Starting lineups: Nats vs. Astros in West Palm Beach

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Welcome to the 2024 Grapefruit League season, everyone! The Nationals open exhibition play tonight with a home game against their spring complex co-habitants, the Astros, at the newly renamed CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. The facility, which first opened in 2017, is being rededicated tonight, with special guest Travis Scott (who founded CACTI hard seltzers, in addition to being a Grammy-winning rap artist) throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to Josiah Gray.

As for the game itself, the Nationals will be trotting out what could be their Opening Day lineup. The batting order could be switched around from this, but for now it’s a 3-4-5-6 of Joey Gallo, Joey Meneses, Jesse Winker and Keibert Ruiz. Interesting twist: Gallo is at first base, with Meneses serving as designated hitter after a winter spent talking about how he may be a more productive hitter when he’s also playing the field. Again, this is just one game, so don’t draw any conclusions until we have more lineups to consider.

All of those starters are scheduled to take one or two at-bats before departing. That means plenty of playing time for backups, and tonight that will include three top outfield prospects: Robert Hassell III in left field, Dylan Crews in center field, James Wood in right field. That will be fun to watch.

Patrick Corbin gets the start, scheduled for two innings and 35 pitches. And he’ll be followed by two more starters: Jackson Rutledge and Joan Adon, each also scheduled for two innings and 35 pitches. Eventually, we’ll see a few relievers.

If you’re interested in watching tonight’s game, you can pick up the Astros’ TV broadcast on MLB.tv and tape-delayed at 10 p.m. on MLB Network. You can also listen to Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler on nationals.com.

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What to watch for in tonight's exhibition opener

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It’s been exactly 145 days since the Nationals last played a baseball game. That dry spell ends tonight, and even though it’s merely opening night for the Grapefruit League season, it’s still a whole lot better than not playing a baseball game, right?

The Nats’ first of 31 exhibition games over the next month is a Saturday night home game against an Astros club that shares the same spring complex with them. The recently renamed CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches will be re-dedicated, with Houston rap star (and CACTI hard seltzer founder) Travis Scott throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to Josiah Gray.

Then everyone gets down to business, and there’s plenty of business at hand for the Nationals. Here are some things to watch for tonight …

* Which regulars will play?
Davey Martinez didn’t divulge any details about his starting lineup in advance, other than saying CJ Abrams will be leading off. Most of the projected regulars should be playing as well, but we’ll have to wait to find out for sure.

It will, of course, be interesting (and perhaps telling) where a handful of guys are playing. Is Joey Meneses the opening night first baseman, or will Joey Gallo get that honor? If not, will Gallo be in left field? Are Luis García Jr. and Victor Robles both starting, and if so, will they feel pressure to do something of note in their spring debuts, given the tenuous hold each has on his respective starting job?

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More-involved Zimmerman wants more players to stay long-term with Nats

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Employee No. 11 reported for work this week at Nationals camp. The number of players left who actually were teammates with Ryan Zimmerman is dwindling, but the franchise icon still has a commanding presence when he walks into the clubhouse or onto a practice field, players young and old alike recognizing his significance.

Now entering his third season in retirement, Zimmerman wants to start taking a more hands-on role with the only organization that ever employed him. His official title is “special advisor for baseball and business operations.” His unofficial role: Be there to offer any and all insight he can. Not only to players and coaches, but also to front office members and even ownership.

“I know nothing about the other side,” the former star corner infielder said. “That’s my goal this year: To continue doing what I’m doing with the players, especially the young guys, but also for myself learn the ins and outs of the other side and become more knowledgeable, so that I can have better suggestions. It’s a learning year.”

What does that look like in practical terms? Zimmerman spends his mornings in uniform, working individually or in groups with players. He then spends his afternoons in meeting rooms with Nats coaches, general manager Mike Rizzo and his lieutenants. In the evenings, he might take some younger players out to dinner, getting to know them better and getting them to start building the kind of camaraderie with each other he insists is critical to team success.

