Good morning, Washington Nationals fans.

Here are the latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball for today, July 3.

The Nats Report is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Welcome to the Morning Briefing! Jeremy Lapidus here. The Nationals dropped their second straight extra-inning game, wasting another DJ Herz gem. Let’s talk about it!

Leading this Morning's Briefing: The Nats Lose 7 of Last 8, Blow 10K Performance

There must be some magic from the big purple blob, as the Mets improve to 14-4 since Grimace threw out his first pitch on June 12th. In an almost repeat script from the series' first game against the Mets, the Nationals fall 7-2 in 10 innings.

For the second time in his young career DJ Herz had a double-digit strikeout performance. Herz went 5.2 innings cruising through a red hot Mets lineup with 10 K’s, no walks, and only 96 pitches.

With this performance DJ Herz becomes just the second pitcher since 1901 to have multiple 10 strikeout, no walk performances in his first 6 starts. A feat only matched by Nationals legend Stephen Strausburg, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs.

James Wood had a quieter second game in the show, going 0-3 but was able to get on base with a walk in the 9th inning, before being caught stealing later in the inning.

For the second game in a row, the bullpen collapsed in extras, allowing 5 runs in the 10th inning. This time it was Robert Garcia who got rocked, giving up a run for the first time in his last 7 outings.

With the loss, the Nats have dropped 7 of their last 8 games and continue to struggle in extra-inning games this year with a record of 2-6. With an extra inning win percentage of .250, the Nats are tied second worst in the MLB in that category.

The Nationals look to turn the series around, tonight when Mitchell Parker (5-4, 3.32 ERA) takes on Christian Scott (0-2, 3.90 ERA). First pitch is 6:45 PM on MASN.

Down in the Minors

Josiah Gray Headed For Further Testing With Elbow Discomfort

Richard • Jul 2, 2024

RHP Josiah Gray told reporters that he came out of his most recent rehab start with elbow discomfort and fatigue with the Rochester Red Wings. I asked Rochester’s Manager, Matt LeCroy, about Gray’s performance after Talk Nats [X link] noticed that Gray’s velo and pitch location was down in his Sunday appearance.

Read full story →

Featured Story of the Day

MLB All-Star Voting Ends Tonight via MLB.com

The Nats Report is an independent reader-supported project with free and paid subscriptions, not affiliated with the Washington Nationals.

Those who opt for the paid edition are providing vital assistance to bolster our independent coverage of the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball.