Washington @ Toronto preview

Last Meeting ( Jun 15, 2018 ) Washington 5, Toronto 6

Max Scherzer will try to rebound from a rare loss when he leads the Washington Nationals into the second of a three-game series at the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. Scherzer's nine-game winning streak came to an end Sunday, although he was still solid in giving up two runs and striking out nine in seven innings against the San Francisco Giants.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner takes on a Blue Jays lineup that registered seven extra-base hits - 10 total - in a 6-5 win to begin the interleague set Friday night. Yangervis Solarte smacked a pair of homers from either side of the plate and doubled in four at-bats to pace the attack for Toronto, which has won five straight home games. Washington received three hits and an RBI from Anthony Rendon while falling to 5-7 since a 21-6 run. Marco Estrada will start for the Blue Jays opposite Scherzer as he aims to record three straight quality starts for the first time in 2018.

TV: 4:07 p.m. ET, MASN (Washington), Sportsnet (Toronto), TVA (Toronto)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Nationals RH Max Scherzer (10-2, 2.00 ERA) vs. Blue Jays RH Marco Estrada (3-6, 5.09)

Scherzer, who needs 8 1/3 innings to reach 2,000 for his career, limited the Giants to four hits in the hard-luck loss and has held opponents to a .171 average overall. He already defeated two American League East teams this year and is 16-12 with a 2.74 ERA in 32 career interleague starts. Kevin Pillar is 3-for-3 with two home runs against Scherzer, who is 3-0 with a 1.98 mark in four starts at Rogers Centre.

Estrada has seemingly turned a corner in June, going 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 12 innings over two starts this month. Both runs he gave up in a win over Baltimore on Sunday came via solo home runs and the 34-year-old has surrendered 14 long balls in 70 2/3 innings on the season. The one-time National is 2-1 with a 4.34 ERA against the organization that drafted him in the sixth round of the 2005 draft.

WALK-OFFS

1. Nationals RHP Justin Miller gave up a run Friday after tossing 10 2/3 scoreless innings to begin his career with the team.

2. Blue Jays 1B Justin Smoak was 1-for-3 on Friday after going 0-for-20 over his previous six games.

3. Toronto is 194-195 all-time in interleague play.

PREDICTION: Nationals 5, Blue Jays 2