The Nats led 3-0 entering the top of the 6th, but in less than a half hour they yielded eight Guardian runs on their way to an 8-6 loss. Mark & Al evaluate Michael Soroka, who initially seemed to have an excellent outing coming off the IL, but his scoreless effort turned into being tagged with four Cleveland runs. Soroka took the mound in the 6th after needing only 67 pitches prior to that frame.

(9:25) Jorge Lopez & Andrew Chafin each struggled mightily in the nightmare inning, including a run scoring wild pitch. The low key positive came from Cole Henry, who tossed three scoreless innings to keep the game in striking distance.

(13:30) The offense scored six runs off of 13 hits, but Davey Martinez was critical of their 4 for 19 effort with RISP in his postgame press conference.

(23:00) What is swirling in GM Mike Rizzo's head regarding the state of the bullpen?

(31:30) Washington hosts St. Louis & Erick Fedde on Friday night. Fedde has made seven starts this season and is sporting a 4.78 ERA.

The Nats opened the doubleheader vs. Cleveland with their 3rd straight win, but that momentum was halted just a few hours later. Mark & Al reluctantly begin again with the bullpen, who overall had an awful Tuesday at the ballpark. They inherited a 6-2 lead in Game 1, but the Guardians immediately scored six runs in the top of the 7th. The offense bailed them out and then Kyle Finnegan notched his 100th career save.

(7:10) The Nationals were trailing when Brad Lord departed Game 2, but the 'pen still managed to give up five runs in only three innings of work. Lucas Sims allowed three runs and his ERA is now up to 12.34.

(14:30) Jake Irvin continued his season long trend of having his roughest inning in the top of the 1st. Irvin was pulled in the 6th and Al offers a suggestion of how the organization should consider handling his future starts.

(17:30) Lord had a good outing, but all signs are pointing to him moving back to the bullpen once Michael Soroka returns from the IL on Wednesday. Lord began the season as a reliever before he was thrust into the rotation due to surrounding injuries.

(27:00) The offense came through with ten hits in the Game 1 victory. James Wood went deep with a 2-run shot for his 10th homer of the year. Dylan Crews had a RBI double to tie the game in the bottom of the 7th; shortly after the bullpen coughed up the lead.

(29:30) The bats were quiet in Game 2, Riley Adams solo HR was the only source of scoring. Josh Bell returned to the lineup after missing three straight games and went hitless in the cleanup spot. The bright spot came from CJ Abrams as he drew a trio of walks in the leadoff spot. Abrams has played at a level where he might return to the All-Star Game this summer.

(36:40) Josh Whetzel, the Voice of the Rochester Red Wings, gives Nats Chat an exclusive report on what is happening at AAA.

The Nats and Guardians were rained out on Monday and will play a traditional doubleheader on Tuesday starting at 3:35PM.

The Nats won their first road series of the season after a 4-1 victory over the Reds on Sunday afternoon. Mark (From Cincinnati) & Al note the bullpen having a solid weekend and instilling a bit more confidence as of late.

(04:40) MacKenzie Gore extended his MLB lead for strikeouts this season by whiffing nine Reds in the series finale. Gore fought through muddy conditions to make it through the bottom of the 5th as the rain intensified in what was his last inning of work.

(13:00) Three Nationals relievers combined for four scoreless frames after Gore departed. Jorge Lopez tossed two innings on his way to earning the win. Lopez has five consecutive scoreless appearance and all of them have come in high leverage situations.

(16:10) Luis Garcia Jr. hit the go ahead solo homer to give Washington a 2-1 lead in the top of the 7th. Garcia hit two homers on the road trip and his OPS this season is at .642.

(20:00) The Nats begin a three game series vs. Cleveland on Monday night in Navy Yard. There is some mystery as to who will start on Wednesday afternoon as it could either be Trevor Williams or Michael Soroka. Brad Lord is slated to start the middle game on Tuesday evening.

(26:30) Jim Callis from MLB Pipeline previews the options for the Nationals this summer when they select the top pick in the Draft on July 13th.

The Nats totaled 15 hits on their way to an 11-6 triumph at the Reds on Saturday evening. Mark (From Cincinnati) & Al note Ahmed Rosario's biggest game yet since joining the team as he had four hits and a 3-run homer in the 6th to put Washington ahead for good.

(07:00) Riley Adams had a big game with both the bat and his arm. Adams came through with a late 2-run single and threw out a pair of base stealers. Adams only has 22 at bats so far this season in the backup catcher role.

(11:15) Trevor Williams had another rocky outing as he gave up four runs off of nine hits in just over five frames. Williams' ERA is up to 5.86 and his spot in the rotation is under closer scrutiny as Michael Soroka is poised to return soon from the IL.

(16:20) Andrew Chafin excelled in his organizational debut as he recorded two strikeouts in relief of Williams to keep the 7-4 lead in tact through six innings. Mark relays his colorful impression of the veteran lefty who is full of personality.

(23:00) MacKenzie Gore takes the mound on Sunday in the series rubber match. Gore currently leads all of MLB w/ 59 strikeouts this season in seven starts.

The Nats fell 6-1 in Cincinnati on Friday evening to open the three game set. Mark (From Cincy) & Al discuss Mitchell Parker's second consecutive poor outing as he allowed five runs off of four walks in only four innings on the mound. Parker this past week has been struggling with control and looks like a different pitcher than the one that began the season.

(06:40) Michael Soroka struck out 11 Iron Pigs in only five innings of work in his AAA rehab outing in Rochester. He is expected to return to the big league rotation in the near future.

(9:45) Jackson Rutledge tossed a scoreless bottom of the 8th and quietly is sporting a 2.38 ERA. Will he start to pitch in more high leverage situations moving forward?

(13:10) Reds hurler Hunter Greene dominated Washington as he collected a dozen strikeouts in only six innings of work. Greene now has 55Ks this season, 3rd most in the majors, trailing league leader MacKenzie Gore by four strikeouts.

(16:30) Josh Bell homered and the exited the game early due to tweaking his hamstring.

(19:40) Trevor Williams is slated to start on Saturday, but there is heavy rain in the Cincinnati forecast.

The Nats snapped their three game skid with a 4-2 victory on Thursday night at the Phillies. Mark (From Philadelphia) & Al open with the eventful top of the 6th where Washington scored all of their runs. Luis Garcia Jr. not only had a RBI single, but also stole home on a double steal for the final insurance run.

(08:10) Keibert Ruiz knocked in Nathaniel Lowe on what was ruled a three base error by Bryce Harper, but should it have been scored as a triple?

(12:45) Brad Lord lasted five innings and recorded his first Big League "W". The timing is rather interesting as his rotation spot is at stake if Michael Soroka returns from the IL in the near future.

(18:45) The bullpen came through for Lord as three relievers combined for four scoreless frames. Jose A. Ferrer tossed two innings, Jorge Lopez pitched the 8th, and Kyle Finnegan bounced back with his 10th save of the season, the 2nd most in the NL.

(25:00) The Nationals made their first bullpen transaction post Opening Day as they signed veteran Andrew Chafin and DFA'd Colin Poche. Chafin has been in the majors since 2014 and has a career ERA of 3.42. The lefty pitched well for AAA-Toledo last month before signing a major league deal with the Nats.

(30:00) The road trip moves this weekend to Cincinnati for a three game set. Mitchell Parker will start the opener on Friday night vs. Hunter Greene. The Reds are 17-15 overall and are in 2nd place in their division.