The past two springs, Zimmerman would spend a week here. But with his family tagging along, his time and duties were pulled in opposite directions. This spring, the rest of the family stayed home in Northern Virginia, freeing him up to fully immerse himself in baseball again. He hopes to be more of a regular presence at Nationals Park during the season, as well.

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Nats address rule change in workout; Martinez shares lineup thoughts

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – On the final day of full-squad workouts before exhibition play commences, the Nationals turned their attention to some seemingly mundane – yet important – topics manager Davey Martinez felt needed to be addressed.

In addition to the usual defensive drills and live batting practice sessions, players worked on situational hitting and specific baserunning situations. They also got a crash course on a little-known rule change for the 2024 season.

Infielders for the first time are no longer allowed to block the base with a knee or other body part. Runners must be given a clear path to the base, just as they’re allowed at the plate.

So players today worked on proper form for receiving throws at the bases, and then proper form for tagging runners, all of this designed to prevent them from being called for obstruction.

“We can’t block the base,” Martinez said. “So we’re teaching these guys to get to the base as quick as they can, to straddle the base a little bit. Because it will be called obstruction. So we worked on that today. They all seemed to do well with it.”

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With prospects on his heels, Robles knows it's now or never

Victor Robles

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – In the clubhouse, he’s bouncing around, a wide smile on his face. On the field, he’s yelling out to teammates in Spanish and English, clearly in his element.

Whether any of that enthusiasm translates into positive results once he actually starts playing baseball games again remains to be seen, but for now Victor Robles is just thrilled to be healthy and participating in spring training fully with his Nationals teammates.

“I feel great,” the 26-year-old center fielder said, via interpreter Octavio Martinez. “I’m very appreciative and blessed that I’m here with full health. Very excited to be here.”

It was no guarantee Robles would be back here the way things looked at season’s end. Sidelined all but a few days since early May due to a back injury, and with younger players gunning for his job, Robles reasonably could have seen his time with the Nats come to an end at last.

The Nationals actually declined a $3.3 million club option on Robles after the season, though they quickly re-signed him for $2.65 million. Even so, it was unclear at that point if he’d make it all the way back from that injury that proved far worse than it ever appeared at the time.

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Starting pitchers will get plenty of work in first weekend of games

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – A whole lot of Nationals pitchers are going to get a chance to take the mound during the first weekend of Grapefruit League play. Including a bunch of starters.

Manager Davey Martinez revealed the team’s full pitching plan for the first two games of the exhibition season, and among the notable details is the presence of five starters who each are slated to throw innings over the course of the weekend.

Patrick Corbin gets the ball first for Saturday night’s opener against the Astros. He’ll then hand it off to a pair of young right-handers who ended last season in the Nationals rotation: Jackson Rutledge and Joan Adon. If all goes according to plan, those three will eat up six innings, leaving only three more for a relief corps that will include Jordan Weems, Richard Bleier, DJ Herz and Robert Gsellman.

MacKenzie Gore starts Sunday’s game against the Marlins in Jupiter, and like the others he’ll be scheduled for two innings and 35 pitches. Gore will be followed by projected Opening Day rotation member Jake Irvin before Martinez starts handing the ball to relievers Kyle Finnegan, Hunter Harvey, Amos Willingham, Joe La Sorsa and Luis Perdomo.

Why use the starters to this extent right from the outset of the Grapefruit League schedule?

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Nationals will open spring training season Saturday

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The Washington Nationals open their 2024 Spring Training season against the Houston Astros at 6:05 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach, Fla.

To celebrate the ballpark’s first game under its new name, GRAMMY®-nominated artist Travis Scott, founder of CACTI Hard Seltzer, will throw the game’s ceremonial first pitch and participate in a special ribbon-cutting ceremony. Additionally, the first 2,500 fans will receive complimentary t-shirts commemorating the day.

