, who surrendered six hits and four runs - and committed a throwing error - while recording only a single out.Adam Eaton, Juan Soto and Yan Gomes all had RBI singles off Matzek before Thames drove in the go-ahead run with a hard grounder to first. Freeman knocked it down, but his only play was to step on the bag while Asdrubal Cabrera scooted home.Suero (1-0) earned the win with that big assist from Robles. Hudson was handed another three-run lead in the ninth, and this time he held on for his fifth save.TRAINER'S ROOMNationals: 2B Starlin Castro will undergo surgery Friday to insert a pin in his broken right wrist. He still hopes to return before the end of the season. ''They're doing it this way because it will recover a lot quicker,'' manager Dave Martinez said. ''He said, `If you get to the playoffs, I'll be back to help you guys.' That's encouraging.'' ... LHP Sean Doolittle (left knee) reported no issues after throwing about 20 pitches off flat ground. If he doesn't have any setbacks, Doolittle will advance to throw 10-12 pitches off a mound ''and go from there,'' Martinez said. ... Washington still doesn't have a prognosis for RHP Stephen Strasburg (right wrist), who will next be examined by a hand specialist. ''I've not really heard definitively what's going on,'' Martiinez said. ''They want to run more tests.'' Braves: OF Nick Markakis went on the 10-day injured list just before the start of the game after possibly being exposed to Covid-19. Markakis initially opted out of the season because of coronavirus concerns, only to change his mind and rejoin the Braves a couple of weeks ago. He was replaced on the active roster by OF Cristian Pache, one of the team's top prospects.UP NEXTNationals: RH Erick Fedde (1-1, 2.55) will make his first start since July 30. He has worked out of the bullpen in his last three appearances, but essentially made a start his last time out after taking over for the ailing Strasburg. Fedde pitched two-hit ball over 5 1/3 scoreless innings to earn the win in a 15-3 rout of Baltimore.Braves: RH Kyle Wright (0-3, 7.20) will take another shot at his first big league win. He has a career mark of 0-6, struggling to find any consistency despite being one of Atlanta's top pitching prospects. Wright is coming off another rough outing in a loss at Miami, giving up three runs and six walks over three innings. ''It's not a healthy formula,'' manager Brian Snitker said. ''We need our starting pitching to shoulder most of the workload.'' ---Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at https://twitter.com/pnewberry1963 and find his work at https://apnews.com---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Nats' Voth takes aim at first career win against BravesWashington's Austin Voth will try to earn his first career win against the Atlanta Braves, who will dip into their bullpen for a starter when the two clubs meet Tuesday in the second game of a three-game set in Atlanta.The Braves won the first game in dramatic fashion on Monday. They hit a pair of two-run homers in the ninth inning to overcome a three-run deficit, getting blasts from Adam Duvall and a walk-off from Dansby Swanson.Voth (0-2, 3.21) will be opposed by veteran Atlanta pitcher Josh Tomlin (0-1, 1.59), who will make his start of the year.Voth has four career appearances, three of them starts, against the Braves and has pitched well despite having nothing to show for it but an 0-1 record. He has a 2.70 ERA, allowing only five runs in 16 2/3 career innings against Atlanta.Voth will make his fourth start of the season. His best outing came on Aug. 8 when he fired five shutout innings against Baltimore. In his last start on Aug. 13 against the New York Mets, he gave up three runs in four innings and was on the cusp of some controversy.The Nationals argued that Voth was getting squeezed by home plate umpire Carlos Torres. Teammate Stephen Strasburg, watching from the stands, was arguing so loudly that he was ejected. Voth said he appreciated the support."It makes me feel good, just knowing that he has my back and knowing that he's watching me pitch and got eyes on the umpire to see how the game is going and whatnot," Voth said. "He's fighting for me. That's great. That's what I want." Tomlin, who has been the Braves' most versatile and dependable reliever, will make his first start since 2019. After spending most of his career as a starter, he morphed into a swingman for Cleveland in 2018 and had 50 relief appearances for Atlanta in 2019. His only start was in an interleague contest against Kansas City on Sept. 25 when the Braves were setting up their rotation for the playoffs. Tomlin permitted one run in three innings as Atlanta won 10-2."You never really lose that starter mentality, you just go to the bullpen and kind of develop a new mentality for that particular role you're in," Tomlin said. "But I've started for eight or nine years of my career, so this isn't going to be anything new to me, for sure." Tomlin has allowed only two runs in 11 1/3 innings this season, with 16 strikeouts and only three walks.Tomlin said he would be content with whatever role he's asked to play."Whatever they want me to do, I'll be very capable of doing it," he said. "I don't think going three, four, five, six, seven innings -- you're going to be seeing the same soreness after four innings anyways, as you would be if you went seven. It's all about the same to me." He has made eight previous appearances against Washington, with one start, and is 0-1 with a 4.61 ERA against the Nationals.Tomlin must beware of Washington's red-hot Juan Soto, who belted a 445-foot homer on Monday. Soto has seven homers this season and six in the first eight games of the team's current 10-game road trip. Soto is hitting .433 (13-for-30) with 13 RBI and 13 runs scored on the trip.--Field Level Media
Looking for More Picks?
You can browse all the individual handicapper picks below.
Washington Nationals
Atlanta Braves
Pick Center
MLB
FINAL (8/18/2020)
BettingLeverage
