Washington Nationals news & notes: Mitchell Parker to make MLB debut + Riley Adams is always ready…

Notes and quotes from the Nationals’ weekend in Oakland, CA.

MITCHELL PARKER TO MAKE MLB DEBUT IN LA:

When he spoke to reporters before the second of three with the A’s in Oakland on Saturday, Davey Martinez was not ready to announce who’d start for Washington in the series opener with the LA Dodgers tonight in Chavez Ravine.

“No. I was talking to [GM Mike Rizzo] today about some other things,” Martinez said, “… but we haven’t decided who’s going to pitch on Monday, but I will hopefully let you guys know tomorrow.”

Asked at the time if a bullpen game was a possibility, the manager said it was something the club discussed.

“That’s something we talked about. Definitely yesterday was a big help with Jake [Irvin] giving us six strong innings, so we’ll see how the next two days go.”

Following the finale with the Athletics, Martinez revealed it would be 24-year-old, 2020 5th Round pick Mitchel Parker getting the nod in what will be his MLB debut.

“It’s a funky, unconventional delivery, mechanics,” Special Assistant to the GM Kris Kline, then the club’s Assistant GM and VP of Scouting Ops told reporters after the 5th Round back in 2020.

“It’s deceptive, it’s overhand slot. It’s 90-97, but he’s going to pitch around 92-93. And he’s got an above-average curveball.

“Right now he commands the curveball better than the fastball, you know, a little fine-tuning with the delivery.”

Over four seasons in the Nationals’ system, Parker has put up a combined 4.15 ERA, as he’s worked his way up, with one start at Triple-A this season in which he gave up a hit and one unearned run in four innings before getting the call.

Martinez said on Sunday he thought the left-hander would handle things well when he gets to make his MLB debut tonight.

“I think he’ll have a lot of emotions,” Martinez said, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman.

“If we get him through that first inning, I think he’ll be just fine. It’s always that first inning when they get amped up. But he’s got a very low heartbeat, and I like that about him.”

“Everybody thinks about what it will be your first time out there,” Parker said, as quoted on MLB.com.

“Hopefully, this exceeds everything that we were dreaming about. It should be fun.”

Mitchell made four appearances with the Nationals this spring, tossing four scoreless with a .111 BAA in six innings total.

His manager got a good look at the southpaw.

“The way he attacked the strike zone, it just seemed like nothing really rattled him, he was very composed,” Martinez said. “He’s got a good mix of pitches. He’s going to go out there and hopefully keep us in the game.”

RILEY ADAMS AT THE READY:

Keibert Ruiz can’t seem to kick the flu he’s been dealing with since the series in San Francisco.

Had they known he would be unavailable, the Nationals might have kept catcher Drew Millas around, but they optioned 26-year-old Drew Millas following the club’s day off in California on Thursday.

“Yeah. [Ruiz] said he was feeling better, and then yesterday [Thursday] he said he started to get sick again,” manager Davey Martinez explained before the series opener with the A’s on Friday night.

“Poor kid, he was just laying down in the training room. So he’s sick.”

“He’s going to see a doctor again today and see what’s going on,” Martinez added.

“I know I saw him the other day, and it’s a flu. So he just feels really weak. He’s still running a little fever, so hopefully in the next couple days he’ll get through it.”

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

Riley Adams, 27, and in his fourth year with the club after he was acquired in a deadline deal back in 2021, went 1 for 3 with a walk in the first of three in Oakland, and Martinez put him back in the lineup for Saturday’s game as well, after he helped guide Jake Irvin through his start the previous night.

Adams’ ability to step in when needed without missing a beat is something his manager did acknowledge before the second of three in the Coliseum. How is Adams able to do it?

“He treats every day the same,” Martinez explained.

“He comes to the ballpark ready to play every day. And he sits in the pitchers’ meetings, he’s prepared if something does happen.

“So I never worry about Riley Adams, he’s ready to play every time I put him in the lineup.”

For someone used to playing regularly, it’s taken some time for Adams to adjust to the backup role, but he’s done it, really turning a corner late in 2022 according to the Nats’ skipper.

“He improved a lot. He’s improved calling games, catching, and even his at-bats, his at-bats got a lot better. So he’s done well. He’s done well.

“I know that I can count on him when we need him, and he’s getting an opportunity to play now a little bit more than usual, but he has done a great job.”

Adams went 2 for 4 with two singles on Saturday, with the second a two-out hit in the ninth which kept the inning alive and moved Trey Lipscomb from first to third