SARASOTA, Fla. – A younger version of James McCann would have tried to push through the soreness in his oblique. Proceed without caution. But he’s a veteran in 2023 and he knows better.

McCann hasn’t played since Monday in Clearwater due to the discomfort in his left side, which he noticed while swinging at a pitch. He went on the injured list last season with the Mets after being diagnosed with a strained left oblique – a little more than two weeks after returning from a fractured hamate bone.

The Orioles are withholding McCann from the lineup again this afternoon. They don’t know whether he’ll be ready for Opening Day in Boston.

“It’s not bad,” he said this morning. “It’s something minor, but obliques are a funny thing, and after going through an oblique injury last year, it’s something we’ve treated with a lot of caution just to be sure it doesn’t turn into a two-month absence.”

McCann said he’s “hopeful” that he can make the Opening Day roster. Otherwise, Anthony Bemboom would break camp with the Orioles for the second consecutive season.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – We are down to the final 48 hours of spring training. And we are now five days away from the season opener. Which means tonight’s exhibition lineup against the Astros has a distinct Opening Day feel to it.

All of the regulars are in and will play most of the game. The only tweak is that Joey Meneses is again playing left field (so he can continue to get reps after not playing the outfield while in the World Baseball Classic), with Corey Dickerson serving as designated hitter.

Patrick Corbin, meanwhile, is making his final start of the spring. He’ll hope to continue what he did five days ago against the Mets and put himself in a good frame of mind heading into his Opening Day start five days from now against the Braves.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. HOUSTON ASTROS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 6:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MLB.tv (Astros broadcast)
Radio: MLB.com (Astros broadcast)
Weather: Chance of rain late, 82 degrees, wind 14 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
1B Dominic Smith
LF Joey Meneses
3B Jeimer Candelario
DH Corey Dickerson
2B Luis García
C Keibert Ruiz
SS CJ Abrams
CF Víctor Robles

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It’s going to be a beautiful evening for baseball. If you can’t be down here with us, might as well live vicariously through your TV and watch Bob Carpenter and Kevin Frandsen on MASN.

The Nationals host the Cardinals in Game 25 of 27 on their Grapefruit League slate. They’ve actually done well, record-wise, so far, entering tonight 12-10-2 for the spring (if that matters at all). Most importantly, they’ve been getting excellent starting pitching this week. The quartet of Patrick Corbin (officially named Opening Day starter this afternoon), Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore and Trevor Williams combined to post an 0.75 ERA with three walks and 22 strikeouts over 24 innings the last four days.

Chad Kuhl will look to continue those good vibes going tonight against St. Louis. Kuhl hasn’t officially been named the No. 5 starter yet, but it’s hard to imagine anyone else taking the spot from him at this point, especially if he gets through tonight’s outing in one piece. There is, as noted yesterday, a possibility Kuhl doesn’t actually make the Opening Day roster and stays down here to make one final tune-up start in a minor league game before heading north in time to start either April 4 or 5 against the Rays.

Almost all of the regulars are in Davey Martinez’s lineup again tonight, aside from CJ Abrams and Victor Robles. Luis García gets another opportunity to lead off. Joey Meneses gets a start at first base after playing left field the last two nights.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 6:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: MLB.com (Cardinals broadcast)
Weather: Clear, 80 degrees, wind 13 mph right field to left field

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – We’ve got a “Nexus of the Universe” moment coming up tonight when the Nationals and Astros take the field at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. On the mound for Houston will be Luis Garcia. At the plate for the Nats will be Luis García. Prepare for your minds to be blown.

It is kind of interesting that García leading off. We’ll hear from Davey Martinez if that’s actually something he wants to get a look at, or if it’s just happening tonight for whatever reason. You’ll notice a flip-flop of yesterday’s 2-3 hitters, with Joey Meneses batting second and Dominic Smith batting third. And a flip-flop of yesterday’s 4-5 hitters, with Jeimer Candelario now batting cleanup and Corey Dickerson batting fifth.

On the mound is Trevor Williams for his second-to-last tune-up. Williams should be aiming for close to 100 pitches tonight, and he’ll still get a chance to pitch in Tuesday’s exhibition finale at Nationals Park against the Yankees, along with MacKenzie Gore.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. HOUSTON ASTROS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 6:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MLB.tv (Astros broadcast)
Radio: MLB.com (Astros broadcast)
Weather: Partly cloudy, 78 degrees, wind 12 mph in from right field

NATIONALS
2B Luis García
LF Joey Meneses
1B Dominic Smith
3B Jeimer Candelario
DH Corey Dickerson
RF Alex Call
SS CJ Abrams
C Riley Adams
CF Víctor Robles

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Opening Day is one week away. At this point, we should have a pretty clear idea who’s making the roster, who’s filling what slot in the starting rotation and how the back end of the bullpen is set up.

We should also have a pretty clear idea what the Opening Day lineup is going to look like. Except, when it comes to the Nationals, we don’t.

Davey Martinez hasn’t even offered up that many clues so far this spring. That’s mostly because he had been without a couple of lineup lynchpins in Joey Meneses and Jemier Candelario, who both spent considerable time away from the team while competing in the World Baseball Classic. But it’s also because the Nats manager doesn’t appear to have entirely decided how he wants to arrange his hitters one through nine yet.

“We have so many different options,” Martinez said Wednesday.

There are perhaps two ways to interpret that. The cynic would suggest the manager wouldn’t have so many different options if he merely had a better lineup filled with established major league hitters. The optimist would offer that the Nationals’ plethora of interchangeable parts is a good sign of versatility and a way to show opposing clubs different looks on a daily basis.

DUNEDIN, Fla. – The Orioles aren’t bringing many projected starters to Dunedin for today’s game against the Blue Jays at TD Ballpark.

Kyle Stowers is in left field and batting second behind Terrin Vavra. Ryan McKenna is in center field, with Cedric Mullins anticipated to rejoin the club Thursday after playing in the World Baseball Classic.

Jordan Westburg is the starting shortstop and Anthony Bemboom is catching Dean Kremer.

The three left-handed hitters competing for the backup job at first base are on the trip. Franchy Cordero is at first, Ryan O’Hearn is batting cleanup and serving as the designated hitter, and Josh Lester is the third baseman.

Other players in Dunedin include relievers Bryan Baker, Mike Baumann, Andrew Politi and Yennier Canó, outfielders Colton Cowser and Heston Kjerstad, and shortstop Jackson Holliday.

For the Orioles
Terrin Vavra 2B
Kyle Stowers LF
Franchy Cordero 1B
Ryan O’Hearn DH
Nomar Mazara RF
Ryan McKenna CF
Josh Lester 3B
Jordan Westburg SS
Anthony Bemboom C

Dean Kremer RHP

For the Blue Jays
George Springer RF
Bo Bichette SS
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B
Brandon Belt DH
Alejandro Kirk C
Daulton Varsho LF
Matt Chapman 3B
Cavan Biggio 2B
Kevin Kiermaier CF

José Berríos RHP

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – I think it’s finally safe to say we’ve reached the final countdown of spring training. Starting pitchers are going five or six innings. Position players are getting four or five plate appearances. Relievers are throwing back-to-back days. And Joey Meneses is back in Nationals camp.

Meneses, who became an international sensation over the last two weeks playing for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic, has rejoined the Nationals and is right back in there this afternoon, batting third and starting in left field. Davey Martinez has said he wants Meneses to get some time in the outfield, because there’s a chance he’ll play out there when Corey Dickerson has a day off (most likely against lefties). So the big slugger is out there today against the Yankees.

Martinez’s lineup might well be what we see on Opening Day. At the very least, these are probably the nine names who will be out there next Thursday. The only question is what the batting order will be.

MacKenzie Gore, meanwhile, faces an important start today. He has not looked good the last few weeks, and he knows it. Now the young lefty has to see if he can get himself straightened out against a Yankees lineup that actually includes several big names, including Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo Stanton.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK YANKEES
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: None
Weather: Sunny, 76 degrees, wind 9 mph in from right field

JUPITER, Fla. – While there’s been plenty of reason to fret about the Nationals rotation this spring, there hasn’t been much reason to worry about Josiah Gray. At least, not based on the right-hander’s results to date.

Gray enters today’s start against the Cardinals with a sparkling 1.42 ERA in three Grapefruit League starts. He’s allowed only one earned run across 6 1/3 innings. He’s issued only one walk while striking out six. The workload isn’t as high as others, because his last outing came on a back field against minor leaguers. But the results have been positive so far.

The lineup has a bit of a different look to it today, with CJ Abrams leading off and Victor Robles batting second. I wouldn’t read too much into that, other than Davey Martinez wanting to get both guys at-bats without having to play too deep into the game. But it’ll be nice to see how Abrams handles the leadoff spot against Cardinals right-hander Jack Flaherty.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
Where: Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MLB.tv (Cardinals broadcast)
Radio: nationals.com
Weather: Sunny, 76 degrees, wind 9 mph in from right field

NATIONALS
DH CJ Abrams
CF Víctor Robles
RF Alex Call
LF Corey Dickerson
1B Matt Adams
3B Ildemaro Vargas
C Riley Adams
SS Jeter Downs
2B Michael Chavis

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – If the final week of spring training is about making final preparations for the regular season, the Nationals are about to get some real prep playing under the lights. Four of their final seven Grapefruit League games are night games, beginning tonight against the Mets.

Most of the regulars are in Davey Martinez’s lineup, set to go up against the ageless Justin Verlander. The only guys missing from the projected Opening Day nine: Joey Meneses (who will be playing in a much more important game tonight for Mexico) and Víctor Robles (who played Sunday). In an interesting twist, Ildemaro Vargas is starting in left field. He’s started only one game in the outfield during his major league career, and that came in 2021 for the Pirates.

Patrick Corbin makes what should be his second-to-last exhibition start prior to Opening Day. The lefty had his last scheduled start disrupted by rain, so he could only throw off a mound in the batting cage. He’ll try to get some better work in tonight against a good Mets lineup, with unseasonably cool temperatures and a strong wind blowing in from left field perhaps playing to his benefit.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK METS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 6:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: 106.7 FM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 69 degrees, wind 14 mph in from left field

NATIONALS
CF Lane Thomas
1B Dominic Smith
3B Jeimer Candelario
DH Corey Dickerson
C Keibert Ruiz
2B Luis García
LF Ildemaro Vargas
SS CJ Abrams
RF Alex Call

CLEARWATER, Fla. – DL Hall is making his exhibition debut this afternoon against the Phillies in Clearwater, where he also pitched for the first time last spring.

Hall threw a two-inning simulated game last week to prepare for today's assignment.

Hall and Félix Bautista are following starter Kyle Bradish. Rule 5 pick Andrew Politi also is on the trip.

The Orioles stacked the bottom of their order with prospects.

Jordan Westburg is batting seventh and playing second base, followed by designated hitter Heston Kjerstad and left fielder Colton Cowser.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It’s been a warm, dry spring for the better part of a month now, but we did get one rainout last week, and now the weather pattern seems to have changed. It’s supposed to be cooler, windier and cloudier the next several days, with some possibility of rain (more so Monday than today).

The Nationals would much rather play today than not, because they need to get Chad Kuhl stretched out in time for the start of the season, now that the right-hander is likely to be the No. 5 starter. Kuhl made one other start this spring – coincidentally, it came against the Tigers in Lakeland – so he’s probably got two more opportunities to pitch before it counts.

The Nationals have eight of their nine expected regulars in the lineup today, all but Joey Meneses (who of course is still competing for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic). CJ Abrams returns after missing four days with a tight back. Davey Martinez said they’ll watch him closely, but he needs to get into regular-season mode, so they won’t ease him back in too much.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. DETROIT TIGERS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: 980 AM, MLB.com
Weather: Cloudy, 73 degrees, wind 14 mph in from left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
1B Dominic Smith
3B Jeimer Candelario
DH Corey Dickerson
C Keibert Ruiz
2B Luis García
SS CJ Abrams
CF Victor Robles
LF Michael Chavis

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles are playing their last split-squad games of the spring this afternoon, with part of the clubhouse in Tampa to play the Yankees and the others staying back to face the Pirates.

Adley Rutschman is catching Kyle Gibson in Sarasota. Gunnar Henderson is playing third base and batting cleanup.

Heston Kjerstad is in left field. Adam Frazier is leading off again, this time as the designated hitter.

Anthony Bemboom is catching Tyler Wells in Tampa. Terrin Vavra is the second baseman and leadoff hitter, Kyle Stowers is in right field, Jordan Westburg is the shortstop and Colton Cowser is in center field.

