Washington Nationals: 5 to watch at Dodger Stadium

Stephen Strasburg

In two of the last three series the Nats have had with the Dodgers, Strasburg has to miss those because of injuries. This year, he’s healthy and pitching like an ace. During the month of May, he went 4-0 with a 2.78 ERA and had 43 strikeouts in five outings.

While Strasburg didn’t have another double-digit strikeout game against the Oakland Athletics on Friday, he still had another good outing. He went seven innings, gave up two runs on seven hits, struck out seven, and walked three as he picked up his seventh win of the year.

Pitching out of the stretch has done wonders for Strasburg this season. His fastball is still electric, but the pitch that teams have trouble hitting is the changeup. According to Brooks Baseball, teams are hitting .083 against that pitch with three singles, a home run, and 22 strikeouts.

This Strasburg-Kershaw matchup was supposed to happen last year in the regular season at Dodger Stadium , but Yusmeiro Petit got the start instead as Strasburg got scratched. Also, the Dodgers handed him his first loss of the season last year on July 21.

If there is one hitter to watch in this game for Los Angeles, it’s first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. He is 6-for-12 against Strasburg with a pair of doubles and a pair of RBI’s in his career.

Next: Joe Ross At A Crossroads

Who are your hitters to watch in this rematch of last year’s NLDS? Send us your thoughts in the comments section below.