Cubs visit the Nationals to begin 3-game series

Chicago Cubs (69-50, second in the NL Central) vs. Washington Nationals (59-61, fourth in the NL East) Washington; Tuesday, 6:45 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Cubs: Shota Imanaga (8-9, 3.60 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 125 strikeouts); Nationals: Jake Irvin (2-5, 5.37 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 62 strikeouts) LINE: Cubs -169, Nationals +144; over/under is 9 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Washington Nationals open a three-game series at home against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday.

Washington has gone 26-34 at home and 59-61 overall. The Nationals have the fifth-ranked team on-base percentage in the NL at .328. Chicago has a 69-50 record overall and a 34-26 record in road games.

The Cubs have the fifth-ranked team slugging percentage in the NL at .417. Tuesday’s game is the fourth time these teams square off this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Alex Bregman has 23 doubles, a triple and 12 home runs for the Cubs.

Nico Hoerner is 11 for 38 with two doubles and two home runs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Nationals: 4-6, .228 batting average, 4.08 ERA, outscored by three runs Cubs: 7-3, .259 batting average, 2.97 ERA, outscored opponents by 18 runs INJURIES: Nationals: Drew Millas: 10-Day IL (finger), Josiah Gray: 60-Day IL (elbow), PJ Poulin: 60-Day IL (flexor), James Wood: 10-Day IL (oblique), Connelly Early: 15-Day IL (elbow), Richard Lovelady: 60-Day IL (tricep), DJ Herz: 60-Day IL (elbow), Mitchell Parker: 60-Day IL (elbow), Ken Waldichuk: 60-Day IL (forearm) Cubs: Hoby Milner: 15-Day IL (appendicitis), Christopher Austin: 60-Day IL (knee), Matt Shaw: 10-Day IL (hand), Riley Martin: 60-Day IL (elbow), Phil Maton: 15-Day IL (knee), Ben Brown: 60-Day IL (neck), Gavin Hollowell: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Daniel Palencia: 15-Day IL (elbow), Edward Cabrera: 15-Day IL (hamstring), Justin Steele: 60-Day IL (elbow), Hunter Harvey: 60-Day IL (tricep), Porter Hodge: 60-Day IL (elbow), Cade Horton: 60-Day IL (forearm), Shelby Miller: 60-Day IL (elbow) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. Pittsburgh Pirates (58-62, fourth in the NL Central) vs.

Miami Marlins (60-59, third in the NL East) Miami; Tuesday, 6:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Paul Skenes (9-10, 3.96 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 162 strikeouts); Marlins: Eury Perez (5-9, 3.61 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 121 strikeouts) LINE: Pirates -120, Marlins +102; over/under is 7 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Miami Marlins host the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday to open a three-game series. Miami is 60-59 overall and 36-24 at home.

The Marlins have the seventh-best team on-base percentage in MLB play at .326. Pittsburgh has a 58-62 record overall and a 28-32 record on the road. The Pirates have gone 41-18 in games when they scored five or more runs.