Wire Taps: Washington Nationals win fifth straight; Wander Suero earns first save; Ryan Zimmerman starts rehab stint...

With seven wins in their last 10, and five wins in a row, the Washington Nationals are now 6.5 games back in the NL East, and 2.5 back in the Wild Card Race. Last night’s win over Atlanta was another step on the way back to respectability for Davey Martinez’s squad, and they get to play another with the first-place Braves tonight in the nation’s capital.

Catch up on the latest news before the second of three with the Braves in D.C.

Go read your links...

NATS LINKS:

Bullpen Heroes:

Wander Suero leads Nationals past Braves - (Washington Times)
"The winning pitcher was Stephen Strasburg (8-4), who bounced back from his a rough start to go six innings and give up just three runs on five hits."

Suero excited to earn first big league save - (MASN)
"The card-carrying member of the resilient warriors not named Sean Doolittle in this bullpen right now is right-hander Wander Suero..."

Javy Guerra, a journeyman reliever for the Nationals, continues to search for any edge - (WaPost)
"Guerra has been a big lift for the Nationals since they signed him off outright waivers in May."

Finally entrusted in big spot, Rosenthal comes through - (MASN)
"Given what Rosenthal has been through in 2019, why not try to spread a little positivity in a critical moment?"

Nationals Rolling:

Nationals stay hot, beat Braves for fifth straight win after bullpen escapes in ninth - (WaPost)
"The Nationals’ relievers had been overworked and then overworked again across three games in the previous two days."

'Things are clicking' for surging Nationals - (MLB.com)
"It started as a fist pump, but eventually Wander Suero just started throwing his arms around in a state of frenzied, giddy excitement."

Nationals come up big to beat Braves in series opener (updated) - (MASN)
"Winners in 18 of their last 25 games, the Nationals have managed to climb all the way back from 12 games under .500 to one game under the break-even point."

TKCHZ:

Zimmerman begins rehab assignment at Harrisburg - (MASN)
"Zimmerman is beginning a long-awaited rehab assignment tonight, starting at first base and batting third for Double-A Harrisburg in his first game action in nearly two months."

Other Stuff:

Ross recalled to help taxed bullpen - (MLB.com)
"Since returning to Fresno near the end of May, Ross had made his return to the starting rotation after a stint as a reliever in the big leagues earlier this year."

Trea Turner sees that the Nationals have turned a corner - (NBC Sports Washington)
"Trea Turner is back in the fold after missing time after breaking his finger early in the season and the Nationals have been rolling as a result."

Rendon, Soto, three other Nationals snubbed in All-Star Game voting - (NBC Sports Washington)
"Major League Baseball announced the finalists in the 2019 All-Star Game fan voting on Friday, but none of the Washington Nationals made the list, though some came close."

In era of supreme youth in MLB, Juan Soto and Ronald Acuña Jr. are still leading the pack - (WaPost)
"Baseball rosters are skewing younger, but the young Nationals and Braves sluggers have games that would translate to any era."

NATIONAL(S) LINKS:

Yankees reportedly enamored with Max Scherzer but a deal for Nationals ace is highly unlikely - (CBSSports.com)
"At the same time, the Nationals do not seem likely to move Scherzer due to the complications involved with his contract."

Eastern League: Ryan Zimmerman goes in first rehab game with Harrisburg in losing effort - (Eastern League Baseball)
"Washington Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman returned to Harrisburg (42-30) for a rehab assignment, going 1-for-1 with a walk."

MLB Trade Rumors: Will Nationals deal Max Scherzer? - (SI.com)
"Given Washington’s lack of success this season, some rumors have started to stir here, and while it’s fun to draw up hypothetical trade proposals for the star pitcher, it’s unlikely that any of them come true."