PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – When Shinnosuke Ogasawara took the mound on Sunday back in West Palm Beach, he faced a Mets lineup that wasn’t filled with everyday major leaguers for his first start on American soil. It was a relatively manageable order for him to navigate in his first taste of Grapefruit League action.

In his second start this afternoon, the Japanese left-hander had to don his gray Nationals pants for the first time and make the hour-long bus ride up to Clover Park to face the same Mets team, although with a vastly different lineup.

New York manager Carlos Mendoza ran out his gauntlet of a lineup, which has $1.298 billion invested in just the first four hitters alone in Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo.

Ogasawara held his own in the first inning of the game – in which the Nats were shut out 7-0 – but had a rude introduction to the real National League East in the second.

“Even in Japan, we know everybody that are All-Stars,” Ogasawara said, via interpreter Jumpei Ohashi, “so (I was) so excited to get on the mound today.”

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – It’s only the first five contests of Grapefruit League play, but no team wants a star player to have to sit out game action this early in spring training. Any time one does, panic ensues and is not quelled until said player returns to the field.

James Wood’s absence during the Nationals’ first week of spring training games struck fear into the hearts of fans. But the young outfielder and the team were not concerned his right quad tendinitis would hold him out for long.

He’s been able to take batting practice the entire time and returned to outfield work over the weekend. Now he’s ready to make his 2025 game debut.

Wood will be the Nats designated hitter and lead off to start this afternoon’s game against the Mets. Manager Davey Martinez moved him up to the top spot so he can get his at-bats quickly and be done for the day.

“He's gonna DH. We'll hopefully get him three at-bats,” Martinez said during his pregame media session. “I led him off to see if we can get him at least three at-bats, but we'll see how he feels. I want him just to go get his at-bats.”

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – The Nationals make their first “long” trip of the spring up to Port St. Lucie this afternoon. The hour-long drive feels especially long when they have yet to travel more than the 15 minutes it takes to get to Jupiter.

Any Nats fans that follow the team from West Palm Beach will be rewarded by seeing James Wood’s 2025 Grapefruit League debut. The young outfielder has been held out of game action so far with right quad tendinitis, but is now ready to at least get some live at-bats as the designated hitter. Wood was originally lined up to DH in last night’s home game against the Braves, but manager Davey Martinez wanted him to stick to his early morning routine and prepare for an afternoon game. Plus, waiting one extra day couldn’t hurt.

Shinnosuke Ogasawara makes his second start of the spring since signing a two-year, $3.5 million deal with the Nats, the first free agent the team has signed directly from Asia. The 27-year-old left-hander pitched a scoreless inning on eight pitches with a double in his debut on Sunday, but he did surrender a lot of loud contact to a Mets team he’ll face today.

And look who’s in the star-studded Mets lineup Ogasawara will be facing: None other than old friend Juan Soto. This will be the first time the Nats will see Soto in Mets blue and orange since he signed his historic 15-year, $765 million contract in December.

Mitchell Parker is scheduled to follow Ogasawara as part of his “start” day as well.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Josh Bell didn’t need an introductory course to navigate the Nationals’ facilities at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. He knows how to get to the clubhouse, the training room and the cafeteria. He’s been here before.

In fact, this is the third name the complex has had while he’s been a member of the Nationals. It was FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches and then simply The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in 2021 and 2022, respectively. It has a new sponsorship this third time around.

After coming to the Nats on Christmas Eve trade in 2020, Bell called West Palm Beach home for the next two springs. But then he was included in the Juan Soto blockbuster trade with the Padres halfway through the 2022 season and spent parts of the next 2 ½ seasons in San Diego, Cleveland, Miami and Arizona.

That winding road eventually led him back here to West Palm after signing a one-year, $6 million contract to return to the Nats in the offseason. And here he is back in the spring clubhouse he once shared with a veteran team that is now filled with a lot of new, young faces, including some for whom he was traded just 2 ½ years ago.

