The Washington Nationals are just simply looking to win Game 4 of their NLDS series against the Chicago Cubs to force a Game 5 back in the nation’s capital.
But that has not stopped drama itself from unfolding in a big way after Tuesday’s game at Wrigley Field was rained out.
Immediately afterwards, Nationals manager Dusty Baker announced that Tanner Roark would start Game 4 over ace Stephen Strasburg. It seemed to be an absurd decision, especially considering the rain-out would have enabled Strasburg to pitch on normal rest. The reasoning seemed iffy, at best.
Then, came news that Strasburg declined the option of starting Wednesday because he is dealing with a cold.
It’s now being reported that Strasburg will in fact start Wednesday against the Cubs as Washington looks to avoid elimination.
BREAKING: Stephen Strasburg now likely to start for #Nats today in Game 4, source says. @MLB @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) October 11, 2017
Maybe, the pitcher just simply woke up feeling better. But the idea that he would miss such an important start due to a cold was questionable in the first place.
In any event, Strasburg will go Game 4. This also means Gio Gonzalez would likely start a decisive Game 5 should it come to that.
Down 3-2 in the series, Washington still finds itself in a pretty good spot here. It’s now up to Strasburg to out-pitch former CY Young winner Jake Arrieta Wednesday at Wrigley.