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Washington Nationals At Dodgers Series Preview (6/20-6/22)

By Ricky Keeler

Jun 14, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 14, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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Washington Nationals
Jun 17, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; (EDITORS NOTE: caption correction) Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Julio Urias (7) pitches against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /

 Joe Ross (6-4, 3.13) vs. Julio Urias (0-2, 4.50) – 10:10 p.m, MASN2/ESPN

With the two pitchers in Wednesday night’s game having a combined age of 42 years old, this could be a matchup we see for a long time. First, let’s start with Ross. On June 17 against the Padres, Ross went six innings, gave up three runs on six hits, struck out six, and walked two in a win.

Even though Ross gave up a first inning single to Matt Kemp, he allowed only one run over the final five innings. The 23-year-old right-hander is 3-0 in his last five starts and has had a quality outing in four of those. By going six innings against San Diego, Ross has already passed his Major League innings total from last season.

Ross made one start against the Dodgers last season on August 11. In that game, he went 4.2 innings, gave up five runs on six hits, struck out one, and walked four in a loss. Yasiel Puig was 2-for-3 that night with a triple, a home run, and five RBI’s. Puig is currently rehabbing from a hamstring injury.

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Back on May 27, Urias made his Major League debut against the Mets. The 19-year-old left-hander dominated at triple-A Oklahoma City (4-1, 1.10 ERA in eight games) before being promoted to the big leagues.

In his last game against the Brewers on June 18, Urias threw five shutout innings, gave up five hits, and struck out eight. Over his last three games, he has 22 strikeouts to three walks.

According to Fangraphs, Urias has an average velocity of 93 miles per hour on his fastball to go with a curveball, slider, and changeup. Urias hasn’t gone more than 5.1 innings in any game and has never thrown more than 87.2 innings (2014) in any professional season.

Next: Nationals Player Of The Week (6/13-6/19): Max Scherzer

Prediction: I think the key in this game is going to be can the Washington Nationals offense show patience early in the game against Urias. If they can work the count and get him out of their game, I like their chances even though both teams have had their bullpen issues. Both pitchers fare well, but I like Los Angeles to take two out of three because they have the reliable closer in Kenley Janssen.

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