The Washington Nationals announced the starting pitching rotation against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Plus, a fifth top-100 prospect has been named while FOX announces ten regular season games set to be broadcast.
Following Friday's home opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Washington Nationals will return to the diamond this afternoon with the rotation set, plus notes on Nationals prospects and broadcast schedule.
Starting rotation vs. Dodgers...Jake Irvin is set to take the mound on Saturday with opening pitch set for 4:05 PM. Irvin went five innings in his first start of the regular season back on March 29 against the Chicago Cubs, posting seven strikeouts and allowing a pair of earned runs on 93 pitches. Foster Griffin is set to take the mound on Sunday with opening pitch set for 1:35 PM where he'll look to post another encouraging outing. Griffin took the mound in the series opening win against the Philadelphia Phillies where he allowed a pair of earned runs, including a home run, while tossing five strikeouts in five innings.
Fifth top-100 prospect...the Washington Nationals officially have a fifth top-100 prospect after MLB.com updated their rankings this week, slotting infielder Gavin Fien as the 99th best prospect. Fien joins Eli Willits (11), Travis Sykora (52), Harry Ford (67) and Jarlin Susana (76) in the updated rankings as part of a restocked farm system, which became clear was a point of emphasis for the organization ever since Paul Toboni was announced as the new president of baseball operations.
FOX TV schedule...While the club has officially made the move to Nationals TV for its inaugural season after years of speculation that a divorce with MASN would materialize, the Nationals announced additional ways for fans to watch the team in 2026 with ten games set to be broadcast on FOX. That begins with a home game against the San Francisco Giants on April 17, the first of nine Friday games on the schedule. The slate also features three games in both May and July followed by three games in August with the Wednesday, Aug. 12 matchup against the Chicago Cubs the lone game set during the week. Pregame show for each game will begin at 6 PM except for the July 31 road game against the Atlanta Braves, which will begin at 6:30 PM.
Full FOX schedule:
April 17: at San Francisco Giants, 6:45 PM
May 1: vs. Milwaukee Brewers, 6:45 PM
May 15: vs. Baltimore Orioles, 6:45 PM
May 29: vs. San Diego Padres, 6:45 PM
July 10: vs. New York Yankees, 6:45 PM
July 24: vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, 6:45 PM
July 31: at Atlanta Braves, 7:15 PM
August 7: vs. Cincinnati Reds, 6:45 PM
(Wednesday) August 12: vs. Chicago Cubs, 6:45 PM
August 28: vs. Miami Marlins, 6:45 PM