WASHINGTON -- Michael Soroka was hopeful he would be able to make his next scheduled start after exiting Monday¡¯s game with a right biceps strain. But the 27-year-old will need some extra time to get back on the mound, and the Nationals placed him on the 15-day IL on Friday (retroactive to April 1).
The Nats recalled righty Jackson Rutledge from Triple-A Rochester in a corresponding move.
¡°I just want to nip this in the bud a little bit,¡± manager Dave Martinez said before Friday night's 6-4 loss to the D-backs. ¡°I don¡¯t want it to become a problem.¡±
The initial plan was for Soroka to throw on Wednesday in Toronto and see how he felt after that, but he only got as far as playing catch. Soroka is likely to undergo an MRI on Saturday.
¡°He said he just barely could feel it,¡± Martinez said. ¡°But when a pitcher says he could barely feel it in his arm, I don¡¯t like it. So I think the best thing is to get it to calm down a little bit.¡±
Soroka, who was slated to start on Sunday, has battled injuries over his career. He didn¡¯t want to take any chances when he felt his arm cramp up in the sixth inning in Toronto.
¡°You know the difference between something that¡¯s just a one-off and something that maybe needs a little more attention,¡± Soroka said on Monday. ¡°I knew that was a feeling that shouldn¡¯t be there, and I wanted to make sure that we were smart about it.¡±
Soroka signed a one-year, $9 million contract with the Nationals this past winter. In five-plus innings pitched in his season debut (his first start since May 12, 2024), he allowed four runs on five hits and one walk with three strikeouts.
¡°Of course he¡¯s frustrated, because he just pitched for the first time,¡± Martinez said. ¡°But I told him, ¡®When you get through this, you're going to get 27, 28 more starts if everything goes well. So don¡¯t let this hinder what you did all spring and what we plan on doing with you.¡¯ ¡ He¡¯s a competitor, he¡¯s a go-getter, but he¡¯ll be fine.¡±
The Nationals will have to find a replacement starter for Sunday. They have some flexibility with their rotation because they had an off-day this past Thursday and have another one coming up next Thursday.
As for Rutledge, he transitioned this spring from a starter to a multiple-inning reliever role. He limited opponents to a .189 batting average (10-for-53) over 15 innings in 10 Grapefruit League appearances.
¡°He had some days where he looked really, really good and he was throwing strikes and he was commanding all his pitches, which was great,¡± said Martinez. ¡°I expect that he comes up here today and continues to do that.¡±
Rutledge, 26, made two relief appearances with Rochester before he was called up. He threw three scoreless frames with one hit, one walk and four strikeouts.
¡°Honestly, it¡¯s been really good -- kind of a smooth transition,¡± said Rutledge. ¡°I¡¯m a pretty routine-oriented guy, so coming in and doing the same thing every day is probably pretty good for me. It¡¯s been good as far as being locked in in the bullpen and being focused and being able to get hot quick.¡±
A 2019 first-round pick by the Nats, Rutledge is 1-1 with a 5.72 ERA at the Major League level.
¡°No matter where you¡¯re at, your job is to get people out,¡± Rutledge said. ¡°That¡¯s kind of the mindset I took into being in Triple-A for those few days -- it didn¡¯t really matter if this is a big league team or a Triple-A team or a [Single]-A team. I¡¯m just going to go out, throw good pitches, execute and get people out.¡±