Washington Nationals: 5 to watch at home versus Atlanta
By Ron Juckett
The homestand continues for the Washington Nationals as they host the Atlanta Braves for three. Here are five players to keep an eye on.
This was a weekend the Washington Nationals hope to forget.
Beyond getting swept by the Texas Rangers at home, the bullpen let two games slip and the Nats suffered from a giant failure of baseball 101. Whether you blame the long road trip out west or Ryan Zimmerman’s gala that changed the normal weekend routine, this was simply terrible baseball from a great team.
The back half of the homestand sees Washington host the Atlanta Braves for the first time in 2017. With two trips to brand new SunTrust Park in the book, the Nats come into the series with a 4-2 record.
With Koda Glover hitting the disabled list after hurting his back in the shower who knows who will close games. Joe Blanton came off the disabled list. Chances are it is not him.
Congratulations to Max Scherzer on his 2000th career strikeout. He grabbed the milestone Sunday in the fourth inning to a standing ovation. Normally laser focused, he seemed moved by the moment.
After a rough weekend, the best thing Washington can do is move on and focus on the present. The daily nature of the game makes it easier to forget the hard losses with games every day. Perhaps learning to bunt and moving runners along the way will help.
Atlanta comes north with a 27-38 record. Now in third place, the Braves struggled over the weekend at home versus the New York Mets. Racked with injuries, this is a great chance for the Nats to take advantage.
Monday and Tuesday are your usual weeknight 7:00 Eastern games with Wednesday being a late afternoon start on Flag Day.
Here are five to watch as the Nats play host to the Braves.