Photo by Andrew Lang/TalkNats
The Washington Nationals went from a promising 3-1 start to their 2026 season into a 3-game losing streak. Not optimal, even though we knew that the first three series of the season would be a tough task to face the three top teams in the NL from last year that included the Los Angeles Dodgers, the reigning two-time World Series champs. Nats’ starter Jake Irvin is tasked today with being the stopper.
You go back to Wednesday’s blown save and know that really changed the tenor with Nats’ fans. Then fans saw that Miles Mikolas was listed as the starter for Nats’ Opening Day (yesterday) and the bad vibes are creeping back in. This is part of the highs and lows of being a sports fan.
Look, beating the Dodgers on any given day is a tough enough task, no matter as to who the starting pitcher was going to be. The worst case is the Nats get swept by the Dodgers and are 3-6 going into the Cardinals series on Monday. But obviously you don’t want to get swept.
Remember, you were sufficiently warned here that the schedule makers gave the Nats a challenging path to open their 2026 season. Sweep the Cardinals and the Nats can restart their engines. Temper your expectations, and you won’t be disappointed. That also allows you to be pleasantly surprised.
Here is a chart of usage on manager Blake Butera‘s bullpen:
The FanGraphs WAR chart is accumulating data. This will start to give us a clearer picture in six weeks when the sample sizes get larger. The OAA defense stat requires a minimum of 10 defensive plays. We will start adding more statistics as the sample sizes get larger.
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Washington Nationals
Stadium: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
1st Pitch: 4:05 PM EDT
TV: Nationals.TV
Radio: 106.7 The Fan radio and via the MLB app. On Sirius/XM, tune to Channel 180 for the home broadcast and the road team is online only.
