Nats face red-hot Brewers at home. Can Washington's bats find momentum against Milwaukee's stellar pitching and bounce back from their slump?
After dropping two of three at home against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Washington Nationals will travel to Milwaukee for a weekend set against the Brewers.
The Brewers are an impressive 5-1 to start the season at home, currently sitting at the top of the NL Central. On the other end, the Nationals are finding themselves in a pretty abysmal skid in this first month of play, having lost seven of their last eight.
Probable starters for Friday night’s matchup are Washington’s Jake Irvin and Milwaukee’s Chad Patrick. Irvin will go out for his third start of the season, as he currently has collected an 8.00 ERA for 2026. His last start against the Dodgers was more shaky than his first against the Cubs, but he still has kept his command tight, only allowing three walks in nine innings pitched so far.
On the other end, Chad Patrick has been stellar for Milwaukee across two starts in 2026. He’s allowed just one run across 9 ⅓ innings, and his arsenal features a strong cutter and four-seam fastball. Patrick still allowed nine hits in those 9 ⅓, so timely hitting to drive in allowed hits will be the important key for the Nats to focus on this weekend.
Foster Griffin and Kyle Harrison will get the nod for Saturday night, followed by Zach Littell and Brandon Woodruff on Sunday. So far in 2026, Nats pitchers have a 1.65 WHIP (Walks plus Hits per Innings Pitched), which is the second worst in the MLB. Though Foster Griffin and Jake Irvin lead the team in strikeouts so far, both tied with 11.
Offensively, Washington actually has compiled a higher team batting average compared to Milwaukee, with the Nats hitting .266 compared to the Brewers .253. Young bats are still the hottest for the Nats, with Brady House and CJ Abrams still leading the lineup. Abrams currently sits in second place in the MLB for runs batted in with 14.
The Brewers are taking an opposite approach, led by veterans Christian Yellich and Gary Sanchez. Yellich still appears to be hitting in prime form, sporting an impressive .372 average to start 2026.
Milwaukee opened their season without a few key offensive pieces, such as Jackson Chourio and Andrew Vaughn sidelined with injuries. Brice Turang was also out for the Brewers’ last two games against the Boston Red Rox, and left a definite hole in the lineup as Milwaukee dropped those two games. Turang was originally ruled out with ankle tendinitis, but it is believed he will return to the lineup today against Washington.