Washington Nationals Series Preview: Nationals–Braves (6/30-7/2)

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Jun 23, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals outfielder Michael Taylor (3) high fives third baseman Yunel Escobar (5) after scoring a run in the third inning against the Atlanta Braves at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

In a case of deja vu, the Washington Nationals (42-34) start another three game series against the Atlanta Braves (36-40) tonight, a mere five days after they finished their last series against each other. The only difference this time will be location of games played, which will be atTurner Field. Some of the pitching matchups will be exactly the same as the series the two teams just finished since both teams have been playing the same schedule since then and both had an off day yesterday before the series starts tonight.

The Nationals swept the Braves in their last series at Nationals Park and the Nats have won eight straight games against Atlanta. . Stephen Strasburg got a win against the Braves in his first game back off the DL–a rarity for him since he usually doesn’t pitch well against the Braves. Strasburg will not be pitching against Atlanta in their home field during this series.

More from Max Scherzer

The Nationals offense has been good enough to win games lately with the strong pitching performances that the starters have been providing for the team. Even with Anthony Rendon back on the DL, and Bryce Harper, Denard Span and Yunel Escobar missing games due to nagging day-to-day injury issues, the team has been churning out runs.

Ian Desmond has been hitting a little better of late. He had two home runs during the Phillies series. Danny Espinosa has been making contact with the ball, but is mired in a 3-for-28 skid. Both of them have been exhibiting anxiousness at the plate with runners on, swinging at first pitches and bad pitches that have not lead to production.

Michael Taylor has been improving at the plate the more he gets to play. He has worked his average up to .253 and has provided some critical hits to score runs or extend innings in the last couple of weeks. Clint Robinson has also improved his average with his increased playing time. He is now batting .272 after beginning the month of June with a .232 average.

The Nationals should be lucky enough to avoid Freddie Freeman again in this series, as he is still on the DL. That is good news for the Nationals, because Freeman has been a one man wrecking crew against Nationals pitchers over the years.

Before tonight’s matchup gets underway, let’s take a look at who has the edge in each pitching matchup this series:

Next: Tonight's Matchup

Jun 24, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher Jordan Zimmermann (27) throws a pitch in the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

Jordan Zimmermann (5-5, 3.42 ERA) vs. Shelby Miller (5-3, 1.94 ERA), 7:10 pm ET, Broadcast on MASN

This is a rematch of a pitching gem that took place June 24th. Zimmermann pitched eight innings of shut out ball. Miller pitched seven innings, only giving up one run. Both pitchers were brilliant and got no decisions, but Jordan was just a little bit better that day.

Shelby Miller is the best starter on the Braves staff. The Nationals did not score many runs against him during their last meeting, and should expect Miller to be stingy with the runs during this game as well. During his only “bad” start this year, he gave up four earned runs in 4.1 innings pitched. Other than that game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on June 2, he has proven himself to be a pitcher who doesn’t give up many runs and goes fairly deep into games.

Jordan Zimmermann pitched one of his best games of the year in his last outing. Zimmerman has been inconsistent at times this year and he really did not have good starts in the three games leading up to his eight inning gem against the Braves. Nats fans are hoping that Jordan’s last outing is a demonstration that he is back on track. However, he has not shown the consistancy that Miller has this year.

This game may come down to the bullpens, just like the last game did. The Nationals were able to go right to Drew Storen for the ninth inning after Zimmermann pitched eight innings. Storen blew the save and allowed the Braves to tie the game. The Nationals won the game in the bottom of the eleventh with Desmond’s sacrifice fly off David Aardsma, although the run was charged to Dana Eveland.

Advantage: Even. This game could be another pitcher’s duel if both pitchers are on the top of their games. If one of these guys is at all wobbly, the steadier pitcher should pick up the win. Both teams’  bullpens have some good performers and some shaky ones. This game may come down to which bullpen keeps runners off base.

Next: Tomorrow's Matchup

Jun 25, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Doug Fister (58) throws to the Atlanta Braves during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

 Doug Fister (3-3, 4.15 ERA) vs. Matt Wisler (1-1, 3.75 ERA), 7:10 PM ET, broadcast on MASN

Again, this is a scheduled rematch with the same pitchers who started the game July 25th. That game was a 7-0 win for the Nationals.

Doug Fister was pitching his second game after his recent trip to the DL. He was much sharper in this game than he was in his first start back and went deeper. He went seven innings, gave up no runs on four hits and walked only one batter. There were still more fly balls (14) than we are used to seeing from Doug Fister, as opposed to groundouts (6). Fister is still working on keeping the ball down and completely regaining his control after being on the disabled list.

Matt Wisler was making his second start in the major leagues last Thursday. His first start was every pitcher’s dream debut. He pitched against the New York Mets and threw eight strong innings, only giving up one run. Although his team did not give him much run support, he got just enough to qualify for the win. The Braves won that game by the score of 2-1.

His start against the Nationals was a return to reality. Wisler gave up six runs (only four of them earned) in four innings. The Nationals hitters were all over him. Apparently, they had studied the film of his Mets start and saw a way to get to him. The Nationals got nine hits off Wisler in four innings. However, let’s note that Wisler did not walk anyone and his defense was a bit porous behind him.

If Fister can increase the ground outs and decrease the fly balls, he will probably turn in an even better performance during this start. If he is leaving the ball up it could be a long night.

If Wisler has figured out what went wrong during his last start against the Nationals, he may be harder to get hits off of this time around. He has shown that he can give a team trouble and he has good stuff.

Advantage: Fister is a veteran pitcher who has faced the Braves in the past and been able to handle them for the most part. Wisler may have a hard time being asked to handle the Nationals line up if the Nats can field a healthy team.

Jun 20, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer (31) throws to the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fourth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Max Scherzer (9-5, 1.79 ERA) vs. Manny Banuelos (Major League Debut), 7:10 PM,  MASN

This looks like no contest. The current best pitcher on the planet against a rookie making his major league debut.

However, this game may not be as cut and dried as it appears. Manny Banuelos has made 15 starts for triple-A Gwinett in the Braves minor league system this year. He has a 6-2 record and an ERA of 2.29. He’s been in the minors honing his craft since 2008, and he is only 24 years old.

The Nationals often have trouble hitting a pitcher they have not seen before. The video of Banuelos is probably limited and the Nationals are mostly going to get their first look at this pitcher at the plate. That doesn’t tend to work out too well for the Nationals hitters.

Scherzer has turned in three dominating pitching performances in his last three starts, including a no-hitter. He gave up two runs in his last game against the Phillies, both after the fifth inning. In the two games prior to that against the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Milwaukee Brewers, he gave up no runs at all.

The issue for the Nationals in this game may not be Scherzer’s pitching, but the run support that the Nationals can provide to their ace starter. The Nationals have to find a way to score some runs against a pitcher with whom they are unfamiliar. This has been a tall task for the Nationals for years.

Scherzer has a six game hitting streak on the line going into this game. Hopefully, Max can get at least one hit and keep his streak alive. He is currently sporting a batting average of .257.

Advantage: Scherzer and the Nationals clearly have the advantage in this game, but you know what they say: You gotta play the games.

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