The Washington Nationals recalled left-handed pitcher DJ Herz from Triple-A Rochester and placed right-handed pitcher Trevor Williams on the 15-day Injured List (retroactive to June 1) with a right flexor muscle strain on Tuesday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. Herz will start and make his Major League debut tonight against the New York Mets at Nationals Park.

Herz, 23, is 3-2 with a 3.75 ERA, 42 strikeouts and a .177 opponents’ batting average in nine starts for the Red Wings this season. Over his last four starts, Herz is 3-0 with a 2.50 ERA (5 ER/18.0 IP), 25 strikeouts and a .148 average against. In his last start on May 30 vs. St. Paul (MIN), he struck out 10 and allowed one run on two hits and one walk in 5.1 innings.

Herz leads all of Minor League Baseball with a .176 opponents’ batting average and is third with 13.09 strikeouts per 9.0 innings since the start of the 2021 season (min. 250.0 IP). In parts of five Minor League seasons, Herz is 13-16 with a 3.65 ERA with 455 strikeouts in 317.2 innings and has held opposing hitters to a .178 batting average.

Originally an eighth-round pick by the Chicago Cubs in 2019 from Sanford High School in Fayetteville, N.C., Herz was acquired by the Nationals on July 31, 2023, with Kevin Made in exchange for Jeimer Candelario. He is currently ranked as the Nationals No. 12 prospect according to MLB Pipeline.

Williams, 32, is 5-0 with a 2.22 ERA (14 ER / 56.2 IP), 47 strikeouts and 16 walks in 11 starts this season.

Monday night’s 8-7 loss to the Mets was one of the Nationals’ more eventful games of the season, featuring an odd combination of encouraging, discouraging and frustrating moments along the way.

Let’s look back at some of the developments worthy of a second look …

* Drew Millas’ rough night
Making his first start behind the plate since his promotion Sunday from Triple-A Rochester, the rookie catcher was front and center for much of the game. And he did not enjoy a particularly good game.

At the plate, Millas went 0-for-4 with a walk, but he wound up as the guy in the batter’s box with the game on the line in the bottom of the ninth, the bases loaded and his team trailing by one run. He proceeded to strike out on three pitches, including a 97-mph fastball down the pipe from left-hander Jake Diekman that he watched sail by for a killer strikeout.

“I think my swing got a little big,” the switch-hitter said of his approach to the first two pitches of the at-bat. “I haven’t batted righty in a while, but that’s no excuse. I feel very confident right-handed to get the job done in that scenario. There’s zero excuse there.”

Though he hasn’t been lights-out every time he has pitched this season, MacKenzie Gore had shown significant progress from last season in one key area: The ability to avoid letting a shaky start go completely awry.

That streak ended tonight with easily the left-hander’s worst outing of the year. Unable to consistently locate any of his pitches, the young Nationals starter couldn’t take advantage of some rare healthy run support from his teammates and ultimately was the pitcher of record in an 8-7 loss to the Mets that saw the home team come up just short with a last-ditch attempted rally in the ninth.

"A lot of fight with our team and in our clubhouse. We always feel like we're in it," said Jesse Winker, who had three hits and drove in three runs. "We almost got the job done."

This game didn’t resemble any of Gore’s previous 11 starts, nor did it resemble many of the Nats’ previous 58 games. They had been 19-7 this season when scoring at least four runs, 19-5 when scoring at least five runs.

That wasn’t enough offense tonight, not with Gore laboring throughout his outing.

CJ Abrams and Jacob Young are once again out of the Nationals lineup, leaving the team shorthanded once again with two regulars dealing with injuries.

Abrams, who jammed his left shoulder making a diving play at shortstop Friday night, is sitting for the third straight day. Young, who took a pitch off his right hand Saturday afternoon, is sitting for the second straight day.

Davey Martinez said Abrams has reported improvement in his shoulder each day, but it does continue to bother him when he swings.

“CJ said he felt better today than he did yesterday, so it is getting better,” the manager said. “I figured just give him another day, and hopefully if we need him (off the bench), he’s available.”

