Shane Baz takes the ball at 1-4 with a 5.48 ERA, fresh off a 4 2/3-inning, 5-run dud against the A's on Saturday in a 6-2 loss. He had one solid 5.2-inning, 1-run start against Houston buried in there, but the $65M extension he signed in March has not exactly aged into a layup yet. The stuff is real. The results are a coin flip.
On the other side is Zack Littell, who is 1-4 with a 6.94 ERA and somehow making Baz look stable. Littell has been crushed by the long ball — he's already given up an MLB-high 11 homers, and he's served up multiple in nearly every outing. Washington bumped him to the bullpen for an appearance against Milwaukee last weekend where he threw 3 2/3 innings of 1-run ball, which is the kind of result that buys you exactly one more start to figure it out.
Pinnacle has Baltimore at -137 with a 9.5 total, which feels generous given the rotation news but also reflects how thin the Nats are. Washington is missing essentially its entire planned rotation — Trevor Williams, DJ Herz and Josiah Gray are all on the 60-day IL with elbows, and Tyler Stuart already had Tommy John. That's how you end up running Littell out every 5 days no matter what the line score says.
- Day-To-DayRichard Guasch (SP) — no05/08
- Day-To-DayWill Robertson (LF) — The Orioles reassigned Robertson to minor-league camp Wednesday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayKeagan Gillies (P) — Gillies will be sidelined for at least six weeks with a quad injury, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayLuis Vazquez (SS) — Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Monday that Vazquez has been diagnosed with a broken right thumb, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILDylan Beavers (RF) — Beavers (oblique) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees.05/13
- 10-Day-ILJackson Holliday (2B) — Holliday (hand) will play at third base in a rehab game with Double-A Chesapeake on Sunday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/09
- 15-Day-ILGrant Wolfram (RP) — The Orioles placed Wolfram on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with a lower-back strain, retroactive to Saturday.05/12
- 15-Day-ILDean Kremer (SP) — Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Monday that Kremer (quadriceps) has begun a throwing program, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/11
- 15-Day-ILRyan Helsley (RP) — The Orioles announced Monday that Helsley (elbow) hasn't been cleared to start a throwing program, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/11
- 15-Day-ILCade Povich (SP) — The Orioles placed Povich on the 15-day injured list Friday with left shoulder inflammation.05/08
- 60-Day-ILJordan Westburg (3B) — Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Wednesday that Westburg (elbow) is "going through the options, next steps, what he wants to do" following an exam with Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Monday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/13
- 60-Day-ILHeston Kjerstad (LF) — The Orioles transferred Kjerstad (hamstring) to the 60-day injured list Monday.05/11
- 60-Day-ILYaramil Hiraldo (RP) — The Orioles announced Monday that Hiraldo (shoulder) has resumed a throwing program, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/11
- 60-Day-ILColin Selby (RP) — The Orioles placed Selby on the 60-day injured list Saturday due to right shoulder inflammation, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILZach Eflin (SP) — Eflin underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILFelix Bautista (RP) — Bautista (shoulder) threw a baseball Tuesday for the first time since undergoing surgery last August, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayTyler Baum (DH) — Baum has not pitched this year due an undisclosed injury.05/08
- Day-To-DayTravis Sykora (SP) — Sykora will undergo a UCL reconstruction on his right elbow in two weeks, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayJarlin Susana (RP) — Susana underwent surgery last week to repair a right lat tear, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.05/08
- 15-Day-ILClayton Beeter (RP) — Beeter (forearm) is ready to begin a rehab assignment, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.05/12
- 15-Day-ILCole Henry (RP) — Henry (shoulder) played catch Saturday, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.05/08
- 15-Day-ILMax Kranick (RP) — The Nationals signed Kranick (elbow) to a one-year, $800,000 contract Tuesday and placed him on the 15-day injured list.05/08
- OutTyler Stuart (SP) — Stuart underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this week, Bobby Blanco of MASNSports.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILTrevor Williams (SP) — Williams (elbow) began pitching off a mound at the Nationals' spring training complex this weekend, Jessica Camerato of MLB.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILDJ Herz (SP) — Herz (elbow) threw a bullpen session Friday, Jessica Camerato of MLB.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILJosiah Gray (SP) — Gray (elbow) has resumed a throwing program, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILKen Waldichuk (RP) — The Nationals transferred Waldichuk (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/08
Baltimore's IL is its own horror show — Zach Eflin is post-Tommy John, Dean Kremer's quad has him on a throwing program, Cade Povich's shoulder is barking, Jackson Holliday is rehabbing his hand at Double-A Chesapeake, and Jordan Westburg is mulling next steps on his elbow after seeing Dr. ElAttrache. The lineup that shows up in DC is not the one the Orioles drew up in March, but it's still the more talented group on paper.
Bottom line: two starters with ERAs north of 5, two bullpens patched together with duct tape, and an over/under sitting at 9.5 for a reason. If you're showing up to Nationals Park on Friday, bring a glove.