Washington Nationals news & notes: Jake Irvin takes advice to heart; Carter Kieboom outrighted to Triple-A…

Notes and quotes from West Palm Beach, FL, where Jake Irvin shoved and Carter Kieboom was outrighted to AAA…

Jake Irvin made his first two appearances in Grapefruit League action this spring out of the bullpen, piggybacking on the days he and MacKenzie Gore were scheduled to pitch. Irvin’s first start (after he’d given up 8 R, 7 ER in 3 ²⁄₃ innings pitched in his first two outings), was a four-inning, 51-pitch, 37-strike, two-hit, five-K outing.

Good to get in that routine again,” Irvin said of starting for the first time this year, as quoted by MASN’s Blanco:

“The goal is just kind of be in attack mode, be on the offensive all night and I think we did a good job.

“(Catcher Drew Millas) and I had a really good game plan and executed really well.”

Davey Martinez, Irvin’s manager, liked what he saw from the 27-year-old, 2018 4th Round pick, (who made his MLB debut in 2023 with 24 starts over which he posted a 4.61 ERA, a 5.31 FIP, 54 walks, 99 strikeouts, and a .255/.340/.431 line against in 121 IP).

“Jake was good. He was very good, very efficient,” Martinez said.

“Fastball was live. He threw the ball over the plate for the most part. The cutter was good.

“He didn’t throw any changeups today. He just wanted to work on his cutter. His fastball was really good. His curveball he could drop for strikes. And that’s really good. A good outing.”

Irvin threw 45% fastballs in the start, (23 of 51), averaging just under 96 MPH with his four-seamer, while mixing in 13 curves (25%), eight cutters (16%), and seven sinkers (14%).

In his fourth appearances and second start of the spring on Wednesday, Irvin went with his fastball 44% of the time, mixing in 33% curves, 13% sinkers, and 10% cutters, as he held the Miami Marlins’ lineup to one hit in five scoreless in which he struck out five of the 15 batters he faced.

Irvin pounded the zone too, throwing 43 of 52 pitches for strikes, and he got 16 swings and five swinging strikes on his fastball, to go along with five called strikes on the heater, which averaged 95.9 MPH on the night. He got eight swinging strikes total, and nine called strikes, the other four with his curve.

“You talk about pitch efficiency; he was really good,” Martinez said, as quoted by MLB.com’s Bill Ladson.

“He attacked the strike zone. He was ahead in the count. I can’t say much. … Some of our young starters are really starting to get it, and that’s awesome.”

Martinez said he talked to Irvin after he gave up five hits and seven runs (6 ER) in 1 ²⁄₃ IP in the second outing out of the pen, and when told by the pitcher he was trying to work out some things in game action, the manager had a simple message.

“Work on the stuff you need to work on, but do it in the bullpen,” Martinez said, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman.

“When you’re in the game, you’re here to compete. I need you to forget about everything and start getting some outs. And he took it to heart.”

Irvin said he considered the source and followed Martinez’s advice:

“He kind of just got my focus back on competing, which was the kick in the ass that I needed,” Irvin said.

“I respect the hell out of him. His word goes a long way with me. It was good to hear that from him. I made the adjustment, and now it’s about competing.”

ALSO THIS:

On Wednesday afternoon, the Nationals announced Carter Kieboom has cleared outright waivers and the Nationals have assigned him outright to Triple-A Rochester. Kieboom, 26, and a 1st Round pick in 2016, was a highly-regarded prospect as he worked his way up in the Nats’ system, but he’s struggled at the major league level ( with a .199/.297/.301 line, nine doubles, 12 home runs in 133 games and 508 plate appearances over four seasons).

Kieboom missed the entire 2022 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but he got back up to the majors for 27 games last year. Now the organization made the decision that they would remove him from the 40-Man roster.

Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images

“He missed some time with injuries, and I believe he’s still playing a little bit of catch-up,” Martinez said, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman, in explaining the decision:

“I know this is kind of disappointing for him, but he’s still got a uniform on, and he’s got to perform. I want him to go down there and really show us that he’s going to put the work in and get himself ready. And if he’s called upon, he’s going to come up here and help us win.”

AND THIS/THESE: