The Nationals have been fortunate when it comes to pitching injuries the last two seasons. No, they haven’t escaped them altogether. But they’ve managed to suffer fewer significant losses than any other team.

It’s true: Over the last two years, the Nats have used only 10 starting pitchers, fewest in the majors. The Blue Jays are next on the list with 12, followed by the Mariners with 14. Everyone else has used at least 15 starters, with the league median number a whopping 22.

Again, the Nationals have dealt with a few significant injuries. Cade Cavalli was ticketed for the Opening Day 2023 rotation but tore his elbow ligament in spring training and has yet to return. Josiah Gray started Opening Day 2024 but was sidelined after only two outings and ultimately needed Tommy John surgery himself. And Trevor Williams, after an outstanding April and May, wound up missing 3 1/2 months with a flexor strain in his right arm.

But the Nats managed to fill those gaps with productive, in-house alternatives. In 2023, it was Jake Irvin stepping up to make his major league debut in early May and then sticking in the rotation all the way through September. In 2024, it was Mitchell Parker and then DJ Herz emerging from Triple-A to replace Gray and Williams, Parker making 29 starts while Herz took the mound 19 times.

It was an impressive example of organizational depth, the kind of pitching depth this organization hadn’t really possessed in a while. And as the countdown to spring training commences, there’s reason to believe the Nationals are well-positioned again with starting pitchers who could step forward if the need arises.

You can be forgiven if you missed this news item while paying attention to football, snow prep or both on Sunday, but the Nationals officially announced the Josh Bell signing. That one-year, $6 million deal was agreed to one week earlier but wasn’t done-done until Bell passed his physical, which has now happened.

There’s an important side note to mention with this transaction. Bell’s addition now leaves the Nats’ 40-man roster entirely full for the first time in months. They had maneuvered their way to create four openings heading into the Winter Meetings in December, then proceeded to fill those spots with the signings of free agents Bell, Trevor Williams and Michael Soroka, the selection of Evan Reifert in the Rule 5 Draft and the one-for-one trade of Robert Garcia to the Rangers for Nathaniel Lowe.

What that means: If they want to acquire any more major league players this winter, the Nationals will first need to clear more 40-man spots to make that possible. Considering they are still woefully thin on experienced relievers, while also potentially still looking for a more established third baseman, it’s safe to say moves are forthcoming.

You never want to have to drop someone from the 40-man, but a scan of the Nats’ current roster reveals more than a few names who will probably be under consideration when the time comes.

Here’s a look at the full 40-man roster as it now stands, broken down by position …

The Nationals’ decision to demote CJ Abrams for disciplinary, not performance, reasons last week hasn’t changed the organization’s outlook on their All-Star shortstop for 2025 and beyond, general manager Mike Rizzo insisted today.

“No, absolutely not. He’s still our guy,” Rizzo said in an end-of-season session with reporters. “We love him, and he’s going to be a great player for us. Optioning him out wasn’t the end of the world. We have a standard here, and we have to keep people accountable. He still has great upside and is still going to be, in our minds, a great major league shortstop.”

Abrams was shockingly optioned to Triple-A Rochester one week ago after he was reportedly caught staying out all night in Chicago prior to the team’s afternoon game at Wrigley Field. With the minor league season ending the following day, the 23-year-old was sent to West Palm Beach, Fla., where he has spent this week working out with a handful of other Triple-A players who are on standby in case the Nationals need to make any last-minute roster moves.

The very public demotion of Abrams, which both Rizzo and manager Davey Martinez have acknowledged was not performance-based, stunned the entire baseball community and raised questions about his future with the organization.

Both Rizzo and Martinez, though, have stressed the message they delivered to Abrams – while disciplinary – was one of encouragement.

The second half schedule afforded the Nationals the option of waiting a while before using their fifth starter. They’ve decided, though, to go ahead and use him now.

The Nats will send that yet-to-be-announced starter to the mound Tuesday against the Padres in what is actually the team’s fourth game coming out of the All-Star break. That pushes left-hander Mitchell Parker back to Wednesday’s game, with Patrick Corbin (who started Friday night’s second half opener) pitching Thursday’s series finale against San Diego.

