NLDS Game 2: Dodgers use same lineup, as rain looms

The Dodgers are sticking with the same lineup in Game 2 of their National League Division Series against the Nationals, with the only question when the actual game might be played.

There is heavy rain in the Washington D.C. area, so the 1:08 p.m. PT start time doesn’t seem all that likely.

When the game does start, the Dodgers will have the same lineup as Game 1, which means Andrew Toles starting again in left field and not Howie Kendrick.

Toles was 1-for-2 and scored the Dodgers’ second run in Game 1, scoring from second on a single by Chase Utley in the third inning.

The only change for the Nationals in their lineup is that veteran catcher Jose Lobaton is starting behind the plate. The switch-hitter gets the call after rookie Pedro Severino started in Game 1.

There is no change at shortstop after Danny Espinosa struck out three times in three at-bats on Friday, all with two runners on base. Espinosa hit 24 home runs during the season, but hit just .209/.306/.378, which included a 12-for-89 September that saw the switch-hitter bat .135/.212/.281.

“Well, who else do I have? That's my answer,” manager Dusty Baker said in his pregame press conference. “I mean, you can give me somebody better, then I can play somebody instead of him. You know, certain times you have certain people on your team and that's what you've got.”

Tanner Roark starts for the Nationals. The two Dodgers with home runs off him are Yasmani Grandal, whose three-run shot in the eighth inning on June 21 at Dodger Stadium was a game-winner, and Adrian Gonzalez, who homered off Roark in 2015 in Washington D.C.

Gonzalez was 0-for-4 in Game 1, snapping a six-game postseason hitting streak for the Dodgers first baseman.