“It's cool. It's definitely different this go around,” Bell said in front of his new locker in the clubhouse just a few doors down from his old one. “New faces, some guys I've played against in the past, and even the guys that were here when I got traded, they were competitors for the last couple of years. So it's good getting back into the mix and it feels like a fresh start, even though it's the same clubhouse.”

SARASOTA, Fla. – Jud Fabian could have used a spoiler alert.

The young outfielder wasn’t surprised when the Orioles announced their roster of spring training invites earlier this month and slapped his name on the list.

“I kind of got told in November that it might be a possibility,” he said, “but other than that, I was just excited when I got that call that I was gonna be here.”

Baseball America ranks Fabian as the No. 9 prospect in the system, though he’s the fifth outfielder behind Heston Kjerstad, Vance Honeycutt, Enrique Bradfield Jr. and Dylan Beavers. He’s a second-round draft pick in 2022 out of the University of Florida and he appeared in 30 games with Triple-A Norfolk last summer. It made sense that he’d be in major league camp for the first time.

“It’s been fun,” he said recently. “It’s been fun to meet all these guys and go with how they’re working and what they do every day to get better. It’s a good learning experience for me and it’s been fun so far.”

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Jake Irvin planned to throw two innings tonight. That would be the standard ramp-up after throwing only one inning in his spring debut five days ago.

Just one problem: Irvin was too good during those two innings. He faced six batters, he retired all six and he needed only 23 pitches to do it.

So the Nationals sent the right-hander back to the mound for an unplanned third inning. At which point the sharpness and efficiency that defined the start of his night eluded him and brought a quick end to his night.

Back-to-back walks with one out in the third raised Irvin’s pitch count to 37 and brought manager Davey Martinez out of the dugout. It wasn’t a big deal; it’s still Feb. 27, after all. But for Irvin, it left a bit of a sour taste in his mouth at night’s end as the Nats took a 4-3 loss at the hands of the Braves.

“I’m excited to ride the wave of the first two innings going into the next one,” Irvin said when asked about the third inning.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Kyle Finnegan was disappointed, but not resentful of the Nationals when they chose to non-tender him three months ago. He understood it was a business decision, and he always left the door open for a return.

So when the All-Star closer walked back through that familiar clubhouse door today after officially re-signing with the Nats, there was nothing but a wide smile on his face.

“They’re making decisions that are what they think are in the best interests, and that doesn’t mean they don’t want you back,” he said. “It’s kind of one of those things that it is what it is. When the non-tender happened, I didn’t have any animosity or anything. I knew they had the potential to be one of the teams in play. So you keep an open mind, and at the end of the day you make the decision that feels right for you and your family.”

For Finnegan, a chance to return to the Nationals for $6 million, even if that was about $2 million to $3 million less than he was likely to earn had they let him go through the arbitration process over the winter, was the right one.

He looked right at home this afternoon in the same clubhouse he called home each of the previous five springs, albeit in a new locker on the other side of the room because his old spot was taken. He’s still wearing his No. 67 jersey. He only had to introduce himself to a few new teammates and staff members. He already knew everyone else.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals play their first night game of the spring, with the Braves making a rare visit from all the way across the state. Atlanta isn’t sending a whole lot of big names, aside from Marcell Ozuna, but they do have Bryce Elder on the mound, which should make for a nice challenge for the Nats lineup.

Davey Martinez does have plenty of regulars in his batting order, pretty much everyone but James Wood (who is set to DH on Friday in his delayed spring debut) and Keibert Ruiz (who caught Wednesday). So we’ll get multiple at-bats tonight from CJ Abrams, Dylan Crews, Nathaniel Lowe, Josh Bell and Luis García Jr.

Jake Irvin, meanwhile, becomes the first member of the rotation to make his second start of the spring. The right-hander should be good to go two innings in this one as he continues the slow build-up to regular-season form.

