Washington Nationals Game Against Pittsburgh Pirates Postponed Due to Weather
Coming down this final stretch of the year, the Washington Nationals are hoping to get as many evaluations done on their current players as possible.
Whether those are prospects, potential cornerstone pieces, or veterans auditioning for a job, the front office has to use this time period to get a gauge on how they are going to attack this offseason.
Scheduled to begin their three-game weekend series against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, the Nationals were set to avoid megastar rookie Paul Skenes as it wasn't his turn in the rotation, but they are scheduled to face previous staff ace Mitch Keller and fellow impressive rookie Jared Jones.
Unfortunately, the start of this matchup will have to wait.
The Pirates announced on their social media account that Friday's game has been postponed because of rain. They will play a doubleheader on Saturday with the first contest scheduled for first pitch at 1:35 p.m. EST, and the second game set to start at 6:40 p.m. EST.
For any Washington fans who made the trip up to Pittsburgh, tickets are valid for the first game of the doubleheader, but they can also be exchanged.
DJ Herz, the scheduled pitcher for Friday, will be handed the ball to get things started in this series.
The 23-year-old rookie has improved his ERA each month he's been with the Nationals since being called up on June 4. Over his last six starts, he's posted a 3.10 ERA across 29 innings pitched, striking out 35 hitters while holding opposing lineups to a .189 batting average.
He's a huge piece of the puzzle that Washington is hoping finishes the year out strong.
Game 2 will feature another youngster in Mitchell Parker who is also in the midst of his rookie season, having debuted back in April.
It's been a rollercoaster for him this season, beginning his year strong with a 1.69 ERA across the first three starts of his career. Then, that number was over a 4.00 in May before reducing to 3.15 in six starts the next month.
Parker really hit the wall during July, allowing 19 earned runs in 21.2 innings pitched.
Things have stabilized a bit for him, but he's still sitting with a 4.18 ERA in his last six starts.
Again, the Nationals are hoping he'll be able to string together strong performances to close out his rookie year, giving them a good idea about what their starting rotation could look like going forward.
