Marlins vs. Nationals: Start time, how to watch and game thread—September 23, 2022

Sep 23, 2022 - 7:40 PM

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Welcome to Friday’s Marlins (61-89, -101 RD) vs. Nationals (52-97, -213 RD) game thread. As part of Fan Appreciation Weekend at LoanDepot Park, you have early access to watch Marlins batting practice beginning at 4 p.m. From 5:15-5:45 p.m., various players will greet fans as they enter through the home plate entrance. There will also be postgame karaoke at the Biscayne Bay Brew Hall.

It’s the opening game of a new series, which means we’ve got free prop bets and an hour-long livestream with the Fish Stripes staff and special guests.

Use this Fish Picks link prior to every Marlins series to submit your predictions. The ninth inning of the contest has just begun and it runs through October 3.

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Nationals Starting Lineup

1. RF Lane Thomas (101 wRC+ this season, 137 wRC+ over last 30 days)
2. 3B César Hernández (81, 138)
3. 1B Joey Meneses (154, 144)
4. DH Luke Voit (111, 128)
5. LF Alex Call (111, 160)
6. 2B Luis García (94, 88)
7. CF Victor Robles (65, 48)
8. C Riley Adams (66, 62)
9. SS CJ Abrams (62, 61)

RHP Josiah Gray (75 ERA+ this season, career 75 ERA+)

Baseball Savant

Notes: Savor whatever we get from Nelson Cruz in this series because it’s seemingly the end of his outstanding playing career. Cruz has been sidelined for over a week with eye inflammation. At age 42, he’s slugging a career-low .337 this season...Gray has thrown the fourth-most breaking balls of any MLB pitcher this season (1,301), trailing only Dylan Cease, Miles Mikolas and Nick Pivetta...As noted during last week’s series between these teams, Meneses is among MLB’s best hitters against left-handed pitchers like Garrett.

Marlins Game Notes

Marlins Starting Lineup

1. 2B Jon Berti (99 wRC+ this season, 65 wRC+ over last 30 days)
2. RF Brian Anderson (94, 54)
3. DH Garrett Cooper (113, 94)
4. C Nick Fortes (109, 110)
5. LF JJ Bleday (76, 37)
6. CF Bryan De La Cruz (79, 170)
7. 1B Charles Leblanc (119, 105)
8. SS Miguel Rojas (74, 70)
9. 3B Jordan Groshans (137, 137)

LHP Braxton Garrett (111 ERA+ this season, career 99 ERA+)

Baseball Savant

Lineup Changes from Previous Game: Anderson in, Lewin Díaz out; Berti switches from LF to 2B, Leblanc switches from 2B to 1B, Bleday switches from RF to LF

Additional Notes: Garrett pitched a career-high 7 ¹⁄₃ innings against this Nats club on July 4. It’s probably nothing more than small sample size noise, but his career strikeout rate at LoanDepot Park is 27.3% (compared to 18.5% on the road)...Anderson (1.533 OPS in 15 PA) has the most head-to-head history with Gray among active Marlins players.

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How to Watch/Listen/Follow

First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET. Watch on Bally Sports Florida or listen to the radio broadcast on Fox Sports 940 Miami. Out-of-market fans can stream the game on MLB.TV. Jazz Chisholm Jr. is scheduled to make in-game appearances on both broadcasts.

I will handle the game recap article.

DraftKings Odds