Tonight’s game is available live on MLB Network, if you’re interested in watching.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. ATLANTA BRAVES
Where: CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, West Palm Beach
Gametime: 6:05 p.m. EST
TV: MLB Network (Braves’ feed)
Radio: MLB.com (Braves’ feed)
Weather: Partly cloudy, 76 degrees, wind 7 mph out to left field

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals officially announced the re-signing of Kyle Finnegan this afternoon, but to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for their returning closer they made the surprising decision to designate outfielder Stone Garrett for assignment.

Finnegan agreed to a one-year, $6 million contract Tuesday, ending a three-month saga that began with the Nats non-tendering the All-Star reliever but ultimately bringing him back at a lower salary than he would have received via the arbitration process. He’ll report to CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches today and begin to get himself ready to pitch in spring training games and reassume the club’s ninth-inning role heading into the season.

The Nationals had several options when it came to clearing a 40-man spot for Finnegan. They could have placed right-hander Cade Cavalli (who is not expected to pitch in the big leagues for several months) on the 60-day injured list, or they could have designated another pitcher for assignment.

In the end, they chose to cut a position player, one who was attempting to make it back to the majors full-time 18 months after suffering a gruesome injury.

Garrett was developing into a productive hitter for the Nats in the summer of 2023 before he attempted to make a leaping catch at the wall in Yankee Stadium in late-August and crumbled to the ground in agony, breaking his left fibula and tearing his ankle ligaments.

SARASOTA, Fla. – Félix Bautista completed his second live batting practice session this morning in the intense Florida heat on the Camden Yards replica field, and it won’t be much longer before he pitches in his first Grapefruit League game.

Heston Kjerstad and Gary Sánchez kept alternating at-bats until Bautista faced seven hitters. He threw 25 pitches with Triple-A catcher Maverick Handley behind the plate.

Kjerstad struck out swinging twice and Sánchez was caught looking. Kjerstad also lined to right field and either singled or doubled into left-center field. Sánchez also popped up and grounded to third base.

One of Bautista’s splitters caused Sánchez to flail at it below the zone. He had an audible reaction to it before turning to Handley for apparent confirmation on the pitch. Or perhaps they were just admiring the quality.

Bautista has graduated from bullpen sessions. The first live batting practice was Sunday while the Orioles traveled to Clearwater to play the Phillies.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Travis Sykora was supposed to be in major league spring training with the Nationals. His dominant first full professional season at Single-A Fredericksburg certainly earned him his first invitation to big league camp. Not necessarily to compete for an Opening Day roster spot, but just to get some work in with major league catchers and coaches.

But unexpected offseason hip surgery will delay the start to his 2025 season, meaning he’s merely a bystander to start spring training instead of an intriguing participant.

General manager Mike Rizzo revealed the news of the 2023 third-round pick’s surgery during his camp-opening meeting with the media, adding that the right-hander is expected to be ready to start minor league games in May. Sykora clarified what went into the decision to have the surgery on Wednesday while making his own media rounds.

“It's just been probably a couple years of just not being able to use my hip the right way,” Sykora said. “I didn't really know it was an injury, but I just kind of had to compensate around it. So my velocity was down a little bit because I wasn't utilizing my body the way it should. So this offseason, I thought I'd get it looked at, and then we figured out what it really was.”

Wait, his velocity was down a little bit? How is that possible?

Ah, the first week of spring training games. 

The perfect time to toss out wild takes about the upcoming season based on an incredibly small sample size of games that hold minimal weight. 

What takeaways are overreactions? Which far-too-early conclusions could actually come to fruition? 

On this week’s edition of “The Bird’s Nest” (which you can watch here), Annie Klaff and I took a deep dive into some early storylines. On the way up, we’ll see which ones hold any water. 

Heston Kjerstad will have a 20-plus home run season

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – As he frequently heaped praise upon the majority of the players on his roster last spring, Davey Martinez also found himself regularly criticizing one guy in particular. Luis García Jr. seemed to be on the hot seat throughout camp, hearing it from his manager whenever he misplayed a ball at second base or was thrown out on the bases.

To be clear, García did commit more of those kinds of infractions than most. But Martinez’s response wasn’t an attempt to boost the young player’s spirits, but rather to put added pressure on him with not-so-veiled suggestions his job was in jeopardy.

