District of ... Colombia? Nats prospect has Olympic tie

This story was excerpted from Jessica Camerato’s Nationals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Andrew Pinckney checked the Harrisburg Senators’ schedule. He wanted to be on the field every game, but he also had a very special reason to hope to be able to watch the Summer Olympics that night.

Luisa Blanco, his girlfriend, was competing in Paris as the first gymnast in Colombia’s history to advance to the all-around finals.

“We get to the second inning, and it just starts pouring,” Pinckney, ranked as the Nationals’ No. 28 prospect, recalled. “I was like, ‘We might have a chance here.’ I run in there, I get on my iPad, I'm watching it, hoping that the game gets canceled. They ended up canceling it! I missed her first routine, but other than that, I watched everything else.”

With Blanco’s vault already completed, Pinckney was able to see her balance beam, uneven bars and floor routines.

“Making the finals in the Olympics is pretty sick,” Pinckney said. “She was going up against all the big names and she was doing it for Colombia, which is her home country. I was super proud of her, being able to be a fan, because she’s always a fan of me.”

Pinckney and Blanco have been together since they were collegiate athletes at the University of Alabama. During that time, Pinckney was selected by the Nationals in the fourth round of the 2023 Draft and Blanco earned a spot in the 2024 Summer Games.

Over the years, Pinckney has been able to learn from Blanco’s mental toughness.

“In gymnastics, you pretty much have one shot,” he said. “You do the routine, and if you mess it up, then that's it. So I think for me, it's just being able to count your breaths and relax. Just know that your preparation is enough, because if I have like, four chances at the plate, I'll be alright. She only has one chance. That’s what I take from that.”

Because the Olympics overlapped with the baseball season, Pinckney could not travel to Paris. (He has a keychain of the Eiffel Tower as a souvenir.) Blanco flew to Harrisburg for a Senators homestand after her return.

“She doesn't like to brag about it, but I definitely do,” he said. “It’s super cool. I'm proud of her.”