Nats Drop 3-1 Decision to Mets; Spring Breakout Rosters Revealed
An early 1-0 lead went buh-bye in the middle innings as the Mets handed the Nats a 3-1 defeat last night.
Jake Irvin bounced back from a “is he hurt?” outing* to shut out the Mets on two hits over four innings, walking none and striking out five.
* Editor: How is that different than any other outing?
The loss went to journeyman Richard Bleier on a two-run HR in the 5th.
With the Nats on the road, James Wood, Drew Millas, Jacob Young, and Darren Baker were in the starting lineup in CF, C, LF, and 2B respectively. Young drove in the sole run on an infield single in the 2nd while Darren Baker singled in the 5th. Wood and Millas both went 0-for-3, with Millas striking out twice.
Here’s how the rest of “our guys” did coming off the bench:
- Dylan Crews replaced Wood in CF and struck out in his only at-bat
- Robert Hassell subbed for Lane Thomas in RF and grounded out to end the 7th
- Brady House pinch-hit for Joey Gallo in the 9th and laced an opposite-field single to right
- Trey Lipscomb followed Carter Kieboom at 3B but did not come to the plate, but had an assist
- Israel Pineda caught the last three innings and had one putout, no ABs
The Nats return to West Palm Beach tonight to host the Cardinals. Josiah Gray is expected to make his his third spring start. The game can be heard on MLB Radio.
Yesterday, MLB released the Spring Breakout Rosters—somehow not sponsored by ProActiv—for all 30 teams. Here’s a quick look at the Nats’ contingent (ordered alphabetically if you’re a MASN/WaPo Commenter):
| Pitchers | Catchers | Infielders | Outfielders |
| Alvarez | Millas | Baker | Crews |
| Henry | Pineda | Cruz | Green |
| Herz | M. Romero | House | Hassell |
| Knowles | Lipscomb | Lile | |
| Lara | Made | Pinckney | |
| Parker | Morales | Vaquero | |
| Rutledge | White | Wood | |
| Saenz | |||
| Susana | |||
| Sykora |
All but Knowles are 2024 watchlist players. Perhaps the most notable is the possible appearance of Travis Sykora, who has yet to throw in a regular-season game.
Why are the rosters so large for one game? What is a possible scenario where you need 3 catchers or 7 OFs for one game?! Meanwhile, if this goes to extras, they could conceivably run out of pitchers…
In other news, favorite, now former, overlooked prospect of mine, Jose Ferrer just popped up in a FanGraphs article about pitchers with the highest velocity increases in ST so far: https://blogs.fangraphs.com/examining-the-pitchers-who-are-throwing-harder-this-spring/
I know there was a discussion on the merits of ST stats, and this is definitely one worth paying attention to. Ferrer has had the HIGHEST increase in velocity among all pitchers. His FB is now sitting at 98 MPH(!!) As the FG article explains, there’s a direct correlation between velocity and effectiveness. I’m here for a Ferrer breakout season. It would be great to get another home grown IFA pick contributing at the major league level.
With the Nats’ starting line up all but set, I’ll be monitoring the chase for the bench spots:
Utility OF
One of:
Young (OF): .833 OPS
Call (OF): 1.103 OPS
Garrett (OF): still injured; and seems likely to start the season on the IL
Infielder
One (possibly 2) of:
Nunez: .414
Vargas: .620
Alu: .729
Kieboom: .817
Power Bat (DH/emergency corner OF)
One (possibly none) of:
Winker: .946 OPS
Yepez: .398
L. Diaz: .824
Backup catcher
One of:
Adams: .473
Millas: .398
Looks like Nunez is setting himself up for a return to Miami. Meanwhile, Kieboom is playing for his career, and so far so good. Too bad his defense limits his effectiveness in comparison to the other 3. It also looks like Millas is botching his chance.
Vargas would seem to be a lock, and Winker probably is too unless he really tanks (which he hasn’t so far). I really have no idea what they would do with Kieboom, who is quite limited defensively and not SS-capable, although his odds of making the team would seem to increase if they return Nunez. (Vargas can cover SS in a pinch.) Young’s chances would as well, as I would guess that they’d probably keep only one speed-and-D guy, even though they play different positions.
With Robles having a good spring so far, it crosses my mind to wonder if they’re at least gauging trade interest. Sell high. I doubt there’s much of a market, though. It’s amazing to think that he’ll be a free agent after this season. Time passes.
First, a PSA: remember that ST stats are pretty much worthless. The fact that it’s “the only [new] data we have” doesn’t mean that it is meaningfull. Alex Call led the Nats in OPS in ST 2023. Despite that, he stubbornly remained Alex Call in the regular season. Avoid the temptation to consider ST meaningful so long as they can be used to reinforce your previously held beliefs.
And a follow up on Will’s post about Ferrer. Also on the “increased velo” list? Mackenzie Gore.
Of prospects at Fred & below
Which ones rise to the occasion this summer and make a name for themselves ?