Washington @ Colorado preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 9, 2015 ) Colorado 6, Washington 4

The Washington Nationals are trending in the wrong direction and need a win just to get back to .500. The Nationals will try to snap a six-game slide and get back in the race in the National League East when they visit the Colorado Rockies for the start of a three-game series on Tuesday. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:8.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:107%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}

The Nationals began their 10-game road trip against the top two teams in the NL West and managed only an 8-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on August 10 before dropping the next six to Los Angeles and San Francisco to fall 4 1/2 games behind the New York Mets in the East and below .500 (58-59) for the first time since May 7. "We're struggling, we're inconsistent," Washington general manager Mike Rizzo told reporters. "We've struggled to find a rhythm with so many injuries, so many moving parts in the lineup. ... The talent level is there, but we have to play better baseball and be more consistent." The Rockies sit in last place in the NL West but snapped their own six-game slide with a win on Sunday and took two of three at the Nationals from August 7-9. Colorado will send David Hale to the mound in the opener while Washington counters with Jordan Zimmermann.

TV: 8:40 p.m. ET, MASN2 (Washington), ROOT (Colorado)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Nationals RH Jordan Zimmermann (8-8, 3.34 ERA) vs. Rockies RH Davi Hale (3-4, 5.69)

Zimmermann has not won since July 11 despite posting four quality starts in his last five outings. The Wisconsin native struck out nine and allowed one run on two hits and a walk in seven innings at Los Angeles on Wednesday but absorbed the loss in a 3-0 finale. Zimmermann was nearly as sharp against Colorado on August 7, yielding one run on four hits in 6 2/3 frames, but did not factor in the decision in a game the Nationals went on to lose 5-4.

Hale has missed the last month due to a groin injury and is expected to rejoin the rotation after pitching out of the bullpen in his last major-league appearance. The 27-year-old is winless in his last five starts and went longer than six innings only once in that span. Hale has allowed five hits over 6 1/3 scoreless innings in his career against Washington, spread over three games – one start.

WALK-OFFS

1. Nationals 1B Ryan Zimmerman is 0-for-15 with eight strikeouts in his last five games.

2. Colorado RF Carlos Gonzalez, who homered three times in as many games at Washington earlier this month, is 2-for-22 over his last six contests.

3. Washington LF Jayson Werth is batting .145 in 19 games since coming off the disabled list on July 28.

PREDICTION: Nationals 6, Rockies 4