Tickets for all Spring Training games, including Saturday’s, are available at nats.com/Spring.

The game’s home radio broadcast will also be streamed live on nats.com with Dave Jageler and Charlie Slowes on the call. The game will also be televised on delay, airing later that night at 10:00 p.m. on MLB Network with no blackout restrictions. The full Nationals Spring Training TV and radio schedule is available at nats.com/Spring.

One day after the opener, the Nationals travel to Jupiter to visit the Miami Marlins at 1:05 p.m., followed by the season premiere of “Nats Spring Training Live!” at 7:00 p.m. from Duffy’s Sports Grill on Clematis St. in downtown West Palm Beach. Sunday’s edition will feature special guests, including outfielder Stone Garrett, alongside Jageler and Slowes. The show airs live on 106.7 The Fan and is free to attend.

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For Gallo, a Web Gem is just as important as a home run

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Joey Gallo saved the scouting reports, the ones written about him when he was a 6-foot-5, 18-year-old third baseman coming out of high school in Las Vegas, the ones that insisted his only path to the major leagues some day would be through his prodigious bat.

“Everybody always told me my whole life: ‘You’re going to be a first baseman, a DH,’” he recalled. “‘You don’t hit the ball enough to play in the big leagues. You’re not athletic enough.’ All that stuff.”

So, when he won the first of his two Gold Glove Awards in 2020 as the Rangers’ right fielder, Gallo pulled those scouting reports out of the old file and relished in the moment.

“I was always told I couldn’t,” he said. “And that helps, because you want to prove people wrong. It gives you a little fire. I’ve always been pretty athletic for my size and had a good arm. I didn’t want that to go to waste. I wanted to put it to good use, so I could look back one day and say I did everything I could to be the best baseball player I could be.”

Make no mistake, the Nationals signed Gallo for $5 million this winter primarily because of his ability to hit the ball very far in the air, something they as a team didn’t do nearly enough last season. But they were equally impressed with the 30-year-old’s abilities in the field, from the arm that has thrown out 42 runners from the outfield to the glove that has scooped up dozens of errant throws at first base to prevent his teammates from being charged with an error.

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Henry "full-go" to start camp after thoracic outlet syndrome surgery

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Cole Henry missed out on the opportunity to attend his first major league spring training in 2023. He was still recovering from the thoracic outlet syndrome surgery he had in August 2022.

Now 18 months removed from the complex procedure, which involved removing a rib and a neck muscle, the 24-year-old right-hander finally finds himself inside the Nationals clubhouse at the team’s spring training facility. And more importantly, he’s participating in team workouts.

“As of right now, I'm feeling really good,” Henry said. “This is the first offseason I've been able to really work on just strengthening and perfecting the craft a little bit mechanics-wise and stuff like that and not worry about having to rehab. Just make sure I'm able to throw by the time spring training comes around, so it's very productive as far as that stuff goes. I just had to tweak a couple things trying to get back to the way I was before as far as my mechanics and stuff, pitch shapes, different things like that. Majority of the offseason was working on just trying to get stronger, trying to be more durable and just overall focus on just building strength and getting ready for a long season.”

The further removed Henry gets from his surgery, the better he feels. And the closer he gets to getting back to normal. But he still understands the complexities of his surgery and recovery, and that just because he’s back on a mound, that doesn’t mean he’s completely done with the aftereffects.

“I definitely think, as with any surgery, it's going to take a year or two years just to be fully past it,” he said. “I mean, I'll still have hiccups here and there as far as just a little bit more soreness on different days. Doing new things or pitching for a little bit longer than I'm used to. Whatever it is, there's gonna be a little bit of that. But as far as being able to let the reins loose a little bit, take the training wheels off it's been full-go. No restraints as far as rehab or anything. I've been basically going after it like it's gonna be a regular full season.”

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Law is latest veteran reliever to join Nats on minor league deal

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals added another experienced reliever to their spring training mix today, signing right-hander Derek Law to a minor league contract with an invitation to big league camp.

The deal, confirmed by a source familiar with the terms, will become official once Law passes a physical. He’s expected to join the club within the next few days.

Law, 33, owns a 4.08 ERA, 1.438 WHIP and 12 saves in 247 career games with the Giants, Blue Jays, Twins, Tigers and Reds. He spent the entire 2023 season in Cincinnati’s bullpen, going 4-6 with a 3.60 ERA and 1.382 WHIP over 54 games.

A ninth-round pick of the Giants in the 2011 MLB Draft, Law burst onto the scene in 2016, delivering a 2.13 ERA and 0.964 WHIP in 61 games for San Francisco, then making three appearances during the postseason. He quickly regressed after that season and has spent the ensuing years moving from one organization to another.

Law did enjoy success over the last year and a half with the Reds, who somewhat surprisingly didn’t tender him a contract after season’s end, making him a free agent.

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News and notes from Wednesday's workout

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Some news and notes from Wednesday at Nationals spring training …

* Defense and baserunning again were at the top of the list on the second day of full-squad workouts, with an emphasis on some different areas of each skill.

As he did Tuesday, manager Davey Martinez opened the session by personally leading the baserunning instruction. After guiding all players through the club’s expectations out of the batter’s box and then at first base the previous day, he had everyone gather at second and then third base this morning to go over proper technique.

Tuesday’s defensive work covered popups and fly balls, and the communication required to make sure every one is caught by somebody. Today’s drill covered balls that land in the outfield for hits, with outfielders tracking them down in the corners or the gaps and infielders assuming proper positioning for relays under each situation as called out by field coordinator Bob Henley.

Notable alignments among the first-teamers who ran through the defensive drill together: Both Victor Robles and Alex Call were in center field, with Jacob Young part of the second team; Carter Kieboom joined Nick Senzel at third base; and Joey Gallo joined Lane Thomas in right field for the outfield drills, then sprinted in to join Joey Meneses at first base for infield drills, showing off his versatility.

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Garrett easing his way back, but approaching final leg of rehab

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Stone Garrett was taking fly balls with the rest of the Nationals’ outfielders earlier this week when one of the coaches sent a deep drive over his head. It was the first time he was forced to go back toward the wall to make a play this spring, the first time he engaged in such an activity since that awful August night at Yankee Stadium when he suffered a gruesome injury.

Garrett, though, never thought about any of that. He simply tracked down the ball, made the play and re-took his position, only realizing afterward the significance of the moment.

“It’s kind of like instinct,” he said. “It was weird, we were doing fly balls and one just shot off. … You just go get it, don’t think about the leg or anything. So it’s been pretty nice. No pain. No nothing, really.”

Garrett always knew he’d make a full physical recovery from the broken left fibula and damaged ankle he suffered trying to make a leaping grab at the wall in New York late last summer. The real test, though, was going to be mental. When the time came to make a tough baseball play, would he hesitate at all, or would instincts take over?

When those instincts indeed took over, Garrett breathed a sigh of relief.

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Ever-evolving Gray figuring out the pitcher he really is

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – As he stood on the warning track to the side of the plate Tuesday morning watching several of his regular hitters step in to face Josiah Gray in the first round of live batting practice this spring, Nationals hitting coach Darnell Coles saw a few swings and misses. He saw a few called strikes. He saw a few weak ground balls.

A fan standing behind the backstop a few feet away brashly asked Coles: “Is that the Single-A team? They’re making Josiah look like a Hall of Famer!”

Coles, to his everlasting credit, didn’t berate the fan, who almost certainly had no idea who he was talking to. “Yeah, that’s the Single-A team,” he responded with a smile, fully knowing the results of a February practice session like this have no bearing on what’s to come from April through September.