Young tried to hit in the cage today and reported his hand remains sore, so the Nationals decided not to push it and gave him his second straight day off.

The Nationals are home again, something that hasn’t happened very much this season. They’ve played only 23 games in their own ballpark to date, the lowest total in the majors. (They’ve played 35 games on the road, for comparison.) So this seven-game homestand against the Mets and Braves is a welcome development for everyone, even if they have played relatively well away from D.C.

First up are the Mets, who are in a bit of a tailspin and face their own travel dilemma later this week. Following Wednesday’s 4:05 p.m. getaway game, they’re taking off for London and a two-game series against the Phillies. It will be interesting to see where their focus is these next three days, with that trip looming.

The Nationals send MacKenzie Gore to the mound, and he was outstanding against the Braves last week, striking out 10 with zero walks across 5 1/3 innings. The left-hander did well in three starts against New York last year, allowing only four runs in 15 innings.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK METS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 6:45 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 88.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 82 degrees, wind 5 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
CF Lane Thomas
RF Eddie Rosario
2B Luis García Jr.
DH Keibert Ruiz
3B Nick Senzel
LF Jesse Winker
SS Ildemaro Vargas
1B Joey Gallo
C Drew Millas

CLEVELAND – Drew Millas was sitting in the dugout in Rochester during Saturday night’s game against St. Paul, not in the Red Wings lineup and not having any reason to think his manager was about to start yelling at him.

And then he heard Matt LeCroy bellow out: “Millas, come down here!”

Not sure what this could possibly be about, the young catcher approached his Triple-A manager and was surprised by what he heard next: “You want to go to the big leagues?”

“Yeah,” Millas responded.

“Alright,” LeCroy shot back. “You’re going.”

CLEVELAND – The schedule has not been kind to the Nationals through the season’s first two months, from far more games on the road (35) than at home (23) to a current stretch of 17 consecutive games without a scheduled day off to a number of series against some of the top contenders in both leagues.

How have the Nats handled it all? Maybe they haven’t thrived, but they’ve more than held their own under the circumstances.

With a 5-2 victory over the Guardians today, the Nationals secured a winning road trip at 4-3. They started the week taking three of four in Atlanta. They preceded that with a series win over the American Leauge West-leading Mariners, leaving them 6-4 so far during this particularly grueling stretch heading into a seven-game homestand against the Mets and Braves.

They may have lost this weekend series to Cleveland, currently in first place in the AL Central. But they admittedly gave away Saturday’s game with several defensive and baserunning gaffes. And then they bounced back and won today’s finale despite a depleted lineup missing both CJ Abrams and Jacob Young, thanks to one big early outburst and another strong pitching performance led by Jake Irvin.

"I think to win the majority of games on a road trip, against two teams that have played really well so far this year, I think it's a win in everyone's mind," outfielder Lane Thomas said. "I think we left some stuff on the table the first two games here, but they played well. I think we definitely could've made the first game closer and maybe been in contention yesterday. But it's a tough league, and we play a lot of games for a reason. Going forward, I think we have a chance to beat a lot more good teams."

CLEVELAND – The Nationals swapped out backup catchers this morning, optioning Riley Adams to Triple-A and recalling Drew Millas from Rochester, hoping the latter can provide a more potent bat in the big leagues while the former tries to rediscover his swing (while also getting playing time at another position) in the minors.

Adams got off to a hot start to the season and filled in admirably when starting catcher Keibert Ruiz dealt with a bad case of the flu, batting .293 with six extra-base hits and an .863 OPS through his first 12 games.

But he’s been in a prolonged slump since then, batting just .132 with one double and 16 strikeouts over his last 13 games. He hit a low point Saturday afternoon, going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and letting a bounced pitch from Mitchell Parker get past him and roll all the way to the first base dugout as the Guardians’ José Ramírez scored all the way from second for what proved to be the decisive run in a 3-2 loss.

The Nationals hope more consistent playing time at Triple-A will give Adams a better chance of rediscovering his swing.

“It was a timing thing. He’s just got to get himself ready earlier,” manager Davey Martinez said. “It’s hard to do when you’re not playing every day. So getting him at-bats every day, and getting him locked in again, definitely will help him.”

