The Washington Nationals agreed to terms with catcher Jorge Alfaro on a one-year contract and optioned catcher C.J. Stubbs to Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday. To make room on the 40-man roster, catcher Drew Millas was transferred to the 60-day Injured List. Nationals Interim General Manager Mike DeBartolo made the announcement. 

Alfaro, 32, comes to the Nationals after playing 82 games for Triple-A Nashville in the Milwaukee organization this season. He hit .244 with 10 doubles, a triple, 15 home runs, 49 RBI, 11 walks, 12 stolen bases and 49 runs scored. His 15 home runs this season ranked third among International League catchers, while his 12 stolen bases ranked second among all Triple-A backstops this season. Alfaro was also one of only two catchers in all of Minor League baseball to steal at least 10 bases and not be caught a single time.

Defensively this season, Alfaro has caught 23 of 64 prospective base-stealers (.641 stolen base percentage). His 23 caught stealings rank tied for fourth in all of Triple-A.

A native of Sincelejo, Colombia, Alfaro is a veteran of eight Major League seasons with the Phillies (2016-18), Marlins (2019-21), Padres (2022), Rockies (2023) and Red Sox (2023). He has hit .253 with 71 doubles, four triples, 48 home runs, 198 RBI, 18 stolen bases, 72 walks and 152 runs scored in 496 career Major League games.

Stubbs, 28, made his Major League debut yesterday and became the first Nationals catcher and first Major League catcher since 2019 to catch a shutout in his first Major League game.

The Orioles have made the following roster move:

• RHP Roansy Contreras claimed off waivers by the Colorado Rockies.

The Nationals enjoyed a much-needed, feel-good Labor Day thanks to Andrew Alvarez, who tossed five scoreless innings in his major league debut and set the stage for his team to beat the Marlins 2-0 and snap an eight-game losing streak. So what does tonight have in store?

There won’t be another big league debut, but there will be another young pitcher on the mound for the Nats in Cade Cavalli. This is Cavalli’s sixth start of the season (seventh of his career) and he’s looking to bounce back from his first truly rough one, in which the Yankees scored seven runs in only 2 1/3 innings, blasting four homers in the process. The Marlins, on paper, look like a much more favorable matchup for the right-hander. And as things stand, he’s scheduled to face them again next week in Miami.

The Marlins send rookie Adam Mazur to the mound tonight for what will be only his 11th career start. (He’s 1-4 with a 7.06 ERA to date.) The Nats faced him last year, when he was with the Padres, and scored four runs in five innings.

MIAMI MARLINS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 6:45 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 87.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 75 degrees, wind 6 mph in from right field

MARLINS
Lineup TBA

Three minutes into episode 229 of the “MASN Orioles Podcast,” Paul Mancano and I reveled in the Baltimore Orioles’ 15-7 start to the 2023 campaign. 

The Birds had come a long way from the start of the podcast, with shows like Episode 12, titled “What can the O’s get for Manny,” and Episode 66 named “Fill in LeBlanc.” 

Gone were the days of Episode 123, highlighted by Adam Plutko’s addition to the roster, or Episode 157, discussing how Baltimore had claimed Lucius Fox and left Robert Neustrom III unprotected from the Rule 5 draft. 

Instead, the main topics of discussion for episode 226 included Yennier Cano’s outstanding start to the 2023 season, and Jackson Holliday’s promotion to High-A Aberdeen after hitting close to .400 for the Delmarva Shorebirds. 

40 minutes and 35 seconds in, Paul said his goodbyes. 

As he grew up and dreamed of one day playing in the majors, C.J. Stubbs never could’ve predicted what would actually happen during his first inning in the big leagues.

The first batter of Monday’s game at Nationals Park, the Marlins’ Xavier Edwards, tapped a little roller between the mound and the plate. Stubbs, the Nats’ starting catcher, sprung to his feet, corralled the ball and made a strong throw to first for the out.

Just like that, the 28-year-old was officially a big league ballplayer.

