It almost seems unfair for Shinnosuke Ogasawara‘s second game of Spring Training to face Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo, and Mark Vientos. And yes, James Wood is back in the lineup after nursing the mild tendonitis in his quadricep. He will DH and leadoff in a lineup that looks like a mix of starters, bench players, and prospects. All eyes on Wood and the red-hot smoldering Robert Hassell III who has done this so far: Batting .571 (8-14), 3 doubles, 1 HR, 5 RBIs, 1 SB, and a 1.571 OPS.
Coincidentally, Soto was traded for Wood and Hassell as part of that blockbuster trade that sent Soto and Josh Bell to San Diego for Wood, Hassell, CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, and Jarlin Susana.
This will be a 1:10 pm start from Clover Fields Park in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and the game will be available on TV via the MLB App on SNY as well as you can get the Mets radio feed.
This will be our second look at Ogasawara pitching in a game. He is the first direct signing of an international free agent in Nationals’ history. Ogasawara will be competing for the fifth starter’s spot with DJ Herz and Mitchell Parker. Some feel like the only three starting spots that should be guaranteed are for Jake Irvin, Trevor Williams, and MacKenzie Gore with the fourth and fifth spots a competition to also include Michael Soroka. From the sounds of it, Soroka was all but guaranteed that he will be pitching in the starting rotation even after his struggles in the White Sox rotation that led to his demotion to the bullpen in 2024.
By plan, the second time through the starting rotation, most pitchers will throw no more than two innings but as we saw with Jake Irvin he got to 37-pitches into the third inning before he was pulled last night. Manager Dave Martinez is getting a good look at his roster.
Here is the 40-man roster as well as a list of the NRI players you will be seeing. At some point, you might also see players from Minor League camp get some action.
The newly signed Kyle Finnegan is scheduled to throw his first bullpen session today. He spoke to the media yesterday.
“The [Nationals] were making decisions that were what they think were in their best interests, and that doesn’t mean they don’t want you back,” Finnegan said.
“It’s kind of one of those things that it is what it is. When the non-tender happened, I didn’t have any animosity or anything. I knew they had the potential to be one of the teams in-play. So you keep an open mind, and at the end of the day you make the decision that feels right for you and your family.”
Much of Spring Training is about working on new pitches and mechanics for the pitchers. The position players are working on their swings and their timing. As we always say, don’t read into it too much on what you see with the starters.
Even with the younger players, can you fully rely on small sample size stats? Enjoy the great numbers.
As advertised, Paul DeJong was slick with the glove. He saved a sure double and a single. When we touted him months ago as a target based on his defense to upgrade third base, you saw the impact last night.
“That was cool,” starter Jake Irvin said. “That’s the first time I’ve had him behind me, so that was sweet. Making a nice play like that, it’s definitely reassuring to have a play like that the first time out there. It gives me a lot more confidence knowing that’s the type of player he is out there.”
“His hands really work. His feet really work in the infield,” manager Dave Martinez said. “He looks like he’s been there forever, he really does.”
There are 27-days until the Opening Day, and we get to see this lineup early in Spring Training:
