Previewing Braves-Nationals Two-Game Set Starting Tuesday
By Parker White
The Atlanta Braves (30-24) are coming into this quick two-game set against the Washington Nationals (22-32) winners of five straight series. Unfortunately for the Nats, they are coming off a Memorial Day loss to the Miami Marlins. Surprisingly enough, this is the first time these NL East foes are facing each other in 2019. Here's a preview of the upcoming pitching matchups in this series.
May 28: RHP Stephen Strasburg vs. LHP Max Fried
Atlanta will miss Max Scherzer and Patrick Corbin in this series, but they will have to face right-hander Stephen Strasburg, who in 11 starts this season is 4-3 with a 3.25 ERA. Strasburg is always capable of going the distance and dominating any opponent, but in 30 career starts against the Braves, he's 11-11 with a 4.07 ERA.
Oh, and it also gets whiffs, with a 45.6 percent K rate that is 10th-highest of any pitch in MLB, again using the same 200-pitch minimum.
— Ron (@laborguy01) May 28, 2019
(Per Josh Cole @joshuabcole RotoGrinders)
Not only have the Braves fared pretty well against Strasburg in general, but they'll have left-hander Max Fried on the mound, who in 12 appearances, is 7-2 with a 2.88 ERA. Fried has been brilliant his last two outings against Milwaukee and San Francisco, going six innings in each start and allowing a total of just two runs.
May 29: TBD vs. RHP Kevin Gausman
Anibal Sanchez, who threw 41 pitches in a simulated game yesterday, will throw a bullpen session tomorrow. That would put him on line to start Wednesday in Atlanta, but Davey Martinez said that start is still TBD and Sanchez could make a rehab start before returning.
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) May 25, 2019
Nationals manager Davey Martinez has yet to name a starter for Wednesday's finale, but there's a chance that former Brave Anibal Sanchez could come off the injured list and make that start. However, if they decide to have Sanchez make a rehab start before returning, you could see rookie starter Kyle McGowin, who in his last start against Miami lasted just four innings and allowed five runs.
The Braves will hand the ball to right-hander Kevin Gausman, who in 10 starts this season is 2-3 with a 4.33 ERA. Those numbers aren't eye-popping, but he's gone six innings in each of his last three starts, allowing three runs or less.
Quick Notes
The bullpen has been a problem for both teams throughout the season, but while the Braves could be eyeing Craig Kimbrel to fortify the back end, the Nationals need a lot more to fix their issues, as they rank dead last in the MLB with a 7.12 bullpen ERA.
Dansby Swanson has his second-career multi-home run game ???pic.twitter.com/Sn9C34yEgC
— Kevin Keneely (@KevinKeneely1) May 25, 2019
Austin Riley may be getting all the shine, but there isn't a hitter on the Braves hotter than Dansby Swanson, who over the last six games is hitting .370 with three home runs, six RBI and a 1.117 OPS.
Juan Soto is beginning to take off like he did last year, as he's hitting .500 with six extra-base hits, seven RBI and a 1.456 OPS.