“The first play, it kind of calmed me down,” he said. “I was kind of like: OK, I belong here. And I’m here because I worked my (butt) off.”

It’s what happened next that will forever remain in Stubbs’ memory bank. Edwards, who was steamed about one of Brennan Miller’s strike calls during the opening at-bat, barked at the plate umpire as he trotted back to the third base side, then kept going once he got back to the Miami dugout. Just as Stubbs was catching the next pitch to No. 2 batter Agustin Ramirez, Miller gave Edwards the heave-ho, prompting Marlins manager Clayton McCullough to come storming out of the dugout and scream a string of expletives at the umpire.

SAN DIEGO – Tyler Wells would have traveled anywhere to finally pitch in a major league game again. The schedule didn’t matter. He waited 17 months. Just hand him the ball and get out of his way.

But if Wells could concoct the ideal scenario, tonight’s comeback start against the Padres at Petco Park might be it.

“You know,” he said, “getting to do it here in Southern California where a lot of my family lives, having my wife (Melissa) and daughter (Ava Faye) with us now, too, it’s pretty special.”

Wells underwent reconstructive elbow surgery in June 2024 and being a new father was a joyous distraction for him. He’d rehab at the Sarasota complex and go home to Melissa and their baby, who arrived in March.

“I mean, I’m just super excited and thankful,” he said. “During this whole process, with her being born and obviously the relationship that me and my wife have continued to grow, it’s just I think a testament to not just the work that I was able to put in the training room and on the field, but also away from the game. It just makes it that much more special.

SAN DIEGO – The season moved into a new month today, the last before the Orioles can board flights home and begin to put it behind them. They will use it to give Kyle Bradish innings in preparation for a normal offseason and spring training. They will keep evaluating rookie Jeremiah Jackson and whether he can be a piece moving forward in a role that fits. They will expose Dylan Beavers to major league pitching, reap the rewards, and be careful to keep his rookie status intact for 2026.

Bradish’s second post-surgery start lasted four innings, a step back results-wise but still encouraging as he retired the last seven Padres batters and turned up the heat on his fastball. Jackson singled twice and homered to keep suggesting that the bat might play at this level.

Wins have been in short supply, but the Orioles eked one out today, getting a tie-breaking single from Beavers off Robert Suarez in the seventh inning to defeat the Padres 4-3 before an announced crowd of 45,586 at Petco Park.

Rico Garcia retired the side in order in the eighth and Keegan Akin stranded a runner in the ninth for the save, improving the Orioles’ record to 62-76 with their third win in 12 games.

"We hung in there, man," said interim manager Tony Mansolino. "Listen, we’re just trying to piece this together. I’ve told you guys there’s gonna be days where it works and there’s gonna be days where it doesn’t. We’ve got guys kind of pitching up in terms of like roles they’re throwing and today it worked out. I’m proud of the guys. They did awesome, and we were kind of due for a good one, so happy for that.”

SAN DIEGO - Ryan O’Hearn has a locker set up on one side of the Padres' home clubhouse and Ramón Laureano dresses across the room. The distance between them can’t interfere with how close they are as teammates.

O’Hearn and Laureano were packaged at the trade deadline for six minor league prospects headlined by left-hander Boston Bateman. They walked out of Baltimore and stepped into a pennant race.

Both players are in today’s lineup for the series opener against the Orioles at Petco Park. Manny Machado is batting third, O’Hearn fourth and Laureano fifth. Jose Iglesias, who appeared in 39 games with the club in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, is batting eighth and playing shortstop.

This is the first time that four former Orioles are in a lineup against the club since the Rangers started Mark McLemore, Rafael Palmeiro, Todd Zeile and Gregg Zaun on May 16, 1999, according to STATS.

“I’m enjoying it, it’s been good,” O’Hearn said. “It’s good guys that welcomed me in. It’s a good team. Been having fun, getting after it. Obviously, I miss the boys over there, I miss you guys, but it’s been a good move for me and I’m enjoying my time here.”

