Washington faces a major test on the road as they open a three-game set against one of the league’s hottest teams.
Coming off another disappointing series loss, hope for the 2025 season is fading away as fast as it came into the season. James Wood and CJ Abrams are carrying the offense, while the rest of the lineup has been extremely disappointing. MacKenzie Gore has led the pitching staff, having a career year and declaring himself as one of the best lefties in baseball. There are plenty of flaws throughout the roster, and with potentially a new general manager and manager in 2026, things could turn around next season.
The Brew Crew is coming off their most impressive series of the season, sweeping the reigning World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers. With All-Star Freddy Peralta leading the pitching staff and Christian Yelich leading the offense, this team has been improving as the season goes on. They are inching closer and closer to the top of the National League Central, and with a great series, Milwaukee could put themselves in a great position heading into the All-Star break. At 53-40, Milwaukee is slowly becoming one of the best teams in baseball.
Milwaukee isn’t the flashiest team, however, they have recently been one of the most impressive teams in all of baseball. Let’s dive into the tough matchup for the Washington Nationals.
TEAM STATS
OFFENSE
The bats started the season ice-cold in Milwaukee, however, they have been turning heads, stringing together a great stretch. Christian Yelich started the season very slowly, but he has turned back into one of the game’s premier bats over the last two months. As a team, they have a .247 batting average (14th), 432 runs (8th), 89 home runs (22nd), an on-base percentage of .322 (21st), and a slugging percentage of .382 (21st).
PITCHING
Milwaukee has dealt with multiple injuries throughout their starting rotation but they seem to be the healthiest they have been in a while. Brandon Woodruff made his return Earlier this week against the Miami Marlins, looking like his former self. Freddy Peralta has put together a stellar season, while the bullpen has turned early struggles into mid-season success. As a team, they have a 3.70 ERA (9th), allowed 97 home runs (14th), 1.26 WHIP (16th), and teams are batting .235 against them (9th).
GAME ONE – Friday, 8:10 EDT
WAS: LHP Mitchell Parker (5-9) – 18 G, 4.72 ERA, 66 SO, 1.38 WHIP, 85 ERA+
MIL: RHP Quinn Priester (6-2) – 16 G, 3.59 ERA, 65 SO, 1.27 WHIP, 112 ERA+
Left-handed Mitchell Parker has been a great innings eater for Washington this season, however, he has not provided the talent they were hoping for heading into the season. Parker is posting career lows this season and it is questionable if he has a long-term spot in Washington’s rotation. In his last start, he struggled against the Boston Red Sox, throwing six innings but surrendered ten hits and nine runs, four of them being earned.
Priester was acquired from the Boston Red Sox earlier this season and has played very well for Milwaukee. Even with starting the season in Triple-A, Priester has turned into a key rotational piece and at just 24 years old, has earned a long-term spot in the rotation. In his last start, he struggled, pitching 4.2 innings and allowed seven hits and four runs.
GAME TWO – Saturday, 4:10 EDT
WAS: LHP Shinnosuke Ogasawara (0-1) – 1 G, 13.50 ERA, 2 SO, 2.63 WHIP, 34 ERA+
MIL: RHP Brandon Woodruff (1-0) – 1 G, 1.50 ERA, 8 SO, 0.82 WHIP, 189 ERA+
Ogasawara made his MLB debut earlier this week and he struggled like most rookies in their debut. At 27 years old, this is a great opportunity for Ogasawara to provide quality innings and prove he deserves a spot on the big league roster. In his first career start, Ogasawara threw 2.2 innings and allowed runs on seven hits as Washington fell to the Boston Red Sox.
After nearly two years of injuries and setbacks, Brandon Woodruff made his season debut on Sunday and put together a great, emotional performance, leading to a Brewers victory. He pitched six innings and allowed just two hits and one run while striking out eight batters.
GAME THREE – Sunday, 2:10 EDT
WAS: RHP Jake Irvin (7-4) – 19 G, 4.78 ERA, 78 SO, 1.31 WHIP, 84 ERA+
MIL: RHP Freddy Peralta (9-4) – 19 G, 2.74 ERA, 111 SO, 1.09 WHIP, 147 ERA+
Jake Irvin has regressed since the beginning of the season. After a great month to start the season, Irvin’s recent stretch of games is showcasing why Irvin’s time as a starter could be coming to an end. In his last seven starts, he has posted a 6.45 ERA with a 1.57 WHIP. His last start was much of the same, pitching six innings but allowing four runs on six hits, losing to the St. Louis Cardinals.
Putting together a career season, Peralta has consistently been Milwaukee’s ace since losing Woodruff to injury and trading Corbin Burnes. In arguably his most impressive performance of his season, Peralta threw six innings of shutout baseball against the defending champs, leading Milwaukee to a win and eventually a series sweep.
Washington is being put against another National League Central team, and it will not be an easy task. As Milwaukee is scorching hot heading into the series, Washington is coming into this series desperate for a positive outcome. James Wood and MacKenzie Gore have been named All-Stars and CJ Abrams may follow, and that might be the only bright spots for the Washington Nationals.