Good morning, Washington Nationals fans.

Here are the latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball for today, May 22.

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

Leading this Morning’s Briefing: Nats pitching crushed and bats go quiet

Patrick Corbin allowed eight runs in his six innings of work. This is the fourth eight-spot allowed by Corbin since the start of 2021. According to Stathead, only Sean Manaea, Lance Lynn, Austin Gomber, and Lucas Giolito have allowed eight runs or more in four or more starts during that span.

Stuff+, a metric that rates pitch quality based on release point, pitch movement, and velocity, has Corbin, Lynn, and Gomber in the bottom seven in Stuff+ in all of MLB.

The results have not been good either. Since the start of 2021, he has the highest ERA among the 115 qualified pitchers. The only pitcher with a higher FIP is his teammate Josiah Gray.

So the advanced metrics have been bad. The actual results have been bad. So what do we do with Corbin? Thankfully, Cade Cavalli and Josiah Gray are nearing their returns, with Cavalli starting a rehab assignment yesterday. The team may go to a six-man rotation as they try to keep Mitchell Parker, Cavalli, and Jake Irvin’s innings down.

The team can then transition back to a five-man rotation after the trade deadline, or call up Jackson Rutledge to fill the Trevor Williams-sized hole in the rotation.

Only two Nationals got hits. Joey Meneses hit a two-out double and Jacob Young got two hits from the nine spot in the lineup.

Despite the offense and pitching see-sawing, if they even out today the Nationals can still win the series against the Twins. Jake Irvin (2-4, 3.91 ERA) takes the mound against RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (1-0, 2.97 ERA). First pitch is at 1:05 pm ET and will be televised on MASN.

Down in the Minors

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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