Padres play the Nationals after Merrill’s 4-hit game

San Diego Padres (54-50, second in the NL West) vs. Washington Nationals (47-55, fourth in the NL East)

Washington; Thursday, 12:05 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Padres: Dylan Cease (9-8, 3.76 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 159 strikeouts); Nationals: Patrick Corbin (2-9, 5.35 ERA, 1.49 WHIP, 79 strikeouts)

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Padres -185, Nationals +154; over/under is 8 1/2 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The San Diego Padres take on the Washington Nationals after Jackson Merrill had four hits against the Nationals on Wednesday.

Washington has a 23-26 record in home games and a 47-55 record overall. The Nationals have a 35-6 record in games when they have more hits than their opponents.

San Diego has a 28-22 record on the road and a 54-50 record overall. The Padres have the top team batting average in the NL at .262.

The matchup Thursday is the sixth time these teams meet this season. The Padres hold a 5-0 advantage in the season series.

TOP PERFORMERS: C.J. Abrams has 21 doubles, six triples and 15 home runs for the Nationals. Juan Yepez is 15-for-37 with five doubles, two home runs and seven RBI over the past 10 games.

Jurickson Profar leads San Diego with 16 home runs while slugging .478. Kyle Higashioka is 11-for-36 with three home runs and 10 RBI over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Nationals: 5-5, .240 batting average, 5.59 ERA, outscored by 19 runs

Padres: 5-5, .256 batting average, 3.24 ERA, outscored opponents by three runs

INJURIES: Nationals: Josiah Gray: 60-Day IL (elbow), Joey Gallo: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Trevor Williams: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Cade Cavalli: 60-Day IL (elbow), Mason Thompson: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Padres: Wandy Peralta: 15-Day IL (aductor), Joe Musgrove: 60-Day IL (elbow), Tom Cosgrove: 15-Day IL (elbow), Fernando Tatis Jr.: 10-Day IL (quadricep), Luis Patino: 60-Day IL (elbow)

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.