Washington Nationals vs. Twins Series Preview (4/22-4/24)

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Apr 21, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Minnesota Twins first baseman Joe Mauer (7) hits a double in the fifth inning during the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports /

After going 4-3 on their seven game road trip, the Nats return home to begin a six game homestand against the Minnesota Twins

Down in Miami, the Washington Nationals (11-4) split a four game series with the Marlins. Bryce Harper continued his home run streak as he hit two home runs in the series, including a grand slam on Tuesday, his second in a week. Harper’s grand slam was part of a seven run inning Tuesday that included four home runs.

As far as the pitching went, Stephen Strasburg continued his strong start by throwing eight shutout innings on Tuesday and the bullpen was able to help out Joe Ross Wednesday night, who had to leave the game because of a blister on his right middle finger. The other injury concern for the Nats was Jayson Werth, who had to leave Wednesday’s game because of a tight hamstring, but he was supposed to be off yesterday anyway and he’s back in the lineup tonight

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Now, the Nationals will begin a six-game homestand with their first interleague series of the 2016 season. They take on the Minnesota Twins (5-11), who faced the Nats earlier this month at Nats Park for two exhibition games. The Nationals went 1-0-1 in those two games.

The Twins come into Nats Park on a hot streak. After starting the year 0-9, Paul Molitor’s club has won five of their last seven games against the Angels and Brewers with a combined total of 39 runs scored. So far, their new Korean power hitter, Byung-ho Park, has made a good first impression as he leads the team in home runs with four. Park has been the designated hitter, but has also split time with Joe Mauer (.339, one home run, five RBI’s) at first base.

However, Minnesota has had its fair share of injuries. On Tuesday, third baseman Trevor Plouffe, who leads the team with six RBI’s, was placed on the disabled list due to a right intercostal strain. Plus, they are without their closer, Glen Perkins, as he is also on the DL due to a left shoulder strain. Currently, Kevin Jepsen is the closer for Minnesota and is 2-for-3 in save chances.

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Another hitter to watch on the Twins is Miguel Sano. Last season, Sano was third in the AL rookie of the year voting behind Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor. This year, the 22-year-old is off to a rough start defensively in right field and is hitting a mere .216 with one home run and three RBI’s.

Before this series gets underway tonight, here is my take on the three pitching matchups:

Next: Friday's Matchup

Apr 17, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez (47) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports /

Kyle Gibson (0-2, 3.57 ERA) vs. Gio Gonzalez (0-0, 0.69) – 7:05 p.m ET, broadcast on MASN

Gibson is in his third season in the big leagues. After only making ten starts in his rookie season (2013), the 28-year-old right-hander has made 30+ starts each of the last two seasons. Last season, he went 11-11 with a 3.84 ERA over 194.2 innings.

So far, this year, Gibson has struggled with his command as he has walked ten batters in his first three outings. With that being said, he has only given up three runs in his last two games and has thrown 102+ pitches in each outing this year. He has not faced the Nationals yet in his career. Daniel Murphy is 2-for-3 against him with a RBI from his time with the Mets.

As for Gio Gonzalez, he is off to a great start in 2016. The 30-year-old left-hander has given up just one run in his first 13 innings of the season with that one run being a solo home run from Carlos Ruiz on Sunday afternoon.

In his last start against the Phillies, Gonzalez went seven innings, gave up one run on four hits, struck out eight, and walked two on 100 pitches in a no-decision. The problem for Gonzalez has been that the Nats have scored just four runs in his two starts combined.

Against the Twins, Gonzalez is 2-3 with a 7.00 ERA in seven career starts, but he hasn’t faced Minnesota since 2013. Joe Mauer is 5-for-17 against him with two home runs and two RBI’s.

Prediction: Even though the Nats offense is coming off of a game where they only had two hits, I would expect the offense to bounce back against Gibson. If Gonzalez can keep up the consistency from his first two starts, the Nationals should start the weekend series on a good note.

Next: Tomorrow's Matchup

Apr 7, 2016; Baltimore, MD, USA; Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Phil Hughes (45) throws the ball during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /

Phil Hughes (1-2, 4.42) vs. Tanner Roark (1-2, 3.71) – 1:05 p.m., MASN

After spending his first seven seasons with the New York Yankees, Hughes has been with the Twins each of the past three years. Last season, Hughes made 25 starts and went 11-9 with a 4.40 ERA.

Even though Hughes is off to a 1-2 start, the 29-year-old right-hander has given up three earned runs and gone at least six innings in each of his three starts. In his last outing against the Brewers on Monday, he went six innings, gave up those three earned runs (four total) on six hits, struck out six, and walked two on 88 pitches.

Even though Target Field usually helps pitchers, if you look at the three years, Hughes’ home ERA of 4.72 is nearly a full run higher than his road ERA (3.74), but he has pitched in nine fewer road games. Hughes is 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA in two games (one start) against the Nats when he was with the Yankees. Bryce Harper is 1-for-3 against him in his career.

When you look at Tanner Roark’s last start against the Marlins, he once again put the Nats in an early hole. He gave up four runs in the first two innings and the offense could not recover against Jose Fernandez. Roark went six innings, gave up five runs (four earned runs) on seven hits, struck out two, and walked two in the loss.

If it weren’t for some great defensive plays by Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon, that number could have been higher than four earned runs. But, at the same time, he was able to get 17 groundball outs against a good lineup.

Roark has shown some good signs under new pitching coach Mike Maddux, but it will be interesting to see how the Twins adjust to facing him the second time after he faced them in the exhibition back on April 1. In that game, he went four innings, gave up three runs on seven hits (four doubles), and struck out four.

Prediction: In this matchup, I am going to take the Twins because of the consistency Hughes has shown. The Twins know which pitcher is going to show up. The question for the Nats is whether the Roark from the Braves start shows up or the one from the two outings against Miami.

Next: Sunday's Matchup

Apr 19, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg (37) pauses on the pitching mound during the first inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

Ervin Santana (0-1, 3.15) vs. Stephen Strasburg (3-0, 1.25) – 1:35 p.m., MASN

So far, Santana has made four starts and the Twins have not won any of those games. However, the 33-year-old right-hander has gone five innings or more in each of his last three starts. His Opening Day outing against the Orioles was shortened to two innings because of rain.

Last season, Santana only pitched in 17 games because he was out the first 80 games of the year due to a PED suspension. He went 7-5 with a 4.00 ERA, but he ended the year going 4-1 in his final six outings, including a 1.75 ERA in the month of September when Minnesota was making a playoff push.

In eight starts against the Nats in his career, Santana is 1-3 with a 4.50 ERA. Four of those starts came in 2014 when he was a member of the Atlanta Braves rotation. Ryan Zimmerman is 3-for-10 with one home run and two RBi’s against Santana.

In Strasburg’s last start, he was able to shut out the Marlins offense en route to his third straight win. He went eight innings, gave up three hits, struck out ten, and walked two on 105 pitches in the win.

Next: Recap: Offense Falls Flat As Nats Drop Series Finale

Strasburg has pitched into the eighth inning in each of his last two starts and continues to impress with the use of his slider. Plus, he has built off the strong momentum at the end of the season. Just like Roark, none of the Twins have ever faced Strasburg, which is an advantage for the Nats’ right-hander.

Prediction: With the Nats having familiarity with Santana from his time in Atlanta and Strasburg pitching great right now, it’s tough to not go with Strasburg in this one. I think he has another dominant outing and the Nationals take two out of three to begin the homestand.

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