Opening gray:
Josiah Gray, named the Washington Nationals’ Opening Day starter, had an “interesting” first outing, walking seven batters and striking out six while allowing just three hits and one earned run.
As the 26-year-old starter admitted, he knows it’s not in his best interest to keep putting himself in such tough situations, even though he’s been able to get out of them many times before. There is.
“Every time I hold that line, I’m like, ‘Here we go again,'” he said. Quoted by Mark Zuckerman of MASN.
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“I shouldn’t put myself in that position.”
“It’s like just struggling and getting through things,” Gray said in evaluating his outing. “On some walks, I felt like I was spraying the ball around. On some other walks, I felt like I was missing them. I only gave up one run today. We were lucky, but with so many runners things might be a little different.”
His manager, Davey Martinez, said the cause of the Nats’ Opening Day starter troubles was a problem with Gray’s direction toward the plate.
“The shape of his pitching was really good,” Martinez said. [explained]. “His direction can be a little wacky sometimes. I talked to him about it: ‘The head has to go towards the catcher.’ Once you do that, it’s really good. … It’s just figuring out what makes you so good, and that’s your direction. ”
Coach Martinez suggested that the starting pitchers may have had a little more power in the first game after appearing in the opening game.
“I remember my first major league camp with the Dodgers, getting cut, and thinking how it felt at that time. And knowing that you’re going to be our starting arm from spring training into the season. It’s really cool, really surreal to say that.” – Josiah Gray, Opening Day Starter
— Jessica Camerato (@JessicaCamerato) March 17, 2024
“He can be fast sometimes, but this time he had his first game, so he might have been very energetic,” Martinez said.
“I could see he started work a little early. I told him, ‘Please take it easy.’ Just focus on one thing. Just focus on your direction. I have to slow down. ”
Gray’s first Opening Day start comes after playing his first full game last summer, and the young starter is beginning to rack up major league honors.
“Last year, the big moment for him was being in the All-Star Game. He ended up pitching one inning, and he did really well,” Martinez said. Quoted by Jessica Camerato of MLB.com After naming Gray the starter for Opening Day.
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“This is the next step in his career. I think he’s a good fit.”
Gray said he believes the assignment recognizes the progress he has made since making his major league debut in 2021 and being traded to the Nationals in the Max Scherzer and Trey Turner trade with the Dodgers later that summer. .
“Being selected to the All-Star Game, again, I can say I didn’t expect it,” he said.
“But to be nominated on Opening Day, to have progressed from where I was as a rookie in 2021 to this point, it shows the level of trust and support from Davey, the front office and everyone. ” 2024. ”
Gray said he’s excited not just for the start on Opening Day, but for the entire season ahead and the opportunity to continue his progress.
Nationals GM and team president Mike Rizzo said in an interview on MLB Network Radio last weekend that he sees Gray and the Nationals’ other young starters taking the next step after a big developmental season in 2023. He said he was looking forward to seeing it.
“We take all the training wheels off and we know they’re going to be pitching every five days with no innings limits, no pitch limits or anything like that,” Rizzo told hosts Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette. This will be the year for them to take the next step from being a really good young pitcher to an elite-level player who can expect to win a baseball game every five days. ”
Big expense next winter?:
Former Nationals GM and current MLB Network radio host Jim Bowden told current Nationals GM and Baseball Ops Director Mike Rizzo over the weekend that the deal was similar to that of Jason Werth. He said that he expected the club to sign a major free agent this winter. In 2010-11, he established Washington as a competitive team and a potential destination for other players.
That didn’t happen this winter with the Nationals, but with Patrick Corbin’s contract off the books next year, Bowden hopes the MASN settlement with the Orioles and the Baltimore sale will fully resolve the entire MASN situation. I asked about the possibility of , will the current and future financial realities allow the club to add a major free agent next winter to supplement the talent it has attracted since starting its organizational reboot in 2021?
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“I never like to speculate on what funding is going to be available,” Rizzo said. “We’ll always have financial freedom here because our goal is to put a product on the field that the DC fanbase can be proud of. That’s our history. When the time comes to really accelerate and put the pedal to the metal, You compete for a playoff spot, you compete for a division, you start competing for a world championship. I think that’s always been the case here and I don’t think that’s going to change.”
“We know what we’re trying to do here,” he added. “I know what the marching orders are from the owners and I have peace of mind and confidence that this team is moving in the very right direction, so bright days are certainly ahead of us. I think there is, and I think it may be sooner than people think.”