MacKenzie Gore reported no issues with his shoulder the day after his return from the 15-day injured list, and the Nationals ace appears good to return to his regular five-day routine to finish out the season.
Gore, who missed the minimum allowable time on the IL with left shoulder inflammation, returned to start Thursday night’s game in Miami and allowed two runs over five solid innings, pulled after 78 pitches.
“He’s feeling good,” interim manager Miguel Cairo said. “It was good to see him come out and pitch five innings and be healthy. That’s the most important thing. But he’s feeling good.”
The left-hander was encouraged after the game, admitting he felt a little rusty in the first inning (during which both runs scored) but pleased he got sharper as the outing progressed. He retired seven of the last eight batters he faced.
“I thought we were fine,” Gore said. “Able to get through five. We knew we were going to stay around 75 (pitches). Just move forward from this. I felt much better than the last time out.”
Cairo didn’t specify whether Gore will be allowed to go deeper into his next start – likely one of the games during Tuesday’s day-night doubleheader against the Braves – with the team monitoring the workload of all of its young starters heading into the final two weeks of the season.
Gore has totaled 152 1/3 innings over 28 starts so far this year. He finished with 166 1/3 innings in 32 starts last season. If he makes three more starts this month and averages five innings apiece, he would finish at 167 1/3 innings over 31 starts.
* Keibert Ruiz is back in Washington after joining the Nationals in Miami this week for evaluation and workouts following his latest concussion scare.
Ruiz was playing his third rehab game for Double-A Harrisburg last Thursday when he took a foul ball off his facemask. He remained in the game and completed his scheduled six innings behind the plate, saying he felt fine at the time. The following morning, he experienced mild headaches and a return of concussion symptoms, prompting the Nationals to halt his rehab assignment and fly him to Miami to meet with team doctors.
The 27-year-old catcher first went on the seven-day concussion IL after getting hit in the dugout by a foul ball June 23 in San Diego. He returned to play two games in early July before experiencing a recurrence of symptoms after taking a foul ball off his mask, going back on the concussion IL on July 6. He has remained there since.
* Fredericksburg Nationals broadcaster Eric Bach will make his major league debut next week, filling in for Dave Jageler on the radio for Tuesday’s doubleheader and Wednesday’s series finale against the Braves.
Bach, who will call those games on 106.7 The Fan with Charlie Slowes, has called FredNats games since 2023 and was voted Carolina League Broadcaster of the Year by his peers in 2024.
“I couldn’t be more excited to make my major league broadcasting debut, and I can’t thank the Nationals enough for the opportunity,” Bach said in a statement released by the FredNats. “My time in Fredericksburg has connected me with so many great players and people in the Nationals organization throughout the last four years, and it means the world to me to be trusted with this responsibility.”