The Washington Nationals will go for their fourth straight series win since the All-Star break when they host the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday afternoon.
Washington rebounded from a 3-2 setback Monday in the opener of the three-game series vs. Toronto with an 8-6 win on Tuesday.
“Obviously we understand meaningful games going into late July and August,” manager Blake Butera said after Washington’s sixth victory in the past nine games. “Each win just feels like it means more and more every time out.”
With an eight-game road trip through Atlanta and Philadelphia awaiting them, the Nationals will look to end their six-game homestand on a high note.
Toronto, which is 4-8 since the break, can earn a split of its six-game road trip with a win on Wednesday.
The Blue Jays will send rookie Trey Yesavage (4-5, 3.92 ERA) to the mound Wednesday against fellow right-hander Zack Littell (7-8, 5.17), who could be preceded by an opener.
Toronto has lost the last four starts by Yesavage, who is 0-2 with a 6.11 ERA during that stretch.
He gave up three runs on five hits over four innings in his team’s 6-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Friday. He tied his career high with nine strikeouts and walked one while throwing 93 pitches.
“I was getting ahead early. I think every batter I faced, I got to a two-strike count,” Yesavage said. “It’s just a matter of putting them away, which really drove up the pitch count.”
He has never faced the Nationals.
After allowing eight runs in a start against the Athletics on July 18, Littell worked behind an opener the last time out, with better results. He took the loss despite giving up one run on four hits over five innings Friday in a 3-2 setback to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Littell is 2-0 with 4.68 ERA in six career games (four starts) vs. Toronto.
On Tuesday night, the high-powered Nationals offense used early walks and mid-game power to build an 8-3 lead before holding on late.
The Nationals got a team-record six walks in the first inning against Shane Bieber and back-to-back homers from Luis Garcia Jr. and Dylan Crews in the fourth. Crews has reached safely in 10 straight games, batting .314 (11-for-35) with three doubles, three homers, eight walks, nine runs and six RBIs during that span.
“It’s unbelievable,” said closer Clayton Beeter, who picked up his 11th save. “One through nine, I feel like everybody’s a tough out. Just talking to guys around the league, everybody’s respecting out lineup, and that’s good to see.”
George Springer’s three-run homer in the eighth inning trimmed Washington’s lead to 8-6. He is batting .333 (14-for-42) with two doubles, three homers, five runs and 11 RBIs since the All-Star break to raise his season average to .234.
Kazuma Okamoto hit his 24th homer of the season for Toronto. Teammate Vladimir Guerrero Jr. exited the game in the fourth inning with right hamstring tightness after legging out an infield single in the third.
“He wanted to stay in,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said, “and it was just my call to be careful with him and not have anything worse happen.”
Schneider did not rule out Guerrero playing on Wednesday.
–Field Level Media
