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.

When 29-year-old Hobie Harris ran off the field after making his Major League debut for the Nationals, 26-year-old Thaddeus Ward was one of the first players waiting in the dugout to give him a high five and a hug. Ward had accomplished the same, long-awaited feat two innings earlier, and the relievers took a moment to savor the accomplishment together.

¡°We were sharing the fact that we did it: We made it to the big leagues,¡± Harris said.

Harris and Ward got the call from the bullpen on Saturday afternoon against the Braves. Ward tossed the seventh and eighth innings, and Harris pitched the ninth.

¡°It was awesome, it really was,¡± manager Dave Martinez said. ¡°I kind of wanted to see what they would do, but they both kept their composure, and they were actually a lot of fun. They both came in very happy.¡±

The right-handers took different roads to get to the same mound.

The Nationals selected Ward with the No. 1 pick in the Rule 5 Draft in December after the Red Sox did not protect him. A fifth-round MLB Draft selection by Boston in 2018, Ward did not play in 2020 as a Minor Leaguer and underwent Tommy John surgery in June of ¡®21. Last season, he went 0-2 with a 2.28 ERA in 13 starts across four Minor League levels, reaching Double-A.

Ward came into camp as a starter-turned-multiple-innings reliever. Players selected in the Rule 5 Draft have to earn a spot and stay on the active roster the entire season or be offered back to their original club for $50,000. After making the Opening Day squad, Ward had nine friends and family members on hand for Thursday¡¯s season opener and six at the park Saturday for his debut.

¡°It was a lot of fun,¡± Ward said. ¡°It didn¡¯t really go exactly how you dream it goes, but it was kind of everything you dream of -- running out there, looking around the crowd and having the stadium just towering over you. It was definitely a lot of fun.¡±

Facing eight Braves batters, Ward -- ranked as the Nats¡¯ No. 12 prospect by MLB Pipeline -- allowed two runs off two hits (including a home run) and recorded a strikeout.

¡°There¡¯s nothing you can really do to anticipate what you¡¯re going to feel like out there,¡± Ward said. ¡°¡­ There¡¯s no way to prepare for it. You can visualize yourself doing it over and over again, you can have the experience like I did in the exhibition game [March 28 at Nationals Park against the Yankees] and you¡¯re just overwhelmed with a lot of feelings. Definitely the first inning, a lot of nerves going on. I was happy I got the first pitch over for a strike; that¡¯s what I was the most worried about.¡±

With a personal cheering section of approximately 20 people, Harris followed Ward out of the bullpen to throw a scoreless frame with one hit and one strikeout. Harris¡¯ debut resulted from the strong impression he made in Spring Training after he signed a Minor League deal with the Nationals in November. He posted a 0.90 ERA with only one run allowed in 10 innings.

¡°It¡¯s something that I¡¯ve worked for my entire life,¡± said Harris. ¡°I was able to put myself in the moment and really enjoy it, but it still hasn¡¯t hit me just how big of an accomplishment that is for myself, for my family, for everyone that supported it. I¡¯m looking forward to when it actually sets in. I still haven¡¯t gotten emotional; I¡¯m sure at some point I will. But just the sheer weight that that¡¯s going to carry when it does hit me, it¡¯s going to be cool.¡±

The moment was eight years in the making for Harris, a 31st-round MLB Draft pick of the Yankees in 2015. He pitched for the Blue Jays¡¯ Triple-A affiliate in ¡®21 and on the same level with the Brewers last season, where he went 4-3 with a 2.04 ERA in 53 relief appearances.

¡°The only times that I¡¯ve been in ballparks like that was as a spectator, as a little kid,¡± Harris said. ¡°To me, looking up and seeing it from a different perspective and seeing that it was from the perspective that I worked for, it was more rewarding than I can put into words.¡±

Harris and Ward have received advice over the years as they chased their Major League aspirations. A message Harris received from Nashville Sounds teammate Rex Brothers rang that afternoon.

¡°The one thing that he said last year that resonated with me was, ¡®Every time you step on the field, play to make your 8-year-old self proud,¡¯¡± Harris recounted. ¡°And when I stepped on the field, I was like, ¡®You know what, I think I made my 8-year-old self proud.¡¯¡±