The presence of an off-day on the schedule this week gave the Nationals some room to maneuver if they wished. They don’t actually need a fifth starter until Saturday’s game in St. Louis, the eighth game coming out of the break.

But rather than offer all of the extra rest to one pitcher, the club decided to give others (especially Parker) an extra day before taking the mound.

“Exactly, that’s what it boils down to,” manager Davey Martinez said. “We want to try to give these guys as much rest as we possibly can. Some of these guys are going to pitch a lot more than they have in the past, so we’re trying to just stretch this out a little bit.”

MILWAUKEE – The Nationals have decided to use the last two days before the All-Star break as an opportunity to get a look at another pitcher who could figure into their long-term plans if he keeps doing in the majors what he did at Triple-A.

The Nats called up reliever Eduardo Salazar prior to today’s game against the Brewers, swapping the right-hander for Jackson Rutledge, who was optioned back to Rochester following his strong spot start Friday night at American Family Field.

Salazar, 26, was claimed off waivers from the Mariners last month, then proceeded to post eye-popping numbers in nine games at Triple-A: one earned run allowed in 10 2/3 innings, with 15 strikeouts and only two walks.

“Very impressive,” manager Davey Martinez said, adding: “I really wanted to give him a chance, especially in the next couple days, see what he can do if we get him in there. He threw the ball really well at Triple-A. He was a really good addition for us to pick up. I appreciate the guys adding another arm for us.”

Salazar has nine games of big league experience over the last two seasons with the Reds and Dodgers but has been on a meandering ride the last few months. The Mariners claimed him off waivers May 23, but after only four appearances at Triple-A Tacoma, the Nats claimed him off waivers June 13 and added him to their organization.

MILWAUKEE – Nobody wants to be at Triple-A. Everyone at Triple-A wants to be in the majors, whether for the first time or for the first time in a while.

The challenge for those grinding away at the highest level of the minor leagues is not to think too much about trying to get promoted, not to treat every game like a potential ticket out of town.

For Jackson Rutledge this year, that has proven far more difficult than he ever imagined.

“I’m going to be honest,” the right-hander said Friday night. “I haven’t done a great job of it.”

Rutledge said this after making a spot start for the Nationals, his first big league start of the season, even though the season is now nearly 60 percent complete. He thought he’d have been up here a lot sooner, fully believing he’d be the organization’s first choice to come up from Rochester when something happened in the rotation, just as manager Davey Martinez suggested would be the case at the end of spring training.

MILWAUKEE – If anyone was worried the grind of 17 games in 17 days to close out the season’s first half – not to mention 13 losses over the last 17 games – would leave the Nationals a dejected bunch this evening, Jesse Winker and Co. made sure to allay those fears right off the bat tonight.

And if anyone was worried Jackson Rutledge wouldn’t be up to the challenge of his first big league start of 2024 against the first-place Brewers, the big right-hander also made sure to allay those fears right from the get-go.

Rutledge allowed only two runs in a strong-if-abbreviated spot start, and Winker led a balanced offensive attack with an RBI double and a solo homer against his former team as the Nats topped the Brewers, 5-2, and snapped their five-game losing streak with an all-around impressive showing.

An exhausted roster arrived in Milwaukee late Thursday night following a series sweep in New York and had to muster up the energy to take on the Brewers in the final weekend of this daunting stretch before everyone can enjoy a well-deserved All-Star break.

"That's your job. That's what you sign up for, to come in and grind it out," Winker said. "It's hard. It's a hard game. It was a tough stretch of games, and we've been playing a lot of really good teams, but it's a good league. It's our job to keep coming in, put the work in and grind stuff out."

MILWAUKEE – The Nationals, as you probably realize by now, are limping into the All-Star break. They’ve lost five in a row, not to mention 13 of their last 17. They’ve gone from one game under .500 to 10 games under .500, a significant difference as they evaluate the overall state of things heading into the trade deadline at the end of the month.

What the Nats need right now, though, is a good weekend against the Brewers. They’ve got to try to summon the energy and motivation to play better baseball the next three days before dispersing around the country for the break.

