Nationals Injury Leaves Opening in Starting Rotation for Dodgers Showdown

The Washington Nationals have an open spot in their rotation for the Los Angeles Dodgers series due to an injury.

Mar 27, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher MacKenzie Gore (1) throws a pitch during the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park. | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals released their pitching probables for this week’s series with the Los Angeles Dodgers, with a notable omission.

MASN Sports reported that Tuesday’s starter is still to be announced by the club. That’s due to the injury suffered by Michael Soroka, who is now on the 15-day injured list with a biceps strain.

Per Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports, the Nationals were trying move pieces in their rotation and bullpen on Saturday to align their rotation for Sunday and for the week. The key was whether the Nats needed Brad Lord out of the bullpen on Saturday. If he didn’t pitch, he would be the likely starter in Sunday’s finale.

Well, Lord didn’t pitch on Saturday. But the Nationals are going with Trevor Williams on Sunday, which was supposed to be Soroka’s spot in the rotation.

So, now Tuesday is in flux. Lord remains an option, based on MASN’s reporting. There is a chance the Nats could call up Shinnosuke Ogasawara, who is currently on full rest in the minor leagues. If he’s the choice, it would be his Major League debut.

Whoever gets that spot on Tuesday the matchup will do them no favors as the Dodgers plan to throw left-hander Blake Snell. The two-time Cy Young winner is 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA in two starts for his new teams. He has struck out four but has eight walks. His last start was a four-inning no-decision last week, during which he gave up no runs, but allowed five hits and four walks.

On Monday, the Nationals will run out their ace for his third start, left-hander MacKenzie Gore against Dodgers right-hander Dustin May.

Gore (0-1) has a 2.45 ERA in his first two games, which includes 11 innings pitched and a record 13 strikeouts in his opening day start.

He’s coming off a loss to the Toronto Blue Jays last week as he went five innings, gave up nine hits, three earned runs and two walks. He also struck out five.

He now has 18 strikeouts and two walks on the season.

May (0-0) has started just one game so far, which came last week against the Atlanta Braves. He tossed five innings, giving up one hit, no runs and three walks. He also struck out six. He didn’t pitch in the Majors in 2024, as he spent all season on the injured list. But for his MLB career he is 12-9 with a 3.02 ERA in 47 games (35 starts) with 180 strikeouts in 196.2 innings.

On Wednesday, Washington plans to throw right-hander Jake Irvin (0-0). He will be making his third start after giving up six runs, three walks and striking out five in 10 innings. He has an ERA of 5.40

The Dodgers don’t have a probable pitcher yet for the finale.