CLEVELAND – The Nationals need a win in today’s series finale to avoid getting swept by a Guardians team that has won 14 of its last 17 and is absolutely rolling right now.

Both games this weekend have been competitive, with Friday night’s opener turning ugly late when the Nats bullpen gave up five runs and Saturday’s affair a tight one-run loss that hinged on two bad defensive plays. So Davey Martinez would love a cleaner game from his guys this afternoon, though the field will be wet after it rained this morning.

Jake Irvin gets the start, looking to continue what he’s been doing. The right-hander struck out a career-high 10 batters Tuesday in Atlanta, and he enters this game with a 3.43 ERA and sparkling 1.032 WHIP. Veteran Carlos Carrasco, fresh off a brief stint on the injured list, starts for Cleveland. Carrasco had two rough outings in late April but otherwise has allowed three or fewer earned runs in his seven other starts this year.

The Nationals made a roster move this morning, recalling Drew Millas from Triple-A and optioning Riley Adams to Rochester in a swap of backup catchers. Adams had been struggling at the plate for a few weeks, and his struggles behind the plate Saturday may have also exacerbated the move. Millas, who was up here briefly earlier this season when Keibert Ruiz was sick, was batting .308 with six doubles, five homers and 22 RBIs in 30 games with Rochester.

UPDATE: For the second straight day, CJ Abrams has been scratched, his left shoulder still bothering him when he tries to swing. Lane Thomas moves into the leadoff spot, with Ildemaro Vargas again taking over at shortstop and batting ninth.

The Washington Nationals recalled catcher Drew Millas from Triple-A Rochester and optioned catcher Riley Adams to Triple-A Rochester on Sunday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement.

Millas, 26, joins the Nationals for the third time this season after hitting .308 with six doubles, five homers, 22 RBI, eight walks, five stolen bases and 11 runs scored in 30 games for the Red Wings. He hit safely in nine of his last 10 games, going 12-for-36 (.333) with a double and eight RBI during that stretch.

Millas appeared in two games with Washington in his first two stints of the season. He made his Major League debut in 2023 after his contract was selected on August 28. Millas hit safely in six of his first eight starts, including each of his first four. In 11 Major League games last year, Millas hit .286 (8-for-28) with two doubles, a home run, six RBI, four walks and a run scored.

Adams, 27, appeared in 25 games for the Nationals this season. He hit .215 with five doubles, two homers, six RBI, seven walks, one stolen base and six runs scored.

CLEVELAND – Over the course of this afternoon’s game at Progressive Field, the Nationals allowed two runs to score on a popup, allowed another to score all the way from second base on a wild pitch, had one of their own runners tagged out after rounding third base too far, had another picked off first base even when he wasn’t being held on, saw their manager get ejected, saw their shortstop get scratched shortly before first pitch due to injury and saw their center fielder depart later due to injury.

It was, by any measure, an ugly performance from the visitors, the kind of performance they couldn’t afford against one of the majors’ hottest teams.

And yet, somehow the Nats still found themselves with a chance to beat the Guardians, if only they could come through with one modest rally before game’s end. Alas, they could not. And so this went down as a 3-2 loss, and certainly one of the weirder and more frustrating losses of the season.

"You feel like we lost that game more than they won it," catcher Riley Adams said.

Already playing without shortstop CJ Abrams, who was scratched less than an hour before first pitch due to a jammed left shoulder suffered Friday night, the Nationals also lost center fielder Jacob Young to a swollen right hand he first noticed after making a long throw to third base in the seventh inning.

The second batter that Kyle Bradish faced today singled into right field, the ball glancing off Jorge Mateo’s glove as he attempted to make a sliding stop. A cleaner single followed. The no-hit stuff and the breaks were left back in Chicago.

Bradish lasted only 2 2/3 innings after losing his command and issuing three consecutive walks, the last with the bases loaded that broke a 4-4 tie. But a game was won again.

Hitting four home runs and getting strong work out of the bullpen made it happen. This is a team that will find a way.