They especially need to score more runs on a more consistent basis after a really rough series in New York that saw them score seven total runs in three games, five of those coming in the final two innings of Tuesday’s loss, the other two coming in the fourth inning of Wednesday’s loss. That’s just not going to cut it. Tonight, they face veteran right-hander Freddy Peralta, who over his last four starts has a 2.45 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 22 innings.

There’s a new face on the mound tonight for the Nationals: Jackson Rutledge, who officially was recalled from Triple-A, with Joan Adon optioned back to Rochester to clear a roster spot for him. Rutledge was supposed to be the first starter called up when the season began, but a rough start to his season in Rochester opened the door for Mitchell Parker, then later DJ Herz, and we’ve seen how those two seized their opportunities. This figures to be a one-off for Rutledge, who had a 6.66 ERA in 16 minor league starts this year but did allow two or fewer earned runs in three of his last four.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at MILWAUKEE BREWERS
Where: American Family Field
Gametime: 8:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN2, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 88.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Clear, 81 degrees, wind 7 mph in from center field

NEW YORK – The Nationals entered Thursday’s matinee finale in Queens needing a win against the Mets to avoid the three-game sweep. More importantly, they needed a win to slow down their two-week slide before the finale series of the first half.

It’s been a mostly positive first half of the season for the Nationals, who have surpassed some preseason expectations, thanks in large part to some impressive performances by their young players.

They reached .500 in late April for the first time since July 2021. And they hovered around that mark for the next couple of months, sometimes even slipping into a wild card spot. But starting with a three-game sweep in San Diego in late June, the Nats have started going in the opposite direction, losing 12 of their last 16 entering today’s game.

Make that now losers of 13 of their last 17 games and five straight to fall 10 games under .500 after a 7-0 shutout loss to the Mets in front of an announced crowd of 25,710 at Citi Field.

The Nationals offense continues to slog through these weeks leading up to the All-Star break. They scored too late in Tuesday’s loss. They scored two early Wednesday, but none after that. And they didn’t score at all today.

CHICAGO – Jackson Rutledge was enjoying his off-day in Rochester, playing video games, when the call came Monday evening. He didn’t recognize the number, so he didn’t pick up at first. When he realized it was Red Wings developmental coach Billy McMillon, he realized he should probably call back.

Sure enough, Rutledge was informed the Nationals’ series opener against the White Sox had been rained out. The two teams would now be playing a doubleheader, and the right-hander needed to pack his things and prepare for a 6:30 a.m. flight to Chicago so he could serve as the team’s 27th man for the day.

Rutledge, who had just thrown 91 pitches Saturday in Scranton and had no reason to believe he’d be appearing in another game until later this week, was understandably caught off guard.

“A little bit of a surprise,” he said. “But I’m happy to be here.”

Truth be told, Rutledge probably figured all along he’d be the first starter called up from Triple-A if a spot in the Nationals rotation opened up. But when that very scenario occurred last month, with Opening Day starter Josiah Gray going on the 15-day injured list with a forearm strain, the call went not to Rutledge but to left-hander Mitchell Parker.

It was a good week for James Wood.

The Nationals’ top prospect was named the International League Player of the Week for the week of May 6-12 and he cracked MLB Pipeline’s top five in the publication’s updated Top 100 Prospects rankings.

Across six games against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (Yankees), the 6-foot-7, 234-pound outfielder posted a .455 batting average while slugging five home runs with a double and 12 RBIs.

Wood went 10-for-22 during the week against a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitching staff that had the lowest batting average against in the International League (.226) coming into the six-game series.

Wood, 23, has played in all 35 games for the Red Wings and leads the team with a .346 average, 33 runs scored, 11 doubles, a .444 on-base percentage and 25 walks. His seven home runs and 23 RBIs rank second on the team this season, behind Travis Blankenhorn in both.

SAN FRANCISCO – Though he’s now on the injured list for the first time in his major league career, Josiah Gray was encouraged to learn the strain in his elbow and forearm is not likely to keep him out as long as a more serious injury he believes he avoided.

Gray, who officially went on the 15-day IL today with what the Nationals have termed an elbow/forearm flexor strain, said an MRI taken in recent days showed his elbow ligament is intact, as well as all other forearm muscles. The right-hander doesn’t know a precise timetable yet for his absence, but he did not suggest it will be a prolonged absence.

