Get the scoop on Nationals' favorite ice creams

This story was excerpted from Jessica Camerato’s Nationals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

September is here -- already? But for those who aren’t ready to say hello to fall, this newsletter is for you. There still are 22 days left in the summer, and what better way to keep those sunny vibes going than asking the Nationals about their favorite ice cream.

OF Jacob Young: “If it’s just a regular flavor, I would say something simple. I love mint Oreo. If it’s a special one, I love Half Baked from Ben & Jerry’s. That one’s really good. There’s one [ice cream shop] in Fredericksburg[, Va.,] when I was there -- it was old school, they made their own ice cream, you walk up to it. They used to have really good root beer floats we used to get.”

1B/DH Juan Yepez: “We went to Puerto Rico, and I think there was one in New York too, it’s called Anita’s. It’s the best. I got cookies and cream and something else. That’s probably the one that I would always pick, because there are so many and I don’t want to be trying all of them. So I just get cookies and cream all of the time.”

LHP Robert Garcia: “I’m going to say orange sherbert, like a dreamsicle. It’s sweeter [than ice cream].”

RHP Derek Law: “I just want a swirl on a cone, chocolate-vanilla soft serve. Throw some sprinkles on it, call it a day. But if I’m going to a [hometown] Pittsburgh spot, I’m probably not doing soft serve. There’s a place called Page’s Dairy Mart, and it’s heaven on earth. That’s the only place maybe in the United States that I’m probably going to, on a whim, look at the menu and get something different every time. Fun fact: I did an ice cream challenge when I was with the San Francisco Giants. I could not finish the four or five softball-serving sizes of ice cream in 20 minutes with the toppings. It’s called ‘The Kitchen Sink.’”

SS CJ Abrams: “I’ll probably get Oreo. It’s just the only ice cream I really eat. I get a waffle cone with Oreo. [I go to] Jeni’s.”

OF Dylan Crews: “I would say my favorite is cookies and cream. I don’t know why I like it so much, it’s just good. I go cup, it’s less messy. It drips a little bit on the cone. [Abrams: Not if you eat it fast enough.] That too, I like to savor it. My favorite ice cream spot is Andy’s. There’s one in Baton Rouge that we went to all the time.”

LHP MacKenzie Gore: “I’m a pretty simple guy. I’d probably go just vanilla, maybe a cookie dough type of thing, nothing crazy. I’m not a big ice cream guy, though. It tastes fine, but I don’t care to eat a lot of ice cream. [In the summer], I love mango. I eat a ton of mangoes.”

RHP Kyle Finnegan: “I’m simple: chocolate, no toppings. A waffle cone of chocolate ice cream. Here [in Washington, D.C.], I’ve been to Kilwins a few times, which is good. I think my favorite is Sloan’s in West Palm [Beach, Fla.]. It’s amazing. And if I’m feeling wild, I’ll go chocolate-strawberry-chocolate, a triple scoop in the waffle cone. I eat a lot of ice cream.”

LHP Mitchell Parker: “Strawberry. Something about just strawberry when it’s hot out, it’s refreshing. You give me any strawberry ice cream, and I’m there for it.”

RHP Cade Cavalli: “I would say summertime ice cream, I’m going to hop in my car and I’m going to go to Andy’s in Oklahoma. Give me a Concrete. It’s like a firmer ice cream. In my concrete, I’ll put hot fudge, strawberries, bananas and cookie dough in vanilla ice cream. You’ve got to try it.”

2B Luis García Jr.: “I always like vanilla, sometimes strawberry. I don’t put anything on it, just plain, always. I like a cone. But when I’m hungry, I like a cup. (laughs)”