Good morning, Washington Nationals fans.

Here are the latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball for today, May 23.

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Welcome to the Morning Briefing! Haden here. Let’s talk about yesterday’s game.

Leading this Morning’s Briefing: Long ball determines game three of series

Jake Irvin had a great start, throwing 6.1 innings and striking out six. He allowed two runs, both coming off home runs allowed to Max Kepler and Carlos Correa. Robert Garcia threw 1.1 innings and struck out one. Hunter Harvey threw 1.1 innings and struck out two, but allowed a double to Kepler who was driven in by Ryan Jeffers.

Washington Nationals defeated by the Twins, 3-2 (updated)

Richard • May 22, 2024

Washington D.C. - This afternoon, the Washington Nationals lost the series finale to the Minnesota Twins, 3-2. The Nationals have a record of 21-27 and are in fourth place in the NL East as they will welcome the Seattle Mariners to Washington, D.C., for a three-game series, which will start on Friday night.

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Keibert Ruiz drove in the first run for the Nationals. Joey Meneses hit a home run off Jhoan Duran. Ildemaro Vargas continues to crush it, going 2-3 with a double, and boosted his OPS to .840. Despite leading the team in OPS, Vargas laid down a sac bunt to move Nasim Nuñez, who pinch-ran for Luis García Jr., over to second with no outs. Joey Gallo and Ruiz did not drive him in.

The Nationals have the day off today. Lane Thomas is nearing a return, which means a corresponding roster move needs to take place. Victor Robles and Meneses seem to be the two players on the chopping block. Meneses still has options, making him the likelier option.

The Nats host the Seattle Mariners on Friday.

Down in the Minors

The Rochester Red Wings beat the Lehigh Valley IronPigs 10-5. James Wood got three hits, including a double and an oppo left-on-left home run. Carter Kieboom and Juan Yepez both homered as well.

Rochester Red Wings

Red Wings Stock Watch

JJ • May 21, 2024

This is the second installment in a series of Stock Watch articles that detail how Nationals prospects at various minor league levels are developing. For the Nats’ Double-A affiliate Harrisburg Senators, check out this article by Owen Ranger. Last week, the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate Rochester Red Wings ran the “ROC The Lilac” promotion to celebrate the city’s annual Lilac Festival (with some fantastic jerseys you can pick up at the

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The Harrisburg Senators won 6-5 over the Akron RubberDucks. Lane Thomas went 1-2 with a double and a walk in his rehab assignment. Dermis Garcia went 3-4 with a home run. Andrew Pinckney doubled for one of his two hits. Brady House got on base twice. Kyle Luckham went five innings and struck out five.

The Rome Emperors beat the Wilmington Blue Rocks 3-2. Paul Witt got the only extra-base hit for the Blue Rocks. Terone Harris got two hits. Daylen Lile recorded an outfield assist and went 1-4.

The Fredericksburg Nationals beat the Lynchburg Hillcats 10-6. Roismar Quintana went 3-5 with two doubles. Armando Cruz hit his first home run of the season. Jeremy De La Rosa hit his second homer of the season while going 2-3 with a walk and a stolen base. He ended the day with four RBIs. Gavin Dugas went 2-4 with a double. Elijah Green went 2-5 and struck out three times. Cristhian Vaquero went 1-2 with a walk, a stolen base, and a double.

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