed those two to record the final eight outs of Monday’s 7-5 win, he left himself with no choice but to see how these newcomers might handle a big moment.

It did not go well.

Willingham, a 2019 17th round pick who hadn’t pitched above Single-A before this season, got out of a sixth-inning jam but did not retire any of the four batters he faced in the seventh. Patrick Wisdom homered to open that inning, and three singles followed before Martinez pulled the 24-year-old.

CHICAGO – Brady House’s double-promotion in the last month from Single-A Fredericksburg to High-A Wilmington to Double-A Harrisburg was an aggressive one, Mike Rizzo readily admits. But the Nationals general manager believes the 2021 first-round pick can handle that jump, and didn’t hesitate to make the move earlier today.

“We just thought he was ready,” Rizzo said. “We’re going to challenge him to the next level, and we’ll see how he does. No expectations. It’s an aggressive level for him.”

House, the 11th overall pick two summers ago from Winder-Barrow (Ga.) High School, has enjoyed a major bounceback season after spending much of 2022 on the injured list dealing with a nagging back ailment. The organization had him return to Fredericksburg to begin the season, but promoted him to Wilmington one month ago and then watched him continue to perform at a high level.

House posted a .908 OPS in 16 games at High-A, even better than the .869 mark he produced in 36 games at Single-A. He also took well to his position switch from shortstop third base, all of which convinced the Nationals he was ready for another jump so soon.

“With the transformation over to third base, I think he feels very comfortable defensively,” Rizzo said. “And he’s done so well offensively, we felt he was going to end the season at Double-A anyway in our minds. So when he was performing so well, we thought: ‘He’s performing well. We’ll get him to Double-A, since he’s going there anyways.’”

CHICAGO – The Nationals threw the kitchen sink at the Cubs in order to win Monday night’s series opener, with MacKenzie Gore reaching the seventh inning and Mason Thompson and Kyle Finnegan each recording four outs to lock up a 7-5 victory. It’s safe to say they won’t be able to do the same tonight, assuming both Thompson and Finnegan are unavailable.

So if the Nats are in a position to win late, it’ll be fascinating to see who Davey Martinez puts on the mound. He mentioned Jordan Weems, Amos Willingham and lefties Jose A. Ferrer and Joe La Sorsa following Monday’s game. That would be quite a collection of inexperienced late-inning options.

First things first. Patrick Corbin needs to give them a chance to win. The left-hander was great in two of his last four starts (against the Mariners and Rangers) but was hit around in the other two (against the Padres and Reds). Which version of Corbin, who was activated off paternity leave Monday, will show up tonight at Wrigley Field?

With right-hander Jameson Taillon on the mound for the Cubs, it’s the lefty-heavy version of the Nationals lineup taking the field. That means Corey Dickerson starts in left field over Stone Garrett, even though Garrett (.650) at this point actually owns a higher OPS against right-handed pitchers than Dickerson (.619).

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CHICAGO CUBS
Where: Wrigley Field
Gametime: 8:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 72 degrees, wind 8 mph in from right field

CHICAGO – Though he had his moments in the first half of the season, CJ Abrams wasn’t fully satisfied with his performance at the plate or in the field. He knows what success feels like, and this wasn’t meeting that standard.

So, the Nationals’ young shortstop set about to make strides, especially in his approach at the plate. And slowly but surely, he began seeing positive results.

Those positive results weren’t lost on manager Davey Martinez, who had been waiting all year for the right moment to bump Abrams up to the leadoff spot in his lineup. Three days before the All-Star break, Martinez decided the time was right.

Abrams has since done his part to validate that decision. And on Monday, he received outside validation for his efforts, winning the first National League Player of the Week award of his young career.

“It feels good to be able to see what hard work can do,” Abrams said. “The last few weeks I’ve been putting a lot of work in with (hitting coach Darnell Coles). It just feels good to be able to go out there and do my thing.”

CHICAGO – Whether it was a concession to a depleted bullpen that is running out of experienced late-inning arms or a concerted attempt to push a young starting pitcher to a place he hasn’t been often but eventually will need to reach, MacKenzie Gore took the mound for the bottom of the seventh tonight at Wrigley Field.

This was only the third time in Gore’s young career he had seen the seventh, the second time this season. His pitch count stood at 93. He was working on 10 full days of rest, and his previous start only lasted 17 pitches because of a rain delay.

Davey Martinez watched from the dugout as the 24-year-old left-hander promptly served up a two-run homer to Patrick Wisdom on his 106th pitch of the night, forcing the Nationals manager to entrust the rest of the game to that depleted bullpen.

A depleted bullpen that still managed to get the final eight outs from Mason Thompson and Kyle Finnegan required to lock up a 7-5 victory over the Cubs that tested everyone’s nerves and hearts.

"You can't say enough good things about the bats today," Gore said. "And Finny and Mason going an inning-plus, they've been doing that all year. You can't say enough good things about them." 

CHICAGO – Hunter Harvey’s MRI revealed a mild right elbow strain, an injury that will sideline the Nationals reliever for a while but was still described as “good news” by manager Davey Martinez, who feared worse.

“Best-case scenario for us,” Martinez said. “We’re going to shut him down for 10 days, and he’ll resume his throwing. We’ll just let it calm down a little bit and build some strength up and get him back as soon as we possibly can.”

