Florida @ Washington preview
Nationals Park
Last Meeting ( Sep 1, 2010 ) Washington 10, Florida 16
For a couple of teams with little left to play for this season, the Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals might draw a little more attention than one would expect when they begin a three-game series tonight at Nationals Park.
The meeting will be the first between the division rivals since their bench-clearing brawl Sept. 1 at Florida, resulting in fines or suspensions for nine players and coaches.
Don't expect a repeat tonight, as the central figure in the melee is unlikely to see action. Nationals outfielder Nyjer Morgan's appeal of his eight-game suspension for the incident -- as well as a seven-game penalty for another incident -- is scheduled for today, and he is expected to begin serving his time tonight.
Morgan's actions over a two-day span sparked the brawl. He barrelled into Marlins catcher Brett Hayes on a play at the plate Aug. 31, dislocating Hayes' shoulder in the process. After being hit by a pitch from Chris Volstad the next day, Morgan stole second and third and scored on a sacrifice fly to cut Florida's lead to 14-4, then pounded his chest while staring into the Marlins' dugout.
Volstad sailed a pitch behind Morgan's head his next time up, and the Washington leadoff man charged the mound, setting off the brawl.
Things have been decidedly less exciting for Florida since then.
The Marlins lost the last three of a four-game set with division leader Philadelphia, effectively ending their last-ditch effort to get back into the playoff picture. Now they sit 10 games back of the Phillies and nine games out of the wild card with 23 games to play.
Florida has allowed 25 runs during its three-game losing streak, a trend it hopes rookie right-hander Alex Sanabia (3-2, 4.50 ERA) can halt tonight.
Sanabia turned 22 on Wednesday, but was hit with a five-game suspension for his role in joining last week's fracas. He plans to drop his appeal of the ban after tonight's start.
Sanabia earned his first major league win against the Nationals on July 18, throwing 5 1/3 innings of scoreless ball in a 1-0 victory, but his second start against Washington on Aug. 30 didn't go as well. He gave up four runs over 5 2/3 innings, taking the loss in a 9-3 defeat.
Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman hit a three-run homer off Sanabia in their most recent encounter. Zimmerman is 3-for-5 against the rookie.
The Nationals' playoff hopes were squashed long ago and their streaky play has made it difficult to find something to build on. They've had two three-game win streaks over the past two weeks, with a three-game losing streak sandwiched between. They enter the series losing the last two games of this week's set against the Mets.
Washington has been particularly inconsistent at the plate -- it scored 30 runs during a three-game winning streak, but only totalled three in the two losses.
The Nationals will try to give left-hander John Lannan more support. He has pitched well over the past month, as the 25-year-old is 5-1 with a 2.84 ERA in his last six starts.
Lannan (7-6, 4.73 ERA) faced the Marlins on May 2 in Florida, allowing six runs over five innings and taking the loss in a 9-3 defeat. He is 2-2 with a 5.68 ERA in five career starts against Florida. Hanley Ramirez (6-for-13) and Dan Uggla (4-for-11) have given Lannan the most trouble.