Ryan O’Hearn makes his second consecutive start since returning from a knee injury. He’s playing first base.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Orioles brought Ryan Mountcastle, Kyle Stowers, Austin Hays and Jorge Mateo to JetBlue Park for today’s game against the Red Sox.

Adam Frazier is leading off again, followed by Ramón Urías, who’s playing third base. Mountcastle follows as the designated hitter and Stowers is in left field and batting cleanup.

Hays is in center field. Ryan O’Hearn returns to the lineup and is playing first base.

O’Hearn injured his right knee exactly one week ago in Dunedin.

Grayson Rodriguez makes his fourth spring start. Austin Voth, Cionel Pérez and Eduard Bazardo also made the trip.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Would you believe we’re down to the final nine days of the Grapefruit League season? Time flies when you’re having fun, right? Would you also believe the Nationals currently own a winning record this spring, entering today’s contest with the Marlins at 9-8 thanks to Friday’s eight-run rally in the ninth, keyed by Darren Baker’s grand slam, to topple the Astros?

They’ll look to keep it going this afternoon, facing a mighty stiff challenge in Marlins ace and reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara. The dazzling Dominican right-hander would probably rather be starting another World Baseball Classic game than pitching at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches, but that’s not in the cards anymore.

Among the regulars who will take their hacks against Alcantara this afternoon are Dominic Smith, Lane Thomas, Corey Dickerson and Victor Robles. Among those who will not is CJ Abrams, sitting for the fourth straight day since experiencing back tightness. We’ll hopefully get an update on him shortly.

Trevor Williams is the man on the mound for the Nats today for his fourth start of the spring. The 30-year-old right-hander wasn’t scored upon in either of his first two outings, but he surrendered three runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings his last time out. The best sign from Williams: He has yet to walk a batter in 7 2/3 total innings.

You can watch today’s game live on MASN, with Bob Carpenter and Kevin Frandsen reunited for the first time in 2023.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Adley Rutschman is catching this afternoon and Gunnar Henderson is the shortstop for the Orioles’ return trip to Hammond Stadium to play the Twins.

Heston Kjerstad is the designated hitter, Jordan Westburg is starting at third base and Colton Cowser is in left field.

Terrin Vavra gets the start at second base.

Dean Kremer has returned from the World Baseball Classic to make his third spring appearance. He tossed four scoreless innings for Team Israel.

Other pitchers listed today include Félix Bautista, Bryan Baker, Rule 5 pick Andrew Politi, Logan Gillaspie and Yennier Canó.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – As we inch closer to Opening Day, teams start having more regulars in the lineup. And that’s going to be even more the case as various World Baseball Classic teams get eliminated.

For the Nationals, the elimination of the powerhouse Dominican Republic team means the return of Jeimer Candelario, who is right back in there and starting at third base today against the Astros. We should also see Erasmo Ramirez (who pitched for Nicaragua) pitching in a game soon.

The Astros also have a decent number of regulars in their lineup today, including Jeremy Peña, Jose Abreu and Alex Bregman. So this should be a good test for MacKenzie Gore, who makes his fifth start of the spring.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. HOUSTON ASTROS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: nationals.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 79 degrees, wind 15 mph out to left field

NATIONALS
CF Alex Call
2B Luis García
C Keibert Ruiz
LF Corey Dickerson
3B Jeimer Candelario
1B Matt Adams
RF Stone Garrett
DH Victor Robles
SS Leonel Valera

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It’s not exactly a happy day at Nationals camp, where news of Cade Cavalli’s upcoming Tommy John surgery has cast a pall over everything. But there’s a game to play tonight, and a season to continue to prepare for. That process will continue with a 6:05 p.m. contest against the Mets.

This was Josiah Gray’s day to throw, but he already went ahead and got his work in on a back field this morning. Davey Martinez said Gray went five innings and 82 pitches, and he specifically focused on his changeup, which he threw 10-11 times. They felt that controlled situation provided a better opportunity for the right-hander to work on such things than a Grapefruit League game.

