The Washington Nationals were absolutely demolished on Monday evening in Pittsburgh. Facing off against arguably the best pitcher in the league in Paul Skenes, you obviously knew it was going to be a difficult matchup. What was not expected was for the team to lose 16-5 after emerging superstar CJ Abrams homered in the top of the 1st to give the Nationals an early lead.
In fact, the game got so out of hand and the Nationals were so short-handed on relievers that outfielder Joey Wiemer had to pitch the bottom of the 8th inning. It was embarrassing for the Nationals, as they were dominated in every facet of the game.
After Cade Cavalli couldn't find the strike zone, he quickly exited in the 2nd inning to recent call-up Paxton Schultz, who pitched well before giving way to Jackson Rutledge, who did not fare as well at all. Rutledge actually joined the team for today's game along with Orlando Ribalta, who also pitched in this game, but the former first-rounder Rutledge has already been sent back to AAA Rochester.
His 1 game audition to stick around went terribly, as he made it through just 1.1 innings, surrendering 7 earned runs on 6 hits, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts. There is a nonzero chance that we have seen the last of him in a Nationals uniform at the big league level, as it doesn't really seem like he's ever going to figure it out.
But why did him and Ribalta even come up from Rochester? Well, the Nationals actually lost a pair of relievers to the 15-day IL on Monday in Cole Henry and Ken Waldichuk, with one injury being much more serious than the other.
The lesser of the two was Henry, who suffered a right rotator cuff strain, and should be back within a couple weeks. However, Waldichuk was not as lucky, as he was placed on the list with left forearm tightness, and we found out via Mark Zuckerman yesterday afternoon that the recommendation for him was to get Tommy John Surgery.
The opinion is an absolutely devastating one for the former top pitching prospect in Waldichuk, who has already had the surgery once before in his professional career. He had been hoping to reinvent himself in Washington, and he had shown glimpses and flashes of his upside so far this season. With the new diagnosis, those plans will have to be put on hold for now.
What do you think of the latest Nationals reliever swap? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.
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