Washington

Nationals

Conelio earns a ticket back to the minors after throwing 73 pitches over 4 1/3 innings in relief during Friday’s blowout loss to the Mariners. The 26-year-old rookie boasts an underwhelming 6.48 ERA across 8 1/3 innings over three appearances this season.

Crews has hit two homers this month, but that’s about all he’s done while getting regular playing time. He’s hitting .189/.241/.324 in 20 games so far. It should be noted that his expected batting average is .258, but those metrics are a little noisy in this small of a sample size. Given how poorly he’s done at the bigs so far in his career, a contending team probably wouldn’t wait this out. The Nationals might be willing to humor it for a while longer though.

After three line outs in the first inning, Littell allowed five of the next seven batters to reach -- the two that didn’t were a sacrifice fly and another lineout -- before Nats manager Drew Butera had seen enough. The Nationals will keep starting Littell hoping to get innings, but you certainly aren’t encouraged to do the same in fantasy baseball. Assuming he stays in the rotation, he’ll draw the Royals next week.

The 30-year-old right-hander loses his spot on the Nationals’ 40-man roster after the club claimed Jhancarlos Lara off of waivers from the Braves on Friday. Fernández pitched well in three appearances for the Nationals this season, registering a 2.25 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and a 3/2 K/BB ratio over four innings. He could attract some interest on waivers.

The 23-year-old hurler was designated for assignment on Wednesday after posting an 8.22 ERA and 21/29 K/BB ratio over 15 1/3 innings at Double-A Mississippi. The Nationals see something they can work with though and will give him a 40-man roster spot for the time being.

Griffin allowed six hits without walking anyone, lowering his ERA to 3.46 this season. This one got wild once he departed, with the Nationals losing 11-10 despite leading 9-1 in the bottom of the eighth. Griffin has been Washington’s most consistent starter this year, and he’ll remain on the fantasy radar with a home matchup versus the Royals up next.

Lile has sat just once this season, frequently batting near the heart of the order for the offense that entered the day ranked third in runs per game. He hasn’t had quite the same batted-ball results as last year despite increased bat speed. Lile is up to eight homers and seven steals to go along with enough counting stats to be roster-worthy in most fantasy formats.

Mead also collected a second hit and scored another run in the high-scoring matinee. The Nationals haven’t fully committed to him as an everyday player against right-handers, but he’s starting a majority of the time and batting second or third when he does. Washington entered the day ranked third in runs per game this year, so it’s a premium lineup spot with further upside if he ever receives everyday at-bats. He’s also frequently come off the bench when absent from the starting nine.

Wood singled to lead off the game, then scored on a two-run homer by Luis García Jr. He then singled to drive in a run in the fifth before swiping second for his 12th steal of the season. He collected his third hit in the seventh and scored again on a bases-loaded walk. The 23-year-old outfielder is having an excellent season across the board, hitting .271/.407/.527 with 17 homers, 60 runs scored, and 41 RBI across 317 plate appearances.

García put the Nationals on the board right away, taking Adrian Houser deep for a two-run blast in the first inning. He was later pinch-hit for against a left-hander in the seventh inning. The 26-year-old has homered four times in his last nine games. He’s up to eight on the season while hitting .262/.288/.461 with 25 runs scored and 40 RBI across 215 plate appearances.