“Overall, a positive outlook,” he said. “It sucks to miss time and not be out there helping the guys winning games. But it’s a part of what pitchers are and what we do. I’m just going to take it on the chin and take it day-by-day.”

Gray said he first noticed an issue following Thursday’s start against the Pirates, when he “just felt a little more banged-up than usual.” He attempted to throw his standard between-starts bullpen session over the weekend and still didn’t feel right, so he alerted the Nationals training staff and had tests taken.

The strain that was discovered via MRI was muscular in nature, affecting the flexor-pronator mass, not his ulnar collateral ligament. Given the recent spate of major pitching injuries throughout the sport, with a number of prominent big leaguers needing Tommy John surgery, Gray was relieved to learn his prognosis.

It was a fun day on South Capitol Street, as the Nationals played the first-ever “On Deck: Nationals Futures Game” for their final exhibition outing before starting the regular season Thursday in Cincinnati.

The Nationals’ major leaguers were set to play a team full of the organization’s top prospects, many of whom spent the majority of spring training in big league camp. There were smiles all around this morning as the youngsters prepped for the game in the visiting clubhouse at Nationals Park, while the major league team got settled into the home locker room with bags packed for tomorrow’s early morning flight to Cincy.

But once the game started, the niceties between organizational teammates disappeared for the next 2 hours and 35 minutes as the major league team flexed its muscles while dominating the Futures Team 13-1 in front of an announced paid crowd of 10,294 at Nats Park.

“It was good,” said major league manager Davey Martinez. “We had some good at-bats. I thought we played really well. The key was to get some at-bats, see some pitches. We had a day off yesterday, but I saw some really good things. And the young kids, they stood up there and they weren't afraid. The guys that we had, they swung the bats well. Our kids got up there and they got their swings. So it was a good day.”

MacKenzie Gore set the tone early in his final tune-up before taking the ball Monday for the Nats’ home opener against the Pirates. Facing top prospects Robert Hassell III, Dylan Crews, James Wood and Trey Lipscomb, the left-hander recorded three strikeouts in the first frame while only surrendering an opposite-field double to Wood.

The Nationals arrived back in D.C. last night and now only have one more exhibition game to play before heading to Cincinnati for Opening Day.

Once again, the Nats are hosting their exhibition finale on their home field on South Capitol Street. But for the first time, they are not playing another major league team set to open the regular season on the East Coast. Instead, the Nats’ regular big leaguers will play against a squad of the organization’s top prospects.

Headlined by Dylan Crews, James Wood, Brady House, Robert Hassell III and Trey Lipscomb, the Nationals announced the prospects roster for tomorrow’s “On Deck: Nationals Futures Game” at Nationals Park:

Pitchers – Brendan Collins, DJ Herz, Joe La Sorsa, Orlando Ribalta, Jackson Rutledge, Tyler Schoff, Jarlin Susana, Amos Willingham

Catchers – Drew Millas, Israel Pineda, Maxwell Romero Jr.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Spring training pitching lines can be deceptive. What really matters in March: How many runs somebody allowed or how many batters he struck out?

MacKenzie Gore and the Nationals were left asking themselves that question today after a Grapefruit League start the left-hander referred to as “a little weird.”

What made it weird?

“Well,” Gore said, “we struck out 10 and gave up eight runs.”

Yeah, that qualifies. Over the course of  4 2/3 innings against the Mets in what wound up a 9-8 victory, Gore experienced the full gamut of results. He opened his afternoon in dominant fashion, striking out seven of the first 11 batters he faced, effectively locating all of his pitches. Then he closed his afternoon by allowing 10 of the last 15 batters he faced to reach base, eight via hit.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – One of the four left-handers competing for spots in the Nationals’ Opening Day bullpen is dealing with a physical setback that could hurt his chances.

Jose A. Ferrer hasn’t pitched in six days due to an issue with his lat muscle, manager Davey Martinez revealed today. It’s unclear when he’ll be ready to return to the mound.

“He’s got a little bit of a lat thing going on,” Martinez said. “I’ll know more about what’s going on with him in the next day or two.”

