DeJong out until July, Law should throw soon, Garrett released by Rochester

PHILADELPHIA – Paul DeJong is recovering from surgery Monday to repair a broken nose, plus his sinuses and orbital bone, procedures that collectively are likely to keep the Nationals third baseman out until sometime around the All-Star break.

DeJong, who was hit in the face by a fastball from the Pirates’ Mitch Keller on April 15, had to wait nearly two weeks for swelling around his left eye to go down before the surgery could be performed. He and the Nationals knew all along he would need to have his broken nose repaired, but doctors also decided to work on his damaged sinuses and insert a titanium orbital plate near his eye, according to USA Today.

The 31-year-old infielder is recovering well at home in Northern Virginia and spoke today with manager Davey Martinez about the incident and his timeline for recovery.

“His spirits were good,” Martinez said. “He came out of it good. Joked around with him for a little bit. Unfortunately, he’s still going to be down for a while. I think they said about a month before he can do any activities. And after that, hopefully we get him back sometime around the All-Star break. But we’ll see. Only time will tell now.”

The Nationals’ biggest concern with DeJong now is more mental than physical. The bones will heal, but psychologically he could face a tough time standing in to face a big league pitcher again, given what happened.

After watching the video of the pitch, DeJong asked Martinez if he thought he did everything he could to avoid getting hit. Martinez insisted there was nothing DeJong could’ve done, easing the infielder’s mind.

It will be at least a month before the Nats and DeJong have to confront the situation. In the meantime, Martinez plans to work with hitting coaches Darnell Coles and Chris Johnson to develop a plan to get him comfortable facing pitches again.

“He’s had (3,349 career plate appearances). It’s never happened before,” Martinez said. “I hope that’s the way we’re going to approach it: He’s been in the box. This is just one of those things that happened, and hopefully he can put it beside him. Go in there with baby steps – soft-toss, flipping, batting practice, velo machine – and see how he reacts to that.”

* Derek Law is hoping to join the Nationals this weekend in Cincinnati to finally resume his throwing program.

The veteran reliever, who has been on the 15-day injured list since Opening Day with right forearm inflammation, attempted to ramp up his throwing several weeks ago but wasn’t physically responding as well as he needed to from those sessions. He received a cortisone shot to try to alleviate nerve pain, and is now hopeful he can finally move past the issue and become a functioning member of the bullpen again.

“At this point, I’m being very conservative,” Martinez said. “We’ll see how he comes out of it next week. If everything goes well and we get him throwing, that will be a huge step for us.”

* The Nationals have not yet decided the next step for Michael Soroka, who made his second minor league rehab start Sunday and could be ready to come off the 15-day IL later this week.

Soroka, out since suffering a right biceps strain during his March 31 season debut, made his second rehab start Sunday for Double-A Harrisburg and built up to 78 pitches over 4 1/3 innings.

Soroka threw a standard bullpen session this afternoon. He’ll be ready to pitch again Friday or Saturday, but the Nats must decide whether that will come in a big league game against the Reds or in another minor league game.

* The Nationals released Triple-A Rochester outfielder Stone Garrett today, essentially ending his tenure with the organization.

Garrett, who was developing into a regular contributor for the major league club in 2023 before suffering a gruesome lower leg and ankle injury trying to make a leaping catch at the wall at Yankee Stadium, made it back to D.C. for two games last September and homered in his first at-bat. But he was designated for assignment this spring, ultimately clearing waivers and reporting to Triple-A to begin the season.

In 15 games with Rochester, Garrett was just 4-for-46 at the plate, driving in only two runs while striking out 22 times.