It’s the fourth time in five starts that Williams has been pulled before completing five innings, but at least his ERA came down from 6.03 to 5.91 today. The Nationals have to be thinking about alternatives to Williams at the back of their rotation, but since they’ve turned Brad Lord into a short reliever, they don’t have anyone who is clearly a better bet right now. Williams is due to face the Marlins next weekend.

Williams, now 3-6 with a 6.03 ERA, has allowed four or five runs in six of his last seven starts. With Brad Lord having transitioned to short relief, the Nationals probably don’t have anyone that want to replace Williams with just yet. However, Cade Cavalli might be an option before the end of June. Williams is due to face the Rangers next.

The 33-year-old hurler also issued three walks on the night while striking out three. He served up back-to-back solo homers to Matt Olson and Marcell Ozuna in the opening inning, then the Braves tacked on another three runs while chasing Williams from the game in the fourth inning. He got seven whiffs on 82 pitches on the night, posting an underwhelming CSW of 24 percent. He’ll look to put this one behind him and bounce back as he brings a 6.39 ERA, 1.56 WHIP and a 41/15 K/BB ratio (49 1/3 innings) into Wednesday’s matchup against the Mariners in Seattle.