Ferrer has made only three game appearances this spring, two of them coming during the first week of Grapefruit League play on Feb. 26 and Feb. 29. He then sat eight days before his next appearance March 8, when he tossed two scoreless innings but apparently was already dealing with some discomfort. He hasn’t pitched since.

“It’s been bothering him,” Martinez said. “We’ll see.”

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Joan Adon is back at Nationals spring training competing for a spot in the major league rotation.

His locker in the clubhouse is next to the regular starters. He’s being stretched out as a starter. And he works out with the other starters.

Even so, there is hardly an expectation when the Nats break camp for the regular season that Adon will be on the flight to Cincinnati for Opening Day. But he’s still getting a fair shot at it.

Adon took a positive step forward in his camp with three shutout innings in the Nats’ 7-3 win over the Twins at Hammond Field.

After mixed results in his first two Grapefruit League appearances, both of which came out of the bullpen, the 25-year-old right-hander finally made his first start of the spring. He only gave up two hits and one walk while being efficient with his five-pitch mix, throwing 40 pitches, 27 for strikes.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Yesterday’s rainout against the Marlins made the Nationals get a little creative in order to get players the work they missed out on.

Hello, intrasquad game on the back fields, where the results are even more meaningless than your typical spring training game.

“A bunch of guys are just gonna go there and get at-bats mainly against our pitchers who have to throw,” manager Davey Martinez said before today’s game against the Cardinals.

Zach Davies (yesterday’s scheduled starter) and Jackson Rutledge were the starting pitchers with a group of minor leaguers playing the field behind them. At times, the outfield wasn't even occupied. Stepping into the box were a handful of regular major leaguers, including CJ Abrams, Stone Garrett, Riley Adams, Jake Alu, Carter Kieboom, Juan Yepez, Alex Call, Travis Blankenhorn, Trey Lipscomb, Israel Pineda and Brady Lindsly.

Pitchers behind Davies for the “home” team included Robert Garcia, Jordan Weems, Jose A. Ferrer and Amos Willingham. Behind Rutledge for the “away” team were Joan Adon and DJ Herz.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Neither of Jackson Rutledge’s two innings today was particularly strong. He walked three batters in the top of the first. Then he surrendered four hits in the second, two of those Red Sox batters eventually coming around to score.

As poor as the results were, Davey Martinez much preferred Rutledge’s second inning to his first one.

“I’d rather see him throw strikes like he did,” the Nationals manager said following a 4-3 exhibition victory. “He just fell behind a little more than he did the last time. Last time, he was strike one. The key for him is to work ahead. The secondary pitches just weren’t effective today.”

Getting a chance to start four days after he tossed two crisp innings of relief, Rutledge looked like a wholly different pitcher. He walked three of the game’s first five batters, and though he escaped that inning with no runs across the plate, he was already behind the eight-ball with a pitch count of 27.

The rookie right-hander was much more around the strike zone in the second inning, throwing 17 of his 23 pitches for strikes. That did contribute to four singles, but he also managed to close out his afternoon with back-to-back strikeouts, something of a silver lining for him.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – If everything goes as planned, Jackson Rutledge probably isn’t going to make the Nationals’ Opening Day rotation. But if everything goes as the team hopes, Rutledge could join the rotation at some point this season and, ideally, pitch well enough to stay.

The 2019 first-round pick made his long-awaited debut last September, his path to the majors having been slowed by injuries and struggles on the mound. The tall right-hander had a rocky first start but then acquitted himself well after that and came to camp this spring feeling better about his long-term prospects.

Rutledge already showed well in a two-inning relief appearance here Saturday. Today, he’ll get a chance to start a Grapefruit League game for the first time, facing a lineup full of guys wearing Red Sox jerseys. Technically, these are the Boston Red Sox, but if you glance at that lineup, you’re not going to see a lot of guys who are going to open the season in Boston.

The Nationals’ lineup is a mixture of regulars, bench players and kids. Dylan Crews and Drew Millas are the two prospects starting today, though James Wood and Robert Hassell III are scheduled to come off the bench. Also scheduled to pitch in relief are Kyle Finnegan, Hunter Harvey and DJ Herz.

And the best news of all: You can watch today’s game live on MASN at 1 p.m.!