Coles also knew what that fan – and perhaps many others out there – seem to forget: Gray is a good major league pitcher.

Before you pounce on that blasphemy, let’s review the facts. Gray finished last season with a 3.91 ERA, 15th best in the National League. His ERA-plus of 110 means he was above-average, a full 10 percent better than the league average to be precise. He was one of only 21 pitchers in the NL to make at least 30 starts. He made the All-Star team. He finished with 3.1 WAR, 15th-best in the NL, right behind Cy Young Award contender Spencer Strider.

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With focus on defense, Lipscomb fitting in at first big league camp

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Trey Lipscomb hadn’t been invited to major league spring training before this year, but you would never know it with the way he comfortably sits at his locker among his fellow top prospects at the front of the Nationals’ spring training clubhouse.

Dylan Crews, James Wood, Brady House and Robert Hassell III occupy the first four lockers by the front door, with Darren Baker, Lipscomb and Nasim Nuñez next down the line.

That’s a lot of young pedigree to be included in, but Lipscomb has earned the right to be there with them.

The 2022 third-round pick out of the University of Tennessee was arguably one of the most consistent bats on the Nats farm last year. After a mid-June promotion to Double-A Harrisburg, the 23-year-old slashed .284/.310/.438 with a .748 OPS, 15 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs and 45 RBIs with the Senators.

“First full season, enjoyed it,” he said looking back on his 2023 campaign. “I was blessed enough, fortunate enough to play every day, stay healthy, so knock on wood that's still there. But it was fun. You learn some things that you don't learn in college like playing six games a week. In college, you play three, maybe four a week. But playing six games a week and just learning things about your body, it's really cool to see during the season.”

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First full workout features fundamentals, blasts by the kids

CJ Abrams spring training

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – They took the field as a team for the first time in 2024, Nationals pitchers, catchers and position players alike emerging from the clubhouse and heading outside to stretch, warm up and then conduct fundamental workouts in unison on the first day of full-squad workouts.

“Great day,” manager Davey Martinez said afterward. “A lot of energy. The boys were good. I saw some good pitching. I saw some good hitting. It was a good day.”

Fifty-four of the 58 players who have been invited to major league camp so far participated. One (Mason Thompson) is still in the middle of a two-week shutdown due to elbow soreness. One (Zach Davies) just arrived today after signing a minor league deal Sunday. One (Trevor Williams) is due to arrive later this week after his wife gave birth to the couple’s fifth child over the weekend. And one (Stephen Strasburg) may or may not take up the club’s request to come to Florida and mentor young pitchers even though he's no longer physically able to pitch himself.

Everyone else was good to go, and the ensuing 2 1/2 hours provided a combination of serious instruction, intriguing head-to-head matchups among teammates and ample opportunity for laughter and fun.

Martinez chose to set the tone for the workout – and the entire spring – with some baserunning instruction right off the top. The seventh-year manager gathered every position player around the plate for a lengthy discussion of baserunning expectations, then ushered everyone to first base where he personally demonstrated the proper way to take leads, get back to the bag or take off for second base and beyond.

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Davies reports to Nats seeking a return to past form

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Pitchers and catchers had already reported to camps throughout Arizona and Florida, and Zach Davies was still sitting at home, waiting to figure out where he would be playing this season. The call from agent Scott Boras finally came last Wednesday with news of a minor league contract offer from the Nationals.

Davies took a couple of days “to see what else was out there,” and made the decision Friday night to accept the Nats’ offer. The veteran right-hander signed the deal Sunday, flew to West Palm Beach on Monday and today donned his new uniform for the first time.

And why was this the right choice for Davies?

“It’s a young, up-and-coming team,” he said. “I think it’s one of those (types of) organizations I’ve been with in the past. I know how it works. I’m trying to give myself an MLB opportunity somewhere along the line. And I’ll just try to help the team however I can.”

