Sipp confident after first live BP session

One day after facing hitters for the first time this spring in a live batting-practice session, Nats left-hander Tony Sipp is feeling optimistic about his status for Opening Day. He took Friday off and is scheduled to face hitters again on Saturday in another live BP session.

Sipp seems unlikely to have time to appear in a Grapefruit League game, but he is still confident in his ability to prepare for the start of the season without facing Major League hitters.

“Every batter counts,” Sipp said prior to Friday night’s game against the Marlins. “And I’ve been around enough where I’m not going off the type of caliber of the hitter. I can look at my stuff and how it plays. … It’s not so much who I am facing, but it’s being fair with myself, and seeing if I have the same stuff that I’m used to to start the season with.”

Sipp seemed happy with the progress of his stuff as of Friday. His offspeed pitches felt good, and he felt strong even as he continues to ramp up the activity. He threw a 15-pitch simulated game Thursday, facing off against Howie Kendrick, who is recovering from a strained left hamstring.

When the Nats break camp Sunday, Sipp, who signed during Spring Training, will remain in West Palm Beach, Fla., with a few other rehabbing players until Tuesday night, before flying to D.C. for the team workout Wednesday. He wants to use the extra days to face more hitters and get comfortable again with the intensity of trying to get someone out.

“If it’s just going off pure stuff that I had yesterday, then I can definitely face Major League hitters,” Sipp said. “But you also have to do it, as a relief pitcher, you have to be ready to do it every day. And I’m just trying to be fair to Davey [Martinez], and I want him to just be able to have free rein to use me like any other guy. ... Until we test it out, to say, then I think we’re just going to go day by day now. But so far so good.”

Rosenthal not throwing back to back just yet

Sean Doolittle and Kyle Barraclough both pitched in relief in Friday night’s 5-5 tie with the Marlins, marking the first time this spring they’ve thrown in back-to-back games. Doolittle had a perfect eighth inning, striking out one, while Barraclough was hit with a blown save after allowing a game-tying, two-run home run to Isaac Galloway in the ninth.

The other pitcher to get the majority of those high-leverage innings will be Trevor Rosenthal, but he will not make a back-to-back appearance this spring, as the Nats continue to monitor him after he missed the 2018 season because of Tommy John surgery. Martinez reiterated Rosenthal is feeling strong and the results have been good -- a 2.35 ERA in eight games with velocity consistently in the upper 90s -- but they are unlikely to pitch him on consecutive days to start the year.

“We’ll see where we’re at with him, but he’s at a really good place,” Martinez said. “We like where he’s at. He likes where he’s at a lot. We talked about it, and he’s very adamant about saying he can go back-to-back days.”

Up next

With two days remaining in their Grapefruit League schedule, the Nationals will host the Cardinals at 1:05 p.m. ET on Saturday at FITTEAM Ballpark of The Palm Beaches. Stephen Strasburg will make his fifth and final outing of the spring -- he owns a 2.87 ERA with 19 strikeouts and seven walks in 15 2/3 innings.