● Andrew Stevenson has indeed taken the Hobson’s choice given to him by the Nats and will return to Rochester… again. In what ought not to be a small surprise, OF Gerardo Parra was reassigned to minor-league camp as well.
● C Tres Barrera has been optioned, which may affect the initial placements of Brady Lindsly and/or Israel Pineda to start the season. Between Barrera, Riley Adams, and the veteran du jour, it will probably take a big breakout season for either Lindsly or Pineda to move up more than one level. Well, there’s always the possibility of an injury, but that never happens, right?
● Allegedly, between the new CBA and the increased scrutiny (read: lawsuit), the treatment of minor-leaguers is supposed to improve this season, but based on the “business as usual” treatment so far, we could be seeing more stories like this one in 2022. You might recall the the Nats pulled a similar stunt in June 2020 until they were shamed into reversing their decision.
We now return you to your Monday…