SAN DIEGO - The Orioles will stay with three catchers until infielder/outfielder Jorge Mateo is ready for reinstatement from the 60-day injured list.

Maverick Handley was recalled earlier today from Triple-A Norfolk to join Samuel Basallo and Alex Jackson. Mateo is a possibility for this weekend in Baltimore.

Colton Cowser and Ryan Mountcastle are on the bench for today’s series opener against the Padres.

Jeremiah Jackson moves from third base to right field. Dylan Carlson is in center. Samuel Basallo is the designated hitter.

Tony Mansolino is hopeful that reliever Colin Selby will be ready to come off the injured list by the middle of September.

Forget about the notion five weeks ago Andrew Alvarez might somehow pitch five scoreless innings in the major leagues. The mere notion at that time that Alvarez might pitch in the major leagues at all sounded pretty ludicrous.

The 26-year-old left-hander seemingly had stalled out at Triple-A Rochester, winless through his first 19 starts of the season, his ERA in the high 4.00s. As much as the Nationals needed all the pitching help they could get, Alvarez didn’t figure to make the list of prime candidates for a promotion.

Those who know him well, though, knew all along Alvarez wasn’t about to give up on his dream. He was going to find a way to put himself back in the mix somehow, some way. And when his moment did finally come this afternoon, he wasn’t going to waste it.

With five scoreless innings of one-hit ball, Alvarez made his major league debut one to remember. And thanks to some help from the Nationals lineup and bullpen, he was appropriately rewarded for it with a 2-0 victory over the Marlins, snapping the team’s eight-game losing streak in the process.

"It's hard to put into words," he said. "I'm just blessed and thankful. The team played awesome, and at the end of the day, the team won. It's such an honor to be a part of this. You dream of this as a kid. And to have it come to fruition is no more than a miracle."

SAN DIEGO – The Orioles expanded from 26 to 28 players this morning by reinstating reliever Albert Suárez from the 60-day injured list and recalling catcher Maverick Handley from Triple-A Norfolk.

Tyler Wells will join the team to make Tuesday’s start against the Padres.

Reliever Cody Poteet was outrighted and he elected free agency.

Suárez made one appearance in March during the opening series in Toronto before injuring his right rotator cuff. Handley hasn’t played for the Orioles since June 22 due to a concussion and wrist injury. He’s 3-for-41.

Handley gives the Orioles a third catcher with Adley Rutschman on the injured list.

When it came time to select a pitcher to promote as their September call-up, the Nationals knew they needed Andrew Alvarez, who will make his major league debut this afternoon as MacKenzie Gore’s replacement in the rotation.

When it came time to select a position player to fill the other slot on their expanded September roster, the Nats chose to go with someone who has been here several times before, in the hopes he can provide a much-needed spark to a team mired in an eight-game losing streak: Nasim Nuñez.

Nuñez was officially recalled from Triple-A Rochester this morning, the 25-year-old making his second big league stint of the season after spending all of the 2024 season here as a Rule 5 Draft pick.

The high-energy infielder may have a tough time cracking the lineup on a regular basis, but interim manager Miguel Cairo did say he’s “going to play some,” with shortstop CJ Abrams and second baseman Luis García Jr. getting occasional days off down the stretch.

“He’s exciting,” Cairo said. “A lot of energy. He was doing good at Triple-A. He was doing everything. He was hitting line drives, he was bunting. That’s the kind of player (we want). Energy. Good defense. He can change the game on the bases. I’m glad he’s here.”

Who do you want to send to the mound when you need someone to end a long losing streak? How about a guy making his major league debut?

OK, so it’s perhaps a bit unfair for the Nationals to put that kind of pressure on Andrew Alvarez. The 26-year-old left-hander was a 12th-round pick in the 2021 draft, and he’s not among the organization’s top prospects. But he’s nevertheless going to lead his team onto the field at Nationals Park this afternoon, making his big league debut against the Marlins while trying to snap his team’s eight-game losing streak.

