Washington Nationals: 5 To Watch Against Arizona
By Chris Lacey
After losing two of three to the New York Mets, the Washington Nationals will host the Arizona Diamondbacks for a three-game series.
The Washington Nationals (17-8) lineup was lethargic during the initial two games against the Mets this weekend, tallying just eight runs in the two contests. However, the lineup erupted for 23 runs in the series finale to avoid being swept by their division rival.
The Nats are pacing the Senior Circuit with 170 runs scored, and their +48-run differential is tops in the Majors. Their lineup can explode for a bountiful of runs at any moment as they have some dangerous hitters.
But, it wasn’t all good news this week as they did lose a vital player for the remainder of the year as outfielder Adam Eaton recently tore his ACL.
It’s a significant blow to lose Eaton, considering he provided a sparkplug at the top of the lineup and played solid defense.
The Arizona Diamondbacks (16-11) come into this series against Nats as one of the surprises in MLB after the first month. Their starting rotation is leading the way as they’re second in the National League with a 3.34 ERA from their staff.
The rotation has been surprisingly effective but will be without one member for the rest of this season. Shelby Miller has a torn UCL and will undergo Tommy John surgery.
So far, Arizona’s success in 2017 isn’t only because of their pitching but the offense as well. They’re second in the NL in runs scored and run differential at 141 and +29, respectively.
Their new manager Torey Lovullo has them playing an inspired brand of baseball, and it’s reflected on the diamond.
The D-backs did lose their last series against the Colorado Rockies at Chase Field, but will look to turn things around facing the Nats on Tuesday.
Before we give you the pitching matchups and our players to watch, we want to hear from you. What are your thoughts on this upcoming series? Send us your predictions in our comments section.
Here are the pitching matchups for this series:
Tonight: Taijuan Walker (3-1, 3.94 ERA) vs. Tanner Roark (3-0, 3.64) – 7:05 p.m ET, broadcast on MASN2
Tomorrow: Robbie Ray (2-1, 3.56) vs. Gio Gonzalez (3-0, 1.62) – 7:05 p.m ET, MASN2
Thursday: Zack Greinke (2-2, 3.19) vs. Max Scherzer (3-2, 2.94) – 1:05 p.m ET, MASN2