Cincinnati at Washington 1:35 ET
Nationals over Reds- Two and a half weeks ago, the Cincinnati Reds felt pretty good. They were third in the National League Central, had just swept the New York Yankees. The Reds have lost three straight overall, failing to gain ground in the race for an NL wild-card spot and there are four teams between them and the Mets in the wild-card standings. Cincinnati's struggles in one-run games, dropping to 8-19 in those contests this season. Andrew Abbott (9-6, 3.39 ERA) is on the mound and they have won each of his past five starts and seven of his past eight. The lefty took the loss in his lone career appearance against Washington, allowing six runs on nine hits over 5 2/3 innings in a 7-3 home loss last Aug. 5. The Nationals will turn to right-hander Jake Irvin (7-8, 3.49) to close out the series. Irvin has struggled in his past two starts, taking the losses in both while allowing 13 runs (12 earned) on 18 hits, including four homers, in 10 innings. He's 0-1 with a 5.28 ERA in three career starts against the Reds, allowing nine runs on 18 hits in 15 1/3 innings. But today he reverses his current trend. Take WASHINGTON!