Alcides Escobar was originally penciled in as the shortstop for Washington’s Nationals in the series opener with the New York Mets on Tuesday, but he was scratched, too late for skipper Davey Martinez to explain before the game, though he did offer an explanation after the 4-2 loss it the first of three with the Nats’ NL East rivals.
“Yeah, his finger was swollen, he had an infection underneath his nail,” Martinez said.
“They had to do something to it, and he said he feels a lot better, so we’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”
It apparently got a little bit worse overnight.