Game 3: Nats at Cubs

After alternating blowout wins to begin the season, the two teams meet this afternoon in the rubber game of the series

CHICAGO – Two games into the 2026 season, we’ve had two blowouts. One by the Nationals, one by the Cubs. Which makes today’s series finale the first rubber game of the year. All things considered, a 2-1 opening weekend would be awfully nice for the Nats.

They’ll hope for better pitching and defense today than they got during Saturday’s 10-2 loss. It all starts with Jake Irvin, who is coming off a very strong spring (1.35 ERA, 1.050 WHIP in four Grapefruit League outings) on the heels of a very poor 2025 season (5.70 ERA, 1.428 WHIP in 33 starts). Irvin has made clear his new mindset heading into this year: Give everything he’s got for as long as he’s got it, not saving up anything early so he has a chance to pitch late. We’ll see today how much he can implement that approach against a good Cubs lineup.

The Nationals are facing their second left-hander of the series in Shoto Imanaga. They went head-to-head with the Japanese southpaw twice last season and came away 0-2 while scoring just three runs in 13 innings. Blake Butera is going with the same batting order that was successful Thursday against lefty Matthew Boyd, the only minor change being James Wood serving as DH while Daylen Lile starts in left. CJ Abrams is back after missing Saturday’s game due to a death in the family.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CHICAGO CUBS
Where: Wrigley Field
Gametime: 2:20 p.m. EDT
TV: Nationals TV (channel listings)
Radio: 106.7 FM
Weather: Partly cloudy, 57 degrees, wind 13 mph out to center

NATIONALS
DH James Wood
1B Andrés Chaparro
3B Brady House
LF Daylen Lile
RF Joey Wiemer
SS CJ Abrams
2B Nasim Nuñez
C Keibert Ruiz
CF Jacob Young

RHP Jake Irvin

CUBS
1B Michael Busch
3B Alex Bregman
LF Ian Happ
CF Pete Crow-Armstrong
2B Nico Hoerner
C Carson Kelly
DH Moisés Ballesteros
SS Dansby Swanson
RF Michael Conforto

LHP Shoto Imanaga

PREGAME NOTES

MEAD TO JOIN CLUB MONDAY
Curtis Mead will join the Nationals on Monday in Philadelphia, at which point the club will need to remove someone from the active roster. The 25-year-old infielder was acquired Saturday evening from the White Sox for minor-league catcher Boston Smith.

Mead, who is out of options, was designated for assignment by Chicago on Thursday. The former top-50 prospect and Australia native is a familiar face to Butera from their time together with the Rays.

Mead plays both corner infield positions, plus second base. A right-handed hitter, he could be a better fit than one of the Nats’ two left-handed backup infielders (José Tena, Jorbit Vivas).

“The biggest thing for Curtis is he just hasn’t had a chance to get his feet settled,” Butera said. “He played really well in the minor leagues, he came up with the Rays, got to the big leagues and got a taste of it, but also got sent back down quickly, then gets moved to the White Sox, in and out with the White Sox a little bit, now available. For us, it’s just getting Curtis in here and making sure he understands we believe in him. We’ve seen him at his best. At least, I have and our bench coach (Michael Johns) has. We know what Curtis is capable of.”

NATS CONTEMPLATING TUESDAY STARTER
The Nationals aren’t listing a starter yet for Tuesday night’s game in Philadelphia, a product of Zack Littell’s late signing and perhaps a desire to emphasize matchups in that game.

Foster Griffin will start Monday night’s series opener at Citizens Bank Park, and Cade Cavalli will pitch Wednesday afternoon’s finale in his second start of the season.

Littell should slot into the Tuesday game, but the 30-year-old right-hander has only pitched three times since signing in mid-March for $7 million, the last of those a minor-league start in Florida after everyone else broke camp.

“He says he’s ready,” Butera said. “He said he felt really good in that last outing when we were up here that he threw down there. We are fully prepared for Zack to be ready to roll. Just talking through some final touches before solidifying Tuesday.”

One possible option for the Nats to consider: An opener pitching in front of Littell, most likely a left-handed reliever who would match up better with the likes of Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper at the top of the Phillies lineup.