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Nationals-Diamondbacks Preview

Aug 4, 2010 - 5:29 AM By JEFF MEZYDLO STATS Senior Writer

Washington (47-59) at Arizona (39-67), 9:40 p.m. EDT

The last-place Arizona Diamondbacks recently traded away several of their top performers. They hope not to lose another for an extended period due to injury.

Slugger Mark Reynolds could be out of the lineup as the Diamondbacks look for a second straight victory over the visiting Washington Nationals on Wednesday night.

Reynolds hit his team-leading 25th homer on his 27th birthday in Tuesday's 6-1 win over Washington, but left the game after being hit in the head by a pitch in the sixth inning. He was given a neurological exam, which did not reveal any damage.

Though Reynolds is batting .222, he is 10 for 32 with three home runs and eight RBIs in his last nine games.

It's uncertain how much time, if any, Reynolds will miss. The Diamondbacks (40-67) have won three of five with a revamped roster after trading All-Star pitchers Dan Haren and Edwin Jackson and reliever Chad Qualls last month.

"I feel fine and I'll be lobbying to play (Wednesday)," said Reynolds, a lifetime .345 hitter with seven home runs against the Nationals.

Adam LaRoche recorded his second three-hit game in three days, and Stephen Drew homered to extend his hitting streak to 10 games as Arizona evened the four-game set.

After Joe Saunders tossed his third complete game of the season, Ian Kennedy (6-8, 4.26 ERA) looks for another solid start when he faces Washington (47-60) for the first time.

The right-hander allowed five runs, four walks and three hits in six innings, but still earned the win in a 9-6 victory over the Mets on Friday. After going 0-5 with a 5.29 ERA over an eight-start stretch, Kennedy is 3-1 with a 4.70 ERA.

Washington's Craig Stammen (3-4, 5.24) makes his first appearance against Arizona on Wednesday while looking for a second straight victory.

The right-hander, 1-1 with a 2.60 ERA in his last three starts, gave up a run in 6 1-3 innings of an 8-1 win over Philadelphia in Roy Oswalt's Phillies debut Friday.

"I'm finally getting to the point where I need to take the next step as a starter," Stammen told the Nationals' official website. "You look at all the good (starts), that's probably what it is - eliminating the amount of mistakes that I make. That's just pitching, and I'm learning as we go."

Adam Dunn went 0 for 4 on Tuesday, hours after the Nationals' official website reported the team placed him on waivers. Washington failed to trade the slugging first baseman last month, but still could before the Aug. 31 deadline if he is not claimed.

"There is always a possibility (we could make a trade before that date)," Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said. "We are always looking to do our jobs and improve the ballclub."

Dunn is batting .273 with 26 home runs and 67 RBIs, but is 1 for 8 in this series against his former team.

Ryan Zimmerman homered for the second time in four games Tuesday as the Nationals had their four-game winning streak against the Diamondbacks snapped.