Harvey, who reported soreness in his arm after pitching a 1-2-3 bottom of the 10th Saturday in St. Louis despite diminished fastball velocity, was officially placed on the 15-day injured list today. The Nationals were prepared to make that transaction no matter the severity of the injury, but club officials were relieved to learn the injury wasn’t more serious or would require surgery.

“Especially with his history, and the way he was feeling, I was very concerned,” Martinez said. “But this came out great. They said everything looks great. He just has a little mild strain in there, and he should be back.”

Harvey’s career has been littered with IL stints, the vast majority of those coming while he was a member of the Orioles organization from the day he was drafted in 2013 until he was placed on waivers after the 2021 season. He did miss 2 1/2 months with a forearm strain last summer after joining the Nats, but he had been a durable fixture in the bullpen since, making 73 big league appearances in the last calendar year with no health issues.

CHICAGO – The sky is blue, there’s a nice cool breeze blowing in off Lake Michigan and most importantly there’s no rain in the forecast. Ahhhhhhh, we earned this one after a brutal weather weekend in St. Louis.

The Nationals come to Wrigley Field for a three-game series with several changes to their roster. Hunter Harvey was officially placed on the 15-day injured list with what the team is now calling a right elbow strain. They also optioned Joan Adon to Triple-A Rochester and recalled Joe La Sorsa and activated Patrick Corbin off the paternity list. Corbin won’t pitch until Tuesday, but he was only allowed to spend three days on leave, so he’s back now.

After using up their bullpen all weekend, the Nats would really like some length tonight from MacKenzie Gore. The lefty is plenty rested after having his last start cut short by rain and then having an extra-long All-Star break as the team tries to limit his innings over the long haul. Gore needs to throw strikes and he needs to enjoy some quick innings.

The Nationals lineup gets to face yet another left-hander in Drew Smyly. It feels like they’ve faced at least one, if not two, southpaws every series this season. Here’s another chance for Stone Garrett and the other righties in their lineup to take their hacks.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CHICAGO CUBS
Where: Wrigley Field
Gametime: 8:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 73 degrees, wind 7 mph in from right field

ST. LOUIS – The Nationals made it through the first two months of the season with only two changes to their Opening Day bullpen. On April 30, they called up Andres Machado after designating Anthony Banda for assignment. On May 20, they activated Chad Kuhl off the injured list and moved him to the bullpen, optioning Hobie Harris to Triple-A Rochester.

That’s all Mike Rizzo had to do with his bullpen for two months, the kind of stability rarely seen in these parts.

Later today, the Nationals are expected to place Hunter Harvey on the IL with an arm injury the extent of which won’t be known until they get results of the MRI, he returned to Washington to have done. That will represent the ninth bullpen change they’ve made in the last six weeks, a dramatic number of moves that have been necessitated both by injuries and poor performances.

When it’s all said and done, only two members of the Opening Day relief corps will remain on the active roster: Kyle Finnegan and Mason Thompson. That’s not the kind of stability any organization aspires to maintain.

It remains to be seen how much time Harvey will miss, but there is legitimate concern among club officials about the 28-year-old right-hander, given his extensive injury history since the Orioles made him their first round pick in the 2013 draft. A 3-mph drop in fastball velocity Saturday afternoon, combined with Harvey’s admission of soreness near his right triceps, sounded alarm bells in Davey Martinez’s mind.

ST. LOUIS – At the end of a long weekend that included three rain delays, one suspended game, one extra-inning game and way too much time spent looking at red, yellow and green blobs on the Doppler radar, the Nationals experienced the rarest outcome of all: a road series loss.

With an 8-4 loss to the Cardinals today, the Nats dropped two of three on the road for the first time since June 13-15 in Houston.

They came into the day hoping to keep their winning ways away from D.C. alive, seeking their fourth straight road series win. But they couldn’t overcome a ragged and laborious start by Josiah Gray, nor a rough bottom of the sixth from the relievers who replaced him.

It appeared for a few moments the game might be called in the middle of the seventh, the Nats already trailing by five runs and an intense line of storms approaching from the west. Crew chief Bill Miller called for the Busch Stadium grounds crew to roll out the tarp for the third straight day this weekend and the game went into delay.

The storm indeed arrived about 10 minutes later and dumped heavy rain on the ballpark along with high winds. And given the disparity on the scoreboard, there was perhaps some consideration to calling the game right then. But the system cleared out quickly, and because the infield was pre-emptively covered, very little prep work was needed to restart the game after a mere 38-minute delay.

ST. LOUIS – Given his lengthy history of injuries, the mere fact Hunter Harvey made it through the first half of this season healthy was considered a win for the Nationals. The fact the 28-year-old right-hander also pitched well enough to assume the closer’s role and become one of Davey Martinez’s most trusted relievers was icing on the cake.

So when Harvey took the mound for the ninth inning Saturday afternoon at Busch Stadium, saw the velocity on his fastball drop several miles per hour and later reported soreness in the back of his triceps, the Nats were understandably concerned.

“He’s one of our top-end guys in the back of our bullpen,” Martinez said. “So we want to make sure we keep an eye on him.”

It appears that plan ultimately will include a stint on the injured list.

The Nationals sent Harvey back to Washington today to get an MRI, playing a man down in their bullpen for their series finale against the Cardinals (an 8-4 loss). They'll have to wait for MRI results before deciding a course of action, but at minimum Harvey is likely to spend 15 days on the IL.