The Washington Nationals decided that they could not afford to keep Rule 5 pick Evan Lifate on their active roster. They today announcement They send the right-handed pitcher back to the Tampa Bay Rays and clean up the 40-man roster spot.
Reifert ran a strong 2024 campaign with the Rays’ Double-A, leading the NAT to select him in the Rule 5 draft. However, he walked 12 batters this spring in 6.1 innings. The Nationals decided that they could not waste the roster on a man with such control.
Rule 5 choices must be on the Major League roster for the entire season. Otherwise, you will have to send it back to the original team. That’s why Nasim Nunes got stuck despite barely playing last year.
However, they didn’t want unusable rescuers on the roster as Nats aim to win more games than they did this year. The lack of control on Reifert made him unusable. The 25-year-old has nasty sliders and big time strikeouts, but he has to throw a strike in this league.
This also makes the bullpen situation clearer. Currently, Orlando Ribarta and Eduardo Salazar are favourites who claim the last two spots in the bullpen. But Blood Lord has It has appeared It can also be used as a bullpen option.
Reifert is returning to Tampa’s minor league system, trying to regain control there. The child is talented and he was unable to find a zone this spring. This has become a decision Nats had to make.