The Nationals' surprise season and the Dodgers' push for October collide at Dodger Stadium, with Los Angeles trying to shake off a rough week before Washington's kids show up swinging.
Washington hands the ball to Jackson Kent, the rookie right-hander who picked up his first big-league win with a 7-inning outing against Miami his last time out. The Dodgers haven't named a starter yet for Friday's opener, which tracks given the state of their rotation right now. Roki Sasaki landed on the 15-day injured list this week with a finger blister, and Eric Lauer — who'd stepped into that rotation spot — followed him there days later with elbow inflammation. That's two rotation losses in the same week for a staff trying to lock in its group for October.
Keibert Ruiz passed concussion protocol after getting hurt against Atlanta, though Washington's catching depth is thin either way with Drew Millas already on the 60-day injured list. The Dodgers, for their part, are still missing center fielder Andy Pages, though he's reportedly progressing to swinging a bat again. Both clubs are patching together lineups more than usual for a September series between a rebuilding team and a roster built for a deep playoff run.
Los Angeles still has to close out its series with St. Louis before this one even begins — a set the Dodgers dropped the first two games of. Whatever mood that leaves them in, the Nationals arrive with nothing to lose and a lineup that keeps producing anyway. James Wood, CJ Abrams and Luis García Jr. anchor an offense that's kept D.C. competitive all summer, long after most projections had this team buried by Labor Day.
Kent's a fitting face for where this Nationals team is right now — up from the minors last month, mixing rookie hiccups with real flashes, including that 7-inning, 1-run effort against the Marlins. Washington's front office, led by 33-year-old manager Blake Butera, has leaned into development over standings all season, and it's produced a club that's nowhere near the postseason picture but isn't just playing out the string, either.
The Dodgers don't have the luxury of treating September as an audition. Every game still matters as Los Angeles jockeys for playoff position, which makes a beat-up rotation walking into a weekend against a scrappy, nothing-to-lose opponent worth watching regardless of where either club sits in the standings when Friday's set opens at 7:10 PM PT.
