Gerardo Parra — of “Baby Shark” fame — will be the new first base coach for the Washington Nationals as part of a series of changes to manager Dave Martinez’s staff.

Christian Vázquez tripled home the tiebreaking run in the ninth inning and the Boston Red Sox moved to the brink of a postseason berth with a 5-3 win over the Washington Nationals.

Max Scherzer delivered a signature performance in what might be his last start for the Nationals, allowing three hits in six innings as Washington beat the Philadelphia Phillies 3-1 in the opener of a doubleheader.

Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner has left the game against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning after testing positive for COVID-19.

Jake Cronenworth hit for his first career cycle, Wil Myers had two homers including a grand slam, and the San Diego Padres blew out the Washington Nationals 24-8.

Kyle Schwarber homered twice, becoming the first player in major league history to hit 15 home runs in a 17-day span, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 8-4.

The Nationals slugger drew an 11-pitch walk from Sixto Sánchez with one out in the top of the first. He then was replaced in right field in the bottom half of the inning by Gerardo Parra. AdOpening day of the 2021 baseball season is a week away; Washington hosts the New York Mets at night on April 1. We can do some different things to keep them ready as far as the swing and things of that nature,” Martinez said. “But we want to make sure this doesn’t become a bigger issue.”___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Kids' Songs & Stories via CNNWASHINGTON - The "Baby Shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo" earworm might just be coming to a World Series near you, if Washington Nationals backup outfielder Gerardo Parra heads to the plate during one of his team's home games against the Houston Astros. Some players work out wearing headbands sporting a cartoon shark. There's even a little blue stuffed-animal shark that Parra placed in the netting in front of the home dugout at Nationals Park. Plenty of players say that atmosphere has been key to Washington's turnaround from 19-31 that month to the sport's biggest stage now. The full-body embraces, including of Stephen Strasburg, who acknowledged, "I'm not much of a hugger, but they kind of just surround me.

Gerardo Parra #88 of the Washington Nationals celebrates with the trophy after winning the National League Championship Series against the St. Louis Cardinals at Nationals Park on Oct. 15, 2019, in Washington, DC. But it's hard to think of many guys better than that trio to kick off a World Series." The Astros are in their third World Series in franchise history, having reached the series in 2005 and winning it all in 2017. While the Astros were a favorite throughout the season to get this far, the Nationals were on more uneven footing. The San Francisco Giants are the last wild card team to win a World Series, in 2014.