Ryan Mountcastle cleared the center field fence twice within the first four innings, going back-to-back with Anthony Santander in the first, Jacob Webb came to the rescue with 2 1/3 scoreless, and the Orioles claimed another series against a division opponent with a 9-5 victory over the Rays before an announced crowd of 36,958 at Camden Yards.

Jordan Westburg marked his return to the lineup by homering in the second inning, and the Orioles moved a season-high 18 games above .500 at 37-19. They’re 14-0-5 in their last 19 series against the American League East and go for the sweep Sunday before flying to Toronto.

CLEVELAND – Friday night didn’t go particularly well for the Nationals, who totaled one run on four hits and one walk and then watched as a close game blew up on them late, turning into a 7-1 loss to the Guardians. This series is no small task, what with Cleveland having now won 14 of 17 behind excellent pitching and a surprisingly productive lineup.

So it’s up to Mitchell Parker to try to keep the positive pitching vibes going for the Nats today. The last four starters each gave up two or fewer runs. Parker gave up three runs to the Braves his last start, hardly anything to be ashamed about. The rookie left-hander continues to impress, and he’ll once again face a lineup that has never seen him before, which has to play to his advantage.

Only one member of the Nationals lineup has ever faced Ben Lively before: Jesse Winker, who is 1-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout. Otherwise, everyone will be going up against an unknown right-hander, one who has been excellent himself. Like Parker, Lively has yet to allow more than three runs in any start this season.

In other words, expect yet another low-scoring, tight ballgame decided by situational hitting and clean defense. Just like so many games we’ve watched this season.

UPDATE: CJ Abrams has been scratched from today's lineup. He said he jammed his shoulder making a diving play early in Friday night's game. Jacob Young will now bat leadoff, with Ildemaro Vargas taking over at shortstop.

Having gone 18 straight series against American League East opponents without losing one - winning 13 with five ties in this span - the Orioles can extend that streak with one more win this weekend.

They beat the Rays 3-1 Friday to take the opener of a three-game series. The Orioles are 36-19 for the season, 3-1 on this homestand, 20-11 at home 10-3 against division teams and 13-6 in series-opening games.

The Orioles, winners of seven of their last eight games, begin play today in second place, two games behind the New York Yankees. 

Friday was another well-pitched game by Baltimore pitchers. They have allowed one run in back-to-back games and three times the past five games. Over their last 28 games since April 29, they have a team ERA of 2.73 and have allowed two runs or less 13 times. Only the Yankees (2.43) have a better mark in baseball during this span.

O's starters have a 3.01 ERA for the year, the third-best rotation ERA in MLB behind the Phillies (2.69) and Yankees (2.72). In 28 games since April 29, the rotation's ERA is 2.26, second-best in MLB during that time behind the Yankees (2.19).

CLEVELAND – Victor Robles won’t be remaining in the Nationals organization after the club made another procedural move today that ensures the longtime outfielder will have to try to revitalize his career with another franchise.

The Nats requested unconditional release waivers on Robles today, a transaction that comes five days after they designated him for assignment. The DFA move immediately removed the 27-year-old from the 40-man roster but left him in limbo for the week while the club explored its various options.

The Nationals could have traded Robles to another team, but no satisfactory offers were made. He’s now available to 29 other clubs via waivers, but any claiming team would be responsible for his $2.65 million salary.

If Robles went unclaimed, the Nats could have attempted to outright him to Triple-A Rochester, though as a veteran with five years of big league service time, he could have refused the assignment and become a free agent. By requesting unconditional release waivers, they are already stating their intention not to keep him in the organization.

So, once Robles officially passes through waivers unclaimed, he’ll be released. If another team decides to sign him at that point, it would only have to pay him a prorated portion of the league minimum salary ($740,000). The Nationals would be responsible for the rest of his guaranteed deal, which expires at the end of the season.

Jordan Westburg returns to the Orioles’ lineup today after missing the past two games with a sore right hand.

Austin Hays and Cedric Mullins are on the bench, with Kyle Stowers in left field and Colton Cowser in center. Ryan O’Hearn is the designated hitter.