So that means it’s going to be Wily Peralta starting tonight against the Mets. The veteran right-hander has been trying to make the Opening Day roster off a minor league deal, most likely as a long reliever. He hasn’t been stretched out all that much; perhaps tonight he can give them two or three innings and make his case to head north with the club.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK METS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 6:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: MLB.com (Mets broadcast)
Weather: Partly cloudy, 73 degrees, wind 10 mph in from right field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
1B Dominic Smith
LF Alex Call
C Keibert Ruiz
2B Luis García
3B Ildemaro Vargas
CF Victor Robles
DH Michael Chavis
SS Jeter Downs

JUPITER, Fla. – It’s an unusually chilly morning here in South Florida, with cloudy skies, a steady wind from the north and a chance of some rain this afternoon. Doesn’t seem like anything that will impact the Nationals’ game against the Marlins, but it does have guys wearing pullovers on top of their jerseys despite the fact it’s mid-March in South Florida.

The Nats are still waiting for news on Cade Cavalli’s MRI, so in the meantime they’ll focus their attention on this afternoon’s contest. It’s Patrick Corbin taking the mound for his fourth start of the spring, potentially able to go five full innings if he can keep his pitch count down. A quality outing today would be nice for Corbin, who, as we’ve stated, is currently lined up to pitch Opening Day against the Braves.

Miami is starting 19-year-old prospect Eury Pérez, not to be confused with the outfielder of the same name who played in 22 games for the Nationals in 2012-13. Davey Martinez’s lineup includes five regulars: Lane Thomas, Dominic Smith, Corey Dickerson, Luis García and Victor Robles (who is DHing today after making his return to center field on Tuesday).

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. MIAMI MARLINS
Where: Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: MLB.com (Marlins broadcast)
Weather: Cloudy, 70 degrees, wind 13 mph in from left field

NATIONALS
RF Lane Thomas
1B Dominic Smith
CF Alex Call
LF Corey Dickerson
SS Ildemaro Vargas
2B Luis García
3B Michael Chavis
DH Victor Robles
C Riley Adams

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – After a stretch of five straight games played in Palm Beach County, the Nationals hit the road for a bit of a longer drive today. Not that 45 minutes up I-95 is that bad, but it’s actually the only trip they’ve got left that will be longer than 15 minutes.

Cade Cavalli gets the start, and it would be nice to see the rookie have some success over multiple innings, even if he’s not facing the entire Mets’ A lineup today. Cavalli should be able to complete four innings, provided he keeps his pitch count in check. At this point, he’s scheduled to be the No. 5 starter when the season begins, so the time has come for him to step up and get himself into regular season mode.

Keibert Ruiz is leading off for the second straight day, an attempt to get some extra at-bats without having to catch too many innings and also perhaps see more pitches. (Though of course he swung at the first pitch Monday afternoon and grounded out to third, not exactly what Davey Martinez had in mind.)

Victor Robles returns to the lineup after missing five days with a bruised left knee. The center fielder was able to fully participate in drills Monday with no issues, so he should be good to go and get three at-bats today.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK METS
Where: Clover Park, Port St. Lucie
Gametime: 1:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MLB Network, MLB.tv (Mets broadcast)
Radio: None
Weather: Partly cloudy, 74 degrees, wind 12 mph in from left field

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It’s been a beautiful spring here from a weather standpoint, warm with abundant sunshine every day for the last month. That may finally change today, with a line of storms supposed to sweep through the state of Florida later this afternoon. We’ll see if it impacts the Nationals’ game against the Astros. Might be a good day to really take advantage of that pitch clock.

Trevor Williams gets the ball for his third start of the spring. The right-hander has yet to allow a run in three innings to date; he also has yet to issue a walk. We’ll see how he handles an Astros lineup that doesn’t exactly have the big names in there today.

Houston does have a big-name pitcher on the mound in Framber Valdez, so this will be a nice challenge for a Nats lineup that has an unfamiliar face in the No. 1 spot: Keibert Ruiz. Don’t worry, Davey Martinez isn’t suddenly thinking about making his $50 million catcher a leadoff man. It’s just a way to get him an extra at-bat without having to catch too many innings on a hot, muggy afternoon.

James Wood gets another chance to start a big league game, batting ninth and playing center field. Fellow prospect Elijah Green is slated to replace him later on.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. HOUSTON ASTROS
Where: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: None
Radio: MLB.com (Astros broadcast)
Weather: Chance of storms late, 87 degrees, wind 17 mph out to center field