Gray days:
Josiah Gray finished the spring with a 0.55 ERA in five starts and 16 pitches. 1⁄3 Pitching an inning, he stole 14 by walking 2 in an impressive stretch by the 25-year-old starter and held off opposing hitters with a .210 batting average.
Coming off the 2022 season, Gray completed his first full run in the big leagues with a 5.02 ERA, 5.86 FIP, NL-leading 66 walks (4.00 BB/9) and 154 Ks (9.32 K/9). 239/.324/.489 line in 148 2/3 innings, his ability to limit walks this spring is . stood out (Although he didn’t give up a Grapefruit League home run either.).
Walk,” Gray said. Words by Mark Zuckerman of MASN.
“I think the walks are the biggest. If you can keep them down, you have a huge advantage early on. … And we all know the home run ball. And obviously it removes the biggest negative play for a pitcher, so those two are big.”
“He’s hitting the strike zone, he’s got a good balance in pitching and he’s been keeping players off balance. He’s done really well this spring,” manager Davey Martinez said after Gray’s last spring start. told reporters.
“It’s a lot of fun to make it here,” Gray added. Just work on it every day and value what you can do. ”
Gray’s second full season in the majors began with back-to-back home runs from both Ronald Acuna Jr. and Matt Olson to put Atlanta up 2-0 from starters for the Nats before outs were scored Saturday afternoon. I was.
Acuña hit a 0-2 slider in the zone from inside out to left field for a 1-0 leadoff blast, and Olson hit a 2-0 fastball over center to right field for a 406-. rice field. An early footshot that made the game 2-0.
Two singles and a walk/wild pitch with a runner on third base added to the Braves’ lead 3–0, and they scored two more in the third as an RBI single by Michael Harris II made it 4–0.
Three of Gray’s 29 pitches left him with 57 overall pitches after three. It was the fourth, 5-0, on the way to his 7-1 win for the Braves.
Gray used a lot of curveballs, throwing 31% curveballs, 25% sliders, 20% cutters, 16% four seamers, and 8% sinkers.
“He made some mistakes,” Martinez said after losing two games in the season opener to Atlanta. “Getting ahead of the first hitter—five out of eight hitters ahead of him—he couldn’t finish. Cutter was different in the spring than he was in training, but I told him, ‘That’s it.’ It was your first expedition.” He fought back, kept us in the game and gave us five innings so I told him. must start over. ”
The cutter, whom Gray worked more frequently this spring, wasn’t there early in the outing.
“It was flat today,” Martinez explained. “He couldn’t take it in as well as he did all spring. When it happened, we had to understand — what I told Kebert [Ruiz] “Hey, you gotta change that. You can’t keep him doing the same thing over and over, right? The fastball might have been better today, but the slider was a little better today.” Like I said, it’s about being young and learning what works and what doesn’t.”
“Spring training is about working, but you’re not fighting for the top there,” Gray said after the game. Words by Mark Zuckerman of MASN.
“At bat is more competitive. You have to be that fine. In spring training, you might have done well on pitches that might not work now.”
Gray started using the cutter more as the outing progressed and got a better feel.
“It got better,” Martinez said. “At first it wasn’t. You can’t get away with the fastball either. That’s what we talked about in spring training. ‘Your staff is good. If the slider is going to be really good, you need to take advantage of the fastball as well.'”
Bullpen action:
Gray gave up 7 hits (3 HR), 2 walks and 5 earned runs in 5 total innings on 87 pitches, with Atlanta trailing 5–0 and left-hander Anthony Banda taking over the mound in the sixth.
Thaddeus Ward gave up a two-run blowout by Matt Olson in the top of the seventh, putting the Braves up 7–0 at the Nationals in Olson’s second of the season (and game).
Ward returned to the mound in the eighth inning to retire the Braves in order with a great bouncing backframe to top the top of the ninth before Hobie Harris evaded Keibert-Lewis with an explosion to right in the bottom of the ninth. Ended it with a shutout loss.
2 Spot Lewis:
Luis Garcia led Knots skipper Davey Martinez eight times last season, going 9-for-33 in those games (.273/.324/.303). Martinez put the 22-year-old infielder in his spot once again in the leadoff in the second game of his 2023 campaign on Saturday, leading the left-handed hitter in the pregame press conference against the Atlanta hardliners. We talked about the idea of doing Spencer Strider (Spencer Strider)Who threw a 97-98 MPH heater in 78.4% of total pitches in limited time in the 2021 Majors. .200 BAA, 67.0% in 2022. .201 BAA).
