Nationals at Giants
Mac Williamson appears to be on a mission to remain in the majors, and he'll look to do further damage when the San Francisco Giants host the Washington Nationals on Tuesday for the middle contest of their three-game set. Williamson smacked his second tape-measure homer in four games to help the Giants post a 4-2 win in Monday's series opener.
The 27-year-old Williamson was recalled from Triple-A Sacramento on Friday after Hunter Pence went on the disabled list, and his two homers have traveled a whopping 900 feet. Williamson launched a 434-foot blast against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday and deposited a 466-footer into the stands in right-center field on Monday. "I just haven't seen many balls hit there, even in (batting practice) with the wind blowing," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said in his postgame press conference. "That's impressive. It shows you how strong this guy is." Meanwhile, Washington will be attempting to end a three-game losing streak during which it has scored a total of five runs.
TV: 10:15 p.m. ET, MASN2 (Washington), NBCS Bay Area Plus (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Nationals RH Tanner Roark (1-1, 3.24 ERA) vs. Giants LH Ty Blach (1-3, 4.10)
Roark settled for a no-decision against the New York Mets in his last outing after giving up two runs and two hits over seven innings. The 31-year-old has a superb 0.43 ERA in his last three starts against San Francisco and stands 6-0 with a 2.02 ERA in seven career appearances (four starts) versus the Giants. Roark has struggled with Buster Posey (6-for-14) and Brandon Belt (4-for-11) but has shut down the double-play combo of Brandon Crawford (2-for-13) and Joe Panik (1-for-11).
Blach has lost three consecutive decisions and is winless over his last four starts. The 27-year-old pitched well against Arizona in his last turn but suffered the loss by allowing two runs and six hits over six innings. Blach never has faced Washington but is familiar with Howie Kendrick, who is 2-for-8 with two strikeouts against him.
WALK-OFFS
1. Nationals RF Bryce Harper is 2-for-17 with no homers over his last six games.
2. Posey recorded two hits in the opener after being just 3-for-28 over his previous eight appearances.
3. Washington traded RHP A.J. Cole to the New York Yankees for cash considerations.