Game 89: Pirates at Nats

Foster Griffin faces the Bucs in the scorching-hot opener of a holiday weekend series between NL wild-card hopefuls

It’s going to be an absolutely scorching hot weekend here in the DMV, with temperatures reaching 100 degrees and heat indexes reaching 110, and the conditions at Nationals Park are not going to be particularly pleasant for players or fans. If you’ve got tickets, please take precautions, stay hydrated and take advantage of the cooling centers the Nats are providing everyone.

This is an important series for both the Nationals and Pirates, who at the moment are on the outside looking in among the phalanx of NL wild-card contenders and would love to enjoy a big weekend that gets them back into the thick of the mix.

The Nats have Foster Griffin, who just finished off a fantastic month, on the mound tonight. In five June starts, the left-hander went 2-0 with a 1.15 ERA, striking out 33 while walking only four. The Pirates, for what it’s worth, are one of the only teams so far this season to have any success against Griffin, scoring four runs in 5 1/3 innings against him at PNC Park back in April.

Pittsburgh won’t have Paul Skenes in this series, but that’s not necessarily a positive thing for the Nationals because the Pirates have somehow lost Skenes’ last nine starts. Mitch Keller is on the mound tonight, and the Nats got to him for five runs in four innings during that same series earlier this year.

Cade Cavalli and Miles Mikolas, by the way, have both appealed their MLB-imposed suspensions, so both remain on the active roster for now, with Mikolas still listed as Sunday’s starter. Stay tuned for any changes to that situation.

I’m not covering tonight’s game in person, because of the quick turnaround to Saturday’s 11:05 a.m. game, so I’ll talk to you then on Independence Day from the ballpark. Stay cool, everyone!

PITTSBURGH PIRATES at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 6:45 p.m. EDT
TV: Nationals TV (channel listings)
Radio: 106.7 FM
Weather: Mostly clear, 100 degrees, 9 mph out to right

PIRATES
SS Konnor Griffin
DH Brandon Lowe
LF Bryan Reynolds
RF Esmerlyn Valdez
1B Ryan O’Hearn
2B Nick Gonzales
CF Jake Mangum
C Endy Rodriguez
3B Jared Triolo

RHP Mitch Keller

NATIONALS
RF James Wood
1B Luis García Jr.
DH José Tena
SS CJ Abrams
CF Dylan Crews
LF Daylen Lile
C Keibert Ruiz
3B Jorbit Vivas
2B Nasim Nuñez

LHP Foster Griffin