Despite injuries to Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas, president of baseball operations David Stearns told reporters Thursday that he feels “pretty good” about the starting rotation.
“A number of them came to camp, maybe working on something a little bit different,” he said at a news conference in Port St. Lucie, Fla. “And by and large those new projects have gone well. That’s always fun for us to watch in camp, fun for you guys to watch in camp. You never really know how it plays going into the regular season, but it’s going well and I think we feel pretty good about where our starting staff is at the moment.”
Perhaps the most impressive starter so far has been Clay Holmes, who has thrown six scoreless innings in two starts, giving up just one hit and one walk while striking out five.
“Yeah, I think Clay came into this with a plan and has followed the plan to a T,” Stearns said. “And he believed that he wanted to make this transition and he believed he could and he’s demonstrating so far that he can.”
Asked why so many relievers across baseball are being turned into starters, Stearns speculated that the industry is getting better at teaching new pitches and that starters aren’t being asked to go as long as they used to.
Top pitching prospect Brandon Sproat won’t be in the rotation to start the year, but he has looked good, too. The 24-year-old retired all six Nationals he faced in his spring debut last Friday.
“It’s tough not to be impressed,” Stearns said of Sproat. “He carries himself very well. I think he’s very focused. He’s still growing and adding to his arsenal, which is exciting for a guy who is as talented as he is and has flown through the minor leagues at the rate that he has.”
Switching gears, he was asked about the challenge of finding playing time for both Brett Baty and Luisangel Acuña and Stearns offered: “We’re not gonna put prospects on the team just to sit on the bench.”
Stearns also gave injury updates on Manaea, Starling Marte and Dedniel Núñez.
- Manaea is still on track to return in mid to late April.
- Marte has a bone bruise on his right knee, but it is a less severe version of the same injury that he played through last September and October. “He told me early in camp basically, ‘I’ve played through pain my entire career. I’m used to it. I’ll keep doing it.’ I expect he’s going to be able to battle through this.”
- Nuñéz, who is recovering from a strained right flexor tendon, should see game action later in spring training.
In other news, Juan Soto is a riot.
“He’s got a really good sense of humor,” Stearns said. “He likes to have fun. He’s a funny guy. I think when you watch him across the field he takes his craft so seriously. And that’s also what came across in our meetings with him is how seriously he takes his craft, how much he thinks about hitting.
“It’s business when it’s in the cage and it’s business when it’s out there and then when it’s back there it’s fun and it’s humor and it’s smiling and that’s cool to see.
