It’s one thing to lose a game, but the Washington Nationals thought they had moved past the messy stuff that plagued much of their first half — and ultimately defined the end of their three-game winning streak on Monday.
Washington will look to begin a new run Tuesday when it hosts the Colorado Rockies in the second game of a three-game series between the two teams with the worst records in the National League.
“Let’s go out there and score first and play a cleaner, better game,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said, referring to his team’s next assignment after a 10-6 loss to Colorado on Monday night.
The Rockies won the opener of the three-game series even though they surrendered a total of five runs across the last two innings. The problem for Washington was that it didn’t score until the seventh.
“We’ll have to bounce back,” Martinez said. “The good thing is we started swinging the bats there at the end. … The bats came alive.”
Both teams have injury issues to assess before Tuesday night’s matchup.
Colorado has a damaged roster on several fronts. First baseman C.J. Cron has missed the last three games due to an ailing back, but he could be close to returning.
“C.J. took some swings in the cage (Monday),” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “I saw him doing light sprints in the outfield and playing catch. His movements are progressing. He’s getting close.”
Meanwhile, outfielder/designated hitter Kris Bryant hasn’t played since he was hit on the hand by a pitch on Saturday.
The Rockies, who are 6-3 since the All-Star break, figure to have third baseman Ryan McMahon back in the lineup after he rested on Monday. Alan Trejo filled in at third base and went 4-for-5, exceeding his previous hit total for the entire month.
Nationals outfielder Lane Thomas was hit by a pitch in the eighth inning and left Monday’s game.
“He got hit pretty good right above the knee,” Martinez said. “Kind of precautionary, so I wanted to take him out so he gets it checked out. Hopefully, he’ll be good to go (Tuesday).”
The Rockies’ pitching depth is going to be tested. Colorado has used a total of 10 different pitchers in its last two games.
Rockies left-hander Austin Gomber (8-8, 6.18 ERA) will look to eat some innings when he makes his 21st start of the season on Tuesday. He took the loss in an April 8 matchup with Washington, dropping his career record against the Nationals to 2-2 with a 7.23 ERA in four starts.
Gomber won four consecutive starts before suffering a loss against the Houston Astros last Wednesday. On Tuesday, Gomber will be trying to reach the nine-win mark for just the second time in his five seasons in the majors.
Right-hander Trevor Williams (5-5, 4.38) is set to oppose Gomber. He was the winning pitcher in the April 8 meeting in Denver, giving up two runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings for his first win of the season.
Williams is 3-2 with a 4.97 ERA in five career starts against the Rockies.
In his most recent outing, Williams allowed two runs on seven hits in five innings against the Chicago Cubs last Wednesday. He settled for a no-decision and hasn’t picked up a win since July 2, when he beat the Phillies.
–Field Level Media
