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Washington Nationals: AJ Cole to get tonight’s start against Marlins

By Ricky Keeler

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MAY 06: A.J. Cole #22 of the Washington Nationals throws a pitch in the bottom of the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on May 6, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MAY 06: A.J. Cole #22 of the Washington Nationals throws a pitch in the bottom of the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on May 6, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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With the Washington Nationals needing a starter, they will start AJ Cole tonight in the series finale against the Miami Marlins

Since Stephen Strasburg is still on the disabled list and both Erick Fedde and Edwin Jackson were used in Sunday’s doubleheader, the Washington Nationals needed a starting pitcher for tonight’s game. They will turn to A.J. Cole as he will receive the call up from Syracuse for the third time this season

Tonight will be Cole’s second start of the season. Back on May 6, he went six innings, gave up one run on six hits, walked four, and struck out two on 109 pitches, but he did get the win. He is 2-2 with a 4.86 ERA in 12 career major league games since 2015.

At Triple-A Syracuse this year, Cole has thrown 82.2 innings in 16 starts (most in the Chiefs rotation). In those outings, he is 4-4 with a 5.66 ERA, has 63 strikeouts to 31 walks, and opponents are hitting .325.

While those numbers aren’t good, Cole has pitched better since the International League All-Star break. It’s only a three start sample size, but he’s only given up two runs in each of those games. However, the batting average against is still very high (.324).

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One of the stats that has stood out about Cole this year is that he is allowing more free passes, which limits how many innings he can pitch in a game. According to Fangraphs, his walk rate of 8.2% is over a percent higher than last year (6.6%). Meanwhile, his strikeout rate is down from 20.5% a year ago to 16.6%.

Cole is the obvious choice for this start because the Nats don’t have another option ready at the Triple-A level. Yesterday, they signed Esmil Rogers to a minor league deal and he hasn’t thrown a pitch in the major leagues since 2015. He last pitched in the Korean Baseball League in 2016.

Edwin Jackson and Gio Gonzalez having good outings Sunday and Monday so it appeared the bullpen would be in good shape for tonight. Then, Max Scherzer had to leave his outing last night for one inning, which made Dusty Baker have to use the bullpen.

So, what should be the goal for Cole in this spot start? If he can give the Nats six innings, four runs, and throw about 100 pitches, then that would be a decent outing. Unlike Fedde on Sunday, Cole won’t be on a pitch limit and the 25-year-old right-hander has thrown over 95 pitches in four of his last five starts.

As for his opponent, Cole will face Vance Worley, who was a non-roster invitee for the Washington Nationals this spring in West Palm Beach. If the Nats can put consistent at-bats together, they should give Cole enough run support.

Last year, Cole had some good moments at the major league level, including picking up a win against the Mets and Noah Syndergaard in September. Since the Nats don’t have many starter options on the 40-man roster, Cole could pitch in September as well if the team decides to rest some of the starters.

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If anything, tonight is another chance for Cole to show the coaching staff and the front office that he can be successful at the major league level.

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