Anthony Santander, who’s in right field, has posted a .333 average and .762 slugging percentage in plate appearances ending on the first pitch, according to STATS.

Kyle Bradish is back on the mound after his seven hitless innings in Chicago. He brings a 1.75 ERA and 1.052 WHIP in five starts and hasn’t surrendered a home run.

Bradish is 1-3 with a 6.18 ERA and 1.410 WHIP in five career starts against the Rays. Yandy Díaz is 6-for-14 with a double, Randy Arozarena is 4-for-14 with a triple and two home runs, and Harold Ramírez is 5-for-13 with a double.

As play began on Friday night in the majors, Gunnar Henderson was once again tied for the MLB homer lead with 18 with Aaron Judge and Kyle Tucker. His OPS of .938 was fourth-best in the AL and seventh in MLB.

He’s scoring runs, stealing bases, bashing baseballs and fielding them very, very well at shortstop. Cal Ripken Jr. once won the American League Rookie of the Year one year and AL MVP the next, in 1982 and 1983.

There is talk of Gunnar being in the MVP race or near the top of such for this season after being ROY last season.

“I just try to go out there and continue to play my game each and every day. The numbers will take care of themselves at the end of the day. Just trying to help the team win and make another postseason run,” Henderson said of the MVP talk.

He led the O’s to a series-clinching win Wednesday over Boston when he hit a grand slam that was his 50^th career homer. Another successful AL East series.

CLEVELAND – There are any number of stats you can point to when trying to show how much the Nationals have struggled offensively so far this season.

The Nats rank 25th out of 30 major league clubs in runs scored, 27th in hits, 27th in homers.

They’ve been shut out six times, most in the National League. They’ve been held to two or fewer runs 22 times, tied for most in the NL.

Here’s a new one, though, one that might just illustrate the problem more than any other: The Nationals have been held to four or fewer hits in 13 of their 56 games to date. That’s 23 percent of their games, nearly one-quarter of their total, in which they’ve finished with no more than four hits.

How bad is that? Well, consider this: The Nats were held to four or fewer hits 12 times last season. That’s over the entire season. They’ve already surpassed that total with 106 games still to be played.

Albert Suárez made another start with the Orioles last night. Cole Irvin closes out the Rays series on Sunday and is unlikely to do more bouncing between rotation and bullpen.

A minimum of five starters are needed on a major league staff. The Orioles want to expand it to six but injuries have created an unsettled situation.

Dean Kremer’s right triceps injury is improving but he might go on a brief rehab assignment. John Means and Tyler Wells are undergoing elbow surgeries within the next few days and won’t pitch again in 2024, crushing blows for them and the team.

A six-man rotation? The Orioles have fingers crossed that they can keep their quintet from crumbling.

A knee-jerk response to torn elbow ligaments is to burn up the phone lines and make a trade. The Orioles don’t have immediate plans to do it, though executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias said he’s “in contact” with other teams.

CLEVELAND – A bleary-eyed Nationals team showed up for work this evening, flying high from a series win in Atlanta but dragging from a delayed flight following a getaway night that didn’t have them in bed until about 5 a.m.

Was a lack of sleep to blame for their eventual 7-1 loss to the Guardians? Or was it just another rough night at the plate for an offensively challenged club? Or was Cleveland’s pitching staff just that good?

Take your pick. Any or all of those reasons could be valid. Whatever the explanation, the Nats lost yet another ballgame that was low-scoring and tight late to a talented opponent. It’s happened before, and it’ll probably happen again. But it’s not cause for panic, especially if they stay true to form and bounce back Saturday after they get a well deserved good night’s sleep.

"It's tough. I still think getaway days should be at 1 (p.m.)," starter Patrick Corbin said. "You never know what can happen. We play every day. It's tough, but it happens to everybody. You have to try to find ways to battle through it. Hopefully guys can get some rest tonight and come back tomorrow."

The shame of this loss was that it came on a night Corbin was quite good. The veteran left-hander, who entered with a 6.12 ERA, became the fourth straight Nationals starter to allow two or fewer runs. Somehow, he still emerged with a loss, his sixth of the year.