Today the Washington Nationals will play game two of three of their series against the Chicago White Sox. The Nationals are scheduled to send RHP Jake Irvin (9-13; 5.69 ERA) to the mound and will face RHP Sean Burke (4 -11; 4.29 ERA) from the Chicago White Sox.

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On Deck…

Tomorrow, the Nationals will play the final game of the 2025 season. The Nationals are scheduled to send RHP Brad Lord (5-9, 4.12 ERA) to the mound while they are scheduled to face RHP Shane Smith (6-8, 3.98 ERA) from the Chicago White Sox to finish the 2025 season.

In the hole…

OFFSEASON!! Thank you for reading all season long!

James Wood hit his 30th home run of the season on Wednesday against the Braves, becoming just the second player in Nationals history (2005–present) to record at least 30 homers and 15 stolen bases in a season, joining Alfonso Soriano’s 2006 campaign. He currently ranks among National League leaders in doubles (4th, 38), extra-base hits (7th, 68), and walks (10th, 85).

Wood also stands alone across Major League Baseball as the only player this year to post at least 30 home runs, 38 doubles, and 15 steals. With 92 RBI already, he is closing in on a 100-RBI season, which would mark the Nationals’ first since 2019 when Anthony Rendon drove in 126 and Juan Soto tallied 110.

Daylen Lile, a leading contender for the 2025 National League Rookie of the Year, has emerged as one of the most dynamic young hitters in baseball. He leads all Major League rookies with 11 triples and ranks among NL rookies in several key categories: first in batting average (.298), slugging percentage (.492), and OPS (.837), while sitting third in on-base percentage (.345). Despite not joining the Major League roster full time until June 16, Lile still places sixth among NL rookies in hits (94), extra-base hits (34), and stolen bases (8).

Since July 21, Lile has been on a tear, hitting .345/.389/.588 over 53 games with nine doubles, 10 triples, six home runs, 31 RBI, 12 walks, five stolen bases, and 34 runs scored. During this stretch, he leads all NL players in triples, ranks first in batting average, and third in slugging percentage.

The Nationals have been one of baseball’s most dangerous ninth-inning teams in 2025. Washington, tied with the Oakland Athletics, leads the majors with 80 runs scored in the ninth, while pacing MLB with 143 hits in the inning. The only team in franchise history to produce more late-inning runs was the 2019 Nationals, who tallied 87 during their championship season.

Jake Irvin picked up the win in his last outing on Sept. 21 at Citi Field, allowing two earned runs on six hits with five strikeouts and two walks over 5.1 innings against the Mets. He’ll face the Chicago White Sox for the first time in his career in his next start.

Irvin has been a model of consistency in 2025, tied for second in the National League with 32 starts and reaching the 30-start plateau for the second straight season. He leads the Nationals and ranks 13th in the NL with 174.0 innings pitched, while his 361.2 innings since the beginning of 2024 rank 8th in all of Major League Baseball.

On the defensive side, Irvin has forced 18 double plays this year — the most among Nationals pitchers and the fourth most in the NL. He also leads Washington with nine wins, and the team holds a 14-18 record in his 32 starts, the best win-loss mark for any Nats starter in 2025.