Earlier this week, the Washington Nationals finally received the tough news that had been expected for a little while: DJ Herz would be undergoing Tommy John Surgery. It is an absolute gut punch for the young lefty starter, who flashed tremendous upside in 2024 and was expected to compete for a rotation spot in spring training this season.
Herz had some red flags pop up during spring training, as he was working through some mechanical issues, which is totally normal, but also saw a decrease in velocity on his fastball. The main thing that made Herz so great in 2024 was his ability to miss bats and strike guys out, but he was not really doing that at all during spring training.
In 19 starts in 2024 at the big league level, Herz finished with a 4-9 record, and struck out a whopping 106 batters in just 88.2 innings. His 4.16 ERA and 1.26 WHIP showed that he definitely had room for improvement heading into this season, and I personally was looking forward to having Herz potentially be a true breakout candidate, as he was getting some underrated attention for his strikeout ability by the mainstream media.
He is just 24-years-old now, and while missing the entire 2025 season after undergoing a successful surgery earlier this week definitely hurts in the interim, he should come back stronger and is likely going to be on track to return at some point next season. The Nationals have had a lot of young pitcher undergo Tommy John Surgery in the last few years, with guys like Josiah Gray, Cade Cavalli, and now Herz all currently at various processes in their rehabs from the operation.
Unlike Herz and Gray, Cavalli should be back on a big league mound at some point this season, as he has begun to ramp up his rehab. Gray, the team's Opening Day starter in 2024, will also not be back until 2026 most likely, and once the Nationals get all of these injured arms healthy, they will have tremendous depth among their starting pitchers in the organization.
The staff here at District on Deck is wishing DJ Herz a speedy recovery from Tommy John Surgery, and are more than glad that his operation went well! This "poopy feeling" won't last forever.
When do you think DJ Herz will return to the big leagues? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.