PITCHING PROBABLES: Padres: Nick Pivetta (9-2, 2.88 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 122 strikeouts); Nationals: MacKenzie Gore (4-8, 3.02 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 138 strikeouts) BOTTOM LINE: The Washington Nationals and San Diego Padres play on Sunday with the three-game series tied 1-1.

Xander Bogaerts’ grand slam gets Padres on way to 8-1 victory; Nick Pivetta allows one run over six innings for his 10th victory

The Nationals have found themselves in this position plenty of times over the last month-plus, having lost the first game of a series before bouncing back to win the next night, leaving the finale as the decisive rubber game.