Alvarez, who did produce a 2.37 ERA and 39 strikeouts over his last 30 1/3 innings for Triple-A Rochester, will try his best to keep the Nats in the game before handing it over to a bullpen that actually has been really good of late, including nine scoreless innings of one-run ball the last two days against the Rays. He’s one of two September call-ups joining the roster today, with infielder Nasim Nuñez also promoted from Triple-A.

The best thing the Nationals could do to support their rookie hurler? Get on the board first and give him a lead, something they’ve done only once during this losing streak. (And that 1-0 lead didn’t even last a full inning.) The Marlins apparently are going with a bullpen game today, so they’re going to see a bunch of arms, hoping they can do some damage against several of them along the way.

MIAMI MARLINS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:05 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 87.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 76 degrees, wind 8 mph in from center field

SAN FRANCISCO – Kyle Bradish had designed the perfect plan. A trip to Hawaii and a marriage proposal to girlfriend Mollie Mae. The hours they’d spend relaxing on the beach, the ideal escape from life as a low-minors pitcher, and in such a romantic setting.

That is, until he saw a missed call from Angels farm director Mike LaCassa one day after slipping the ring on Mollie’s finger. The organization’s pitching coordinator tracked him down and suggested that he contact LaCassa right away. Bradish had been traded to the Orioles with three other minor leaguer pitchers for Dylan Bundy.

This wasn't part of the itinerary. 

“We were headed to the beach, had to drive back to the place we were staying,” Bradish said last week. “I forgot who called me here with the Orioles. I don’t remember if it was Mike (Elias) or somebody else. That’s kind of all I remember about it.”

A world turned upside down can scramble the mind.

SAN FRANCISCO – The first batter that Tomoyuki Sugano faced today was denied a hit on Colton Cowser’s sensational diving catch of a sinking line drive. The second batter found the solution by launching a fastball over Cowser’s head and the center field fence.

Rafael Devers gave the Giants an early lead and the Orioles unraveled in the fourth in a 13-2 loss before an announced crowd of 39,220 at Oracle Park.

The Orioles followed a 1-7 homestand by going 1-2 in San Francisco to leave their record at 61-76. They fly to San Diego for another three-game series.

Catcher Alex Jackson made his pitching debut in the eighth, walked the first two batters and allowed three runs. Third base coach Matt Williams held runners in an attempt to limit the embarrassment.

That horse already left the barn, but the gesture was appreciated.

The worst summer in Nationals history came to a close this afternoon in much the same fashion as far too many ballgames over the last three months played out. A 7-4 loss to the Rays had all the hallmarks of previous losses, from a big hole created by a struggling starting pitcher to a futile attempt by the lineup to make up the big deficit.

In getting swept by Tampa Bay, the Nats saw their losing streak swell to eight games. At no point during the streak have they held a lead at the conclusion of any inning.

The misery extends far past these last eight games, though. The Nationals wrapped up the month of August with a 9-19 record. This after they went 9-15 in July. This after they went 7-19 in June. It’s the first time in club history they’ve failed to win at least 10 games in at least one of the three summer months.

That makes them 25-53 since June 1, a .321 winning percentage that easily ranks as worst in the majors during that extended span and would equate over an entire season to a 52-win pace.

"We were playing good," interim manager Miguel Cairo said, citing a recent 5-3 stretch against the Mets and Phillies. "It's not like they've given up or anything like that. They're battling. They're fighting. Today I told them: (25) more games. You've got to keep fighting. You've got to finish strong."

SAN FRANCISCO – The Orioles may go in a different direction to expand their roster on Monday.

Albert Suárez is confirmed and will join the bullpen, but infielder/outfielder Jorge Mateo might have to wait a little longer.

Mateo had three hits yesterday and is 8-for-28 with Triple-A Norfolk since restarting his assignment on Aug. 20.

