Washington @ Cleveland preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 26, 2016 ) Washington 6, Cleveland 7

Stephen Strasburg stumbled out of the blocks and suffered his first defeat since September in his last trip to the mound. With six days to stew on the result, the 28-year-old looks to rid the sour taste from his mouth and extend his perfect road record Wednesday afternoon as the Washington Nationals vie for a split of their abbreviated two-game interleague series versus the Cleveland Indians.

While Strasburg is 6-0 on the road, Washington isn't shabby either with a 27-22 mark away from the nation's capital and a stellar 9-4 mark in interleague play. Wilson Ramos continued his hot hand with a solo homer in Tuesday's 7-6 setback and is 19-for-53 while hitting safely in 12 of his last 13 games. While Washington has dropped two in a row and six of eight to see its advantage over second-place Miami dip to four games, the AL Central-leading Indians snapped a three-game skid in exhilarating fashion. All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor capped a three-hit performance with a walk-off RBI single Tuesday to improve to 12-for-33 with five runs driven in during his last eight games.

TV: 12:10 p.m. ET, MASN (Washington), STO (Cleveland)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Nationals RH Stephen Strasburg (13-1, 2.83 ERA) vs. Indians RH Carlos Carrasco (7-3, 2.31)

Justin Turner belted a pair of two-run homers and Strasburg allowed a season-high six runs to spoil his 10-strikeout performance in a 6-3 setback to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. The six runs permitted was double the combined total of his previous four outings (28 2/3 innings) while the two homers he surrendered equaled the sum of the four-start stretch. Strasburg has split a pair of career outings versus Cleveland, although he suffered the loss in 2013 despite yielding one run on one hit in five innings.

Carrasco improved to 5-1 with a 1.16 ERA in his last six starts last Wednesday after allowing one hit over six scoreless innings in an 11-4 romp versus Kansas City. The 29-year-old Venezuelan boasts a 1.56 ERA in his last eight starts, although he surrendered five homers in that stretch. Carrasco, who will be pitching on six days' rest, makes his 133rd career appearance and first versus Washington.

WALK-OFFS

1. Washington OF Bryce Harper is 0-for-13 in his last four contests.

2. Cleveland 2B Jason Kipnis has five multi-hit performances during his nine-game hitting streak (15-for-36).

3. Indians veteran 3B Juan Uribe is 5-for-42 with 10 strikeouts in July.

PREDICTION: Nationals 2, Indians 1