The Saturday MLB schedule will get underway with a matchup between the San Francisco Giants and Washington Nationals from Nationals Park. Last night, San Francisco put together a 15-hit attack during a 9-5 victory over Washington. Andrew McCutchen and Gorkys Hernandez went deep for the Giants, who are a game above .500 overall.
Rookie right-hander Dereck Rodriguez (1-0 1.93 ERA) will make his second career major league start for the Giants. Last time out, Rodriguez allowed five hits and one run over six frames during a 5-1 victory versus Philadelphia.
The Washington Nationals lost last night’s game and have even more to worry about after SP Stephen Strasburg left the game with a shoulder injury in the second inning. Strasburg allowed five hits and three runs, while recording just six outs and took the loss. Bryce Harper and Juan Soto drove in two runs each for the Nationals, who are a half-game behind Atlanta for the NL East Division lead.
Thirty-two year old southpaw Gio Gonzalez (6-2 2.27 ERA) is getting better with age for the Nationals. Washington has won each of Gonzalez’s last three starts and he has allowed five runs over his last 21 plus frames.