The Nationals had been in the market for rotation depth all winter. They arrived in Florida without having achieved that goal. Davies may not fit the description of a proven starter who can challenge Trevor Williams or Jake Irvin for a spot in the Opening Day rotation, but he’s a viable option if something happens to one of the projected starting five, whether during the spring or sometime after the season begins.

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More relaxed Meneses seeks return of home run power

Joey Meneses

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Nothing has ever been handed to Joey Meneses. He’s always had to earn his way through baseball, up to and including his long-awaited major-league debut in 2022.

Which is why, even on the heels of his remarkable opening two months with the Nationals, Meneses acted last season like he still needed to prove he deserved the job.

As he now prepares for his third season in the big leagues, the 31-year-old first baseman finally acknowledges he worries less about his standing on the roster.

“Maybe a little bit relaxed on that part,” he said. “But I don’t like to think this year is going to be easy. The first year, you want to prove you can do it. This year, I’m a little more relaxed.”

Meneses is in no danger of being cut at the end of spring training. Barring an injury, he’s going to be in the Nats’ Opening Day lineup, almost certainly somewhere in the middle of that lineup, tasked with delivering clutch hits the way he did last year. He may or may not be part of the organization’s long-term plan, but he’s most definitely part of the short-term plan.

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Report: Lerner family no longer attempting to sell Nationals

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Mark Lerner said publicly today what had become increasingly clear over the last calendar year: His family is no longer actively attempting to sell the Nationals.

“Nothing has really changed,” Lerner told the Washington Post. “We’ve just decided that it’s not the time or the place for it. We’re very happy owning the team and bringing us back a ring one day.”

Through a club spokeswoman, Lerner, the team’s managing principal owner, declined a request for a short interview or statement about the state of the sale process.

The Lerner family’s revelation in April 2022 that it had begun the process of exploring a potential sale of the Nationals caught nearly everyone in the organization by surprise. The group had never previously expressed any desire to sell the franchise it purchased from Major League Baseball in 2006 for $450 million.

The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the team and on the family’s commercial real estate business, though, were significant and left some members of the ownership group looking to move on.

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Ruiz embraces challenge to improve behind the plate

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Ask Keibert Ruiz to evaluate his 2023 season, and he furrows his brow and has to think about how he wants to say this.

“I thought it wasn’t a bad season, but defensively it was bad,” the Nationals catcher replied. “It wasn’t where I want it to be.”

It requires the separation of Ruiz’s game into two parts. At the plate, there was a lot to like. He hit 18 homers. He slashed .300/.342/.467 in the second half. He batted a robust .365 with runners in scoring position, fifth-best in the majors.

But behind the plate, there was a lot to dislike. He rated 37th out of 38 MLB catchers who played at least 500 innings with minus-14 Defensive Runs Saved. He ranked in the bottom 6 percent of all catchers in every advanced defensive metric: framing, pop time, blocking pitches, caught stealing. Opponents stole a mindboggling 119 bases while he was in the game.

That’s not going to cut it long term, and Ruiz is the first to admit it.

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On first day in camp, Crews feels "like I belong in this locker room"

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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Dylan Crews walked into the Nationals’ spring training clubhouse this morning, equipment bag over his shoulder and immediately found his locker and familiar faces nearby.

This is the first time Crews has been in big-league camp, the first time he’s been in spring training as a professional, but as he greeted teammates both young and old and scanned the rest of the room, last summer’s first-round pick looked very much in his element.

“Super-excited, ready to get going here,” he said. “I feel like I belong in this locker room right now.”

That statement could be taken the wrong way by someone who didn’t hear it. Crews said it not with any hint of cockiness, but rather with the kind of down-to-earth confidence he has always exuded.

At 6-feet, 205 pounds, he’s not an intimidating physical presence, not in these surroundings. But he’s been the best baseball player on his team everywhere he’s ever played. And though he may not have that status in a major-league clubhouse yet, few doubt he’ll get there soon enough.

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