“Jorgie, we’re still kind of checking boxes on the rehab assignment,” said interim manager Tony Mansolino. “I think if Jorgie’s feeling great and good, in theory he’d be the guy on the position player side, but I’m not so sure it’s gonna go that way. It may take a couple more days.”

Mateo hasn’t played for the Orioles since June 6 due to left elbow inflammation following an outfield collision with Heston Kjerstad and a left hamstring strain suffered during his first rehab assignment. The Orioles hold a $5.5 million option on his contract for 2026.

SAN FRANCISCO – The Orioles go for the series win this afternoon after prevailing yesterday for the second time in 10 games.

Gunnar Henderson is the designated hitter and Luis Vázquez is the shortstop. Dylan Beavers is in right field and Daniel Johnson starts in left. Ryan Mountcastle is at first base.

Tomoyuki Sugano get the start, his 26^th, to close out the month. The Orioles are 11-16 in August.

Sugano, 35, has 10 victories and is on pace to be the oldest rookie in major league history to lead his team in wins. Jim Turner holds the record with 20 in 1937 at 34 years and 58 days, per STATS.

Samuel Basallo, who’s behind the plate today, is the third-youngest catcher to homer at 21 years and 17 days. The Rangers’ Iván Rodríguez is first at 19 years and 273 days, and the Mets’ Francisco Alvarez is second at 20 years and 319 days.

Andrew Alvarez will make his major league debut Monday afternoon against the Marlins, the 26-year-old left-hander set to be promoted by the Nationals from Triple-A Rochester to take the rotation spot that opened up when MacKenzie Gore landed on the 15-day injured list.

Interim manager Miguel Cairo announced the decision this morning, with Alvarez filling one of two allotted September call-up slots for the Nats. The other, a position player, will be announced prior to Monday’s game.

Alvarez doesn’t rank among the organization’s top 30 prospects, but he has outperformed expectations throughout most of his minor league career. Named the organization’s Pitcher of the Year in 2023 after posting a 2.99 ERA and 1.168 WHIP for Single-A Wilmington and Double-A Harrisburg, he reached Triple-A last season and has spent all of this season with Rochester.

Though his overall 2025 numbers (3-7, 4.10 ERA, 1.350 WHIP in 25 starts) don’t sparkle, Alvarez has stepped up his performance in recent weeks. Over his last six starts, he’s 3-0 with a 2.37 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 30 1/3 innings. He last pitched for the Red Wings on Tuesday, which lines him up to start Monday afternoon at Nationals Park on five days’ rest.

“He’s been one of the most consistent pitchers in Triple-A,” Cairo said. “He throws strikes, and that’s something I like. He was Pitcher of the Year, I think, a couple years ago. We want someone that can throw strikes. When you’ve got someone that can throw strikes and keep us in the game, that will be awesome.”

The Nationals have endured three losing streaks of at least seven games this season, which is not typically a sign of a good season. This current losing streak has seen them score a total of 16 runs, only five in their last four games.

So the focus heading into this afternoon’s series finale against the Rays has got to be offense, and how this lineup can somehow find a way to generate something at the plate, especially early on in an attempt to take a lead instead of trying to play from behind yet again.

The problem: The Nats will be facing a left-hander in Ian Seymour who just tossed five scoreless innings of one-hit, eight-strikeout ball against the Guardians in his last start. Seymour, drafted in 2020 out of Virginia Tech, is exactly the type of opposing starter who has given this team fits all year long. He actually throws more changeups (34.9 percent) than fastballs (30.8 percent) and nobody has produced an extra-base hit off that changeup yet this season.

Brad Lord, meanwhile, gets the nod for the Nationals, looking to bounce back from a rare dud, in which the rookie right-hander gave up seven runs in 4 1/3 innings at Yankee Stadium. Over his last two starts, Lord has seen his ERA jump from 3.26 to 3.84.

TAMPA BAY RAYS at WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Where: Nationals Park
Gametime: 1:35 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 87.7 FM (Spanish), MLB.com
Weather: Sunny, 76 degrees, wind 7 mph in from center field