“That can’t happen,” Martinez said at one point in March 2024 after a series of mistakes by García. “We talked about that with him. We’ve got to be beyond that now with him. I mean, like I said, he’s not a rookie. He’s been in this league now for a while. Those things cannot happen.”

Looking back on it all now, one year later, both manager and player can smile and acknowledge how much has changed. García took the criticism to heart and put together the breakthrough season the Nationals long believed he had in him. And Martinez can take some solace in knowing his tough-love approach seems to have worked as he hoped it would.

“I just really felt that it was the right moment,” the manager said this week. “I had him now for over four years. He was very young, so we tried to groom him to be the everyday second baseman. And last year, I knew the talent was there. I always told him: ‘You can hit. You just give away too many at-bats. You can play second base. You’re just not ready to play it every pitch.’ We talked a lot with him about being fundamentally ready, to be engaged every single pitch. …

SARASOTA, Fla. – The first exhibition game didn’t properly showcase Orioles minor league outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr.

His skillset and the improvements made would become more evident. Just give it time.

Bradfield was thrown out trying to steal after pinch-running for Cedric Mullins, and he went hitless in three at-bats in a loss to the Pirates. But this is the same player, chosen with the 17^th overall pick in the 2023 draft out of Vanderbilt, who swiped 99 bases in his first two minor league seasons – including a combined 74 last summer between High-A Aberdeen and Double-A Bowie. He’s been caught only 15 times as a professional.

The defense was on display Saturday, with Bradfield getting great jumps on a couple of line drives and making the plays look routine. But how he hits is going to determine whether he reaches the majors with similar speed.

Jackson Holliday gets the bulk of the camp attention with his toe-tap substituting for the leg lift as a timing mechanism. Catcher Samuel Basallo, who replaced Holliday as the No. 1 prospect in the system, is a must-watch in batting practice and provided another reminder of his strength Sunday with a 107.4 mph single in Clearwater.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It was a two-out walk in the first inning on Feb. 26. Not that big a deal, right?

For DJ Herz, it was a big deal. Not because the result of today’s exhibition game – a 3-0 loss to the Astros – was important. But because he knows two-out walks are among his biggest bugaboos, something the young left-hander is really trying to focus on correcting this year.

“Obviously, we don’t want to do the two-out walks,” Herz said. “A lot of weird stuff happens when that happens.”

What happened after this two-out walk of Isaac Paredes? A two-run homer by Yainer Diaz. Then back-to-back singles. And suddenly, what could’ve been a quick, 1-2-3 top of the first turned into a laborious 24-pitch frame.

So, even though the game didn’t count, is the two-out walk in spring training that important?

BRADENTON, Fla. – Orioles manager Brandon Hyde offered simple instructions this morning for Tomoyuki Sugano before the Japanese right-hander’s much-anticipated exhibition debut. Just go out, relax and pitch.

Keep it simple, Sugano.

“It’s a first spring training outing, so it doesn’t mean anything,” Hyde explained. “Just want him to get his work in.”

The Orioles hoped that Sugano would throw 35-40 pitches. He needed only six to complete the first, all of them strikes, but was extended to 22 in the second while escaping a two-out jam.

Tommy Pham led off the bottom of the first with a broken-bat infield single, but Bryan Reynolds grounded into a 4-6-3 double play started by Jackson Holliday. Sugano retired the first two batters in the second before former Oriole Adam Frazier singled and Isiah Kiner-Falefa walked. Holliday ranged to his left to field Darick Hall’s bouncer with the count full.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Juan Yepez didn’t enter the 2024 season as the Nationals’ starting first baseman. He didn’t even enter the season on the Nationals’ major league roster.

But as Joey Gallo dealt with injuries and Joey Meneses dealt with struggles, Yepez found his way to D.C. and ultimately a semi-regular spot in the lineup. He finished the year with a respectable .764 OPS, providing quality production at the plate, especially against left-handers.

But when the season ended, the Nats knew they needed to upgrade at first base. So they traded for Nathaniel Lowe, then also signed Josh Bell to return (though primarily as designated hitter).

Which leaves Yepez … where, exactly? Competing for a utility role.

“We’ve got to see if he can play multiple positions,” manager Davey Martinez said. “We’re looking for that guy who can do a bunch of different things. … And he deserves a chance to make this team. He played really well for us last year in a limited role. If he can do all these little things – we’ll try him out in left field, we’ll put him at third base, play first base as well – we’ll see how he does.”

BRADENTON, Fla. – Gary Sánchez is behind the plate this afternoon to catch Tomoyuki Sugano’s first Grapefruit League start versus the Pirates at LECOM Park.

Jackson Holliday is leading off and playing second base. Coby Mayo is the designated hitter and Heston Kjerstad is in left field.

Kjerstad is in the lineup for the third time in four exhibition games.

Dylan Carlson is the center fielder today, Emmanuel Rivera is at third base and Liván Soto is the shortstop.

For the Orioles

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The undefeated Nationals have looked good so far in the early stages of the exhibition season, especially a lineup that has scored 31 runs in three games. That group has done well in the first inning, scoring five runs against the Mets and three runs against the Marlins.

The challenge is quite a bit tougher this afternoon when the Nats face Astros ace Framber Valdez. The veteran left-hander will be on the mound for his first outing of the spring, facing a lineup featuring a few regulars.

Those regulars include CJ Abrams, Luis García Jr., Keibert Ruiz and Nathaniel Lowe at the top of the order. The bottom of the order includes a familiar name in an unfamiliar position: Juan Yepez in left field. Given the offseason additions of Lowe and Josh Bell, Yepez’s only real shot of making the team is to prove he can adequately play something other than first base. So he’ll get a shot this afternoon in the outfield. He’s also been taking some reps at third base during workouts.

DJ Herz makes his spring debut on the mound. The young lefty seemingly is competing with fellow young lefties Mitchell Parker and Shinnosuke Ogasawara for the No. 5 starter’s job, but it’s still too early in camp to see exactly how that will all play out. For now, the Nationals just want Herz to throw strikes and pitch with some consistency as he tries to prove he’s the right man for the job.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. HOUSTON ASTROS
Where: CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, West Palm Beach
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EST
TV: None
Radio: MLB.com (Astros’ feed)
Weather: Partly cloudy, 73 degrees, wind 10 mph in from center field

JUPITER, Fla. – It’s only three games, and it’s only spring training, so take everything with a healthy grain of salt. Now, having made that all-important caveat, here’s what you should know: The Nationals are off to a great start to the Grapefruit League season.

With convincing victories over the Astros, Mets and Marlins, the Nats are 3-0 in exhibition play, having outscored their opponents 31-16. They’re averaging more than 10 runs scored per game. And their starting pitching, while taking on a minimal workload at this early stage, has pitched quite well.

“We’re really preaching getting good pitches to hit,” manager Davey Martinez said. “We’re getting balls in the zone, and we’re making good contact, which is great. That’s what we’re talking about: We’ve got to have better swing decisions. And the last couple days, I’ve seen a lot better decision-making when the ball’s in the zone.”

As a team, the Nationals are batting .321 (second-best in the majors), with a .419 on-base percentage (best in the majors) and .924 OPS (also best in the majors). They’re the only team averaging 10 runs per game. They’re even a perfect 10-for-10 on stolen base attempts.

There’s plenty to like on an individual level, as well. Andres Chaparro is 4-for-7 with a homer and four RBIs. Jacob Young is 3-for-6 with a homer and two steals. Dylan Crews is 3-for-6 with a triple, an RBI, two walks and two steals. Robert Hassell III is 4-for-9 with two doubles, a homer, five RBIs and a steal. Josh Bell is 3-for-7 with a double, two RBIs and a walk. Nathaniel Lowe has reached base in all three of his plate appearances. Alex Call has reached base in five of his.