Mikolas is the wild card. The ERA is ugly and the record is uglier, but the Nationals have quietly been hiding him behind an opener and the results have followed — a 3.48 ERA over his last 7 appearances and his best outing of the year came against Minnesota. Whether Washington uses an opener tonight or lets him start cold against a Giants lineup that just hung 18 on the Cubs is the actual question.
Records lie a little here. The Giants come in 4-1 in their last 5 and just took a 2-1 squeaker out of Wrigley, but they're still 27-39. The Nats are .500 at 33-33 and just got handled by Arizona on Sunday after walking the desert with a 14-1 demolition on Friday. Tony Vitello's first big-league group remains a puzzle even to itself.
- Day-To-DayTyler Stuart (SP) — no05/25
- Day-To-DayTyler Baum (DH) — Baum has not pitched this year due an undisclosed injury.05/08
- Day-To-DayTravis Sykora (SP) — Sykora will undergo a UCL reconstruction on his right elbow in two weeks, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayJarlin Susana (RP) — Susana underwent surgery last week to repair a right lat tear, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.05/08
- 15-Day-ILJake Irvin (SP) — Nationals manager Blake Butera said Monday that Irvin (shoulder) remains shut down from throwing, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.06/01
- 60-Day-ILDJ Herz (SP) — Herz (elbow) was sent to the FCL Nationals on Friday to begin a rehab assignment.06/05
- 60-Day-ILTrevor Williams (SP) — Williams (elbow) threw a simulated game at Nationals Park ahead of Tuesday's loss to the Marlins, MLB.com reports.06/05
- 60-Day-ILMax Kranick (RP) — The Nationals transferred Kranick (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Monday.05/25
- 60-Day-ILJosiah Gray (SP) — Gray (elbow) has resumed a throwing program, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILKen Waldichuk (RP) — The Nationals transferred Waldichuk (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/08
- 10-Day-ILHeliot Ramos (LF) — Ramos (quadriceps) will begin a hitting progression at the Giants' spring training complex in Arizona on Monday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.06/01
- 10-Day-ILHarrison Bader (CF) — Bader isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Colorado, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.05/30
- 15-Day-ILMatt Gage (RP) — The Giants placed Gage on the 15-day injured list with knee inflammation Wednesday, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.06/03
- 15-Day-ILTyler Mahle (SP) — The Giants placed Mahle on the 15-day injured list Friday, retroactive to Wednesday, due to a left hamstring strain, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.05/29
- 60-Day-ILJoel Peguero (RP) — The Giants placed Peguero on the 60-day injured list Monday due to a left hamstring strain, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.06/01
- 60-Day-ILJared Oliva (CF) — Oliva (wrist) started at designated hitter and went 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, a double, an RBI and a run scored in Triple-A Sacramento's 6-4 loss to Reno on Saturday.05/31
- 60-Day-ILReiver Sanmartin (RP) — Sanmartin (hip) tossed a scoreless inning in Triple-A Sacramento's 11-6 win over Sugar Land on Tuesday.05/20
- 60-Day-ILJason Foley (RP) — Foley (shoulder) earned a hold in Triple-A Sacramento's 6-5 loss to Round Rock on Wednesday, allowing one hit in a scoreless inning.05/15
- 60-Day-ILRowan Wick (RP) — The Giants placed Wick (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Sunday, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILHayden Birdsong (RP) — Birdsong underwent successful UCL reconstruction surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILRandy Rodriguez (RP) — The Giants placed Rodriguez (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILJose Butto (RP) — The Giants transferred Butto (arm) to the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
The injury sheet is where the Giants really get squeezed. Heliot Ramos, Harrison Bader, and Tyler Mahle are all parked on the IL, and the bullpen is a triage unit — Birdsong, Rodriguez, Butto, Foley and Wick are all on the 60-day. Washington's rotation isn't healthy either (Irvin, Herz, Williams, Gray all out), which is half the reason Mikolas is even getting the ball.
Lean: Webb at home against a Mikolas-led staff is the right side on talent, but -153 isn't free money and the under at 7.5 feels like the cleaner number with a vintage Webb on the mound. Either way, you're watching to see if the Giants ace can string two of these together.