Wire Taps: Koda Glover officially the closer; New crew leading way for Nationals; Bullpen still a mess

Tonight, the Nats and the Padres start a three-game set at Nationals Park. The Padres are 18-31, and are in last in the NL West. Is a sweep here an expectation?

Before we jinx things too much, here’s the beat from South Capitol Street.

Third time's the charm: Koda Glover named Nationals' closer
Glover started getting the ninth last week, but Dusty Baker refused to say one way or another if Koda had gotten the job. He has it now.

Rendon, Taylor, Roark, Ross, Glover, begin to lead way for Nats
The Bryce Harper/Daniel Murphy/Ryan Zimmerman home run show has slowed down a little. Luckily, these five have picked up the slack in a big, big way.

Even with a closer, the Nats' bullpen is still a godforsaken mess
Just because there *is* a closer doesn't mean the Nats can always get it *to* the closer.

Father/son duo catch the Orioles game, then Nats game
It's rare for the O's and Nats to be at home on the same day. Even rarer to play games at different times. Even rarer to have start times more than three hours apart. On Wednesday, that happened.

Grading 2017's free-agent contracts
Matt Wieters is on the list, and BtBS isn't super happy about the signing.

Today’s Game: Padres vs Nationals — 7:05 PM
Probable Pitchers: Luis Perdomo vs Max Scherzer