“The matchup was more important today than anything else,” Martinez explained when asked about Garcia’s leadoff.
“I know Strider. hope it does well there, so let’s see how it goes.”
351 on the fastball and had 14 doubles, two triples and six home runs last season, according to Baseball Savant.
Brad Mills – USA TODAY Sports
Martinez said he wants leadoff hitters to be ready when he gets a fastball and doesn’t want to see him change too much in terms of approach just because he leads off. .
“For me, with Lewis, I want him to attack,” the manager said. And like I said he really worked [not] follow this spring.it will be [Hitting Coach Darnell [Cole] and six [Assistant Hitting Coach Pat Roessler’s] The overall message today is to make sure the ball is in the zone. ”
Confusion with his line-up is what Martinez said we might see more of this year.
“Today is a matchup that we had in particular. But we’ve got to mix this up a bit.
One thing he doesn’t plan to change much is his second hitter.
“You know what I like is being with Joey [Meneses] Two holes,” Martinez said. “Because someone has to hit the last at-bat. [of the game] I want to make sure he gets it.and i like dom [Smith] The same is true for the right wing.
“Let’s see how this goes today. But like I said, I have to get ready to hit the fastball today. [Strider] 70-75% are fastballs, so be prepared. ”
[Narrator: “They were not ready.”]
The Striders went 9-6 scoreless and struck out, allowing only three hits and three walks to give the away team an early lead and a 7-1 win.
The Braves starter threw 65 percent fastballs and 29 percent sliders out, and the Nationals struggled a bit to make contact early in the game.
Martinez said the “high fastball” was an early game problem for his hitters. “That’s one thing. He started throwing the ball in there. It’s a swing and a mis-pitch. You have to beat him. He threw more curveballs. He threw a few balls.” Good swings, just missed them, but he threw the ball well.”
Joey World Order:
Joey Meneses hit a .286/.341/.489 line in 414 at-bats in 96 games with 14 doubles and 20 homers in Triple-A Rochester in his first season in Washington’s system before the Aug. 2 trade deadline. Did. After the Nationals disposed of Juan Soto (& Josh Bell) fart San Diego Padres And 10 seasons in the minors, the United States, Mexico and, briefly, Japan.
In 56 games and 240 PAs in the majors, Meneses went 222-for-72 (.324/.367/.563) with an additional 14 doubles and 13 home runs.
Meneses had “72 hits in his first 56 games” in the majors. This was “…his 56 games, the first in franchise history (MON/WSH), the most of any rookie.” review.
First baseman/DH/outfielder, “…leads Washington in hits (72), HR (13) and RBI[s] (34) [after] Called up on August 2…Second place in the National League with 72 hits [after] 8/2 and his 13 HR is [tied for 4th]”
The 30-year-old slugger was active on the international stage again this spring, playing for Mexico. World Baseball Classicafter being tied for the most with 10 hits in the WBC, he returned to the Nationals, going 2-for-5 with two hits in the 2023 season opener.
“It was amazing,” manager Davey Martinez said of Meneses’ 23-year debut.
“Like I said before, he’s a good hitter. He knows who he is at bat, he’s in the middle of the field, and he’s a really good hitter.”
Meneses scored a 3K Saturday against the Nationals in a 4-0 loss.
Nationals Sign Prawecki:
Before yesterday’s game, Washington Post writer Andrew Golden, citing sources, said Kevin Prawecki, a 32-year-old veteran catcher who has appeared in a total of 63 games for the Nationals in the majors between Boston and Texas. was acquired on his eighth contract. big league season.
The Nationals have signed veteran catcher Kevin Plawecki to a minor league deal, sources said.
Pawecki, 32, has played for four teams in his eight-year career. Split time between Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox a year ago. 235 batting average.
— Andrew Golden (@andrewcgolden) April 1, 2023
Prawecki signed a minor-league contract from the Nuts, bringing some depth to the organization, and currently has only two active catchers on a 40-man roster.Keibert Lewis and Riley Adams) Israel Pineda (right finger fracture) is the 10-day IL (back to 3/27) before the start of the season.
Of adding a backstop to the organization, Martinez said, “It just gives us a veteran guy with some depth.
“Catcher, we’re out of catchers. We’re one pitch away from a foul tip, one pitch away from something happening.
With Pineda not progressing/healing as he had hoped, Nationals thought it prudent to add some depth.
“We knew [Pineda] I had a hairline fracture,” Skipper explained. “I didn’t expect him to last this long. But now we have him re-evaluated and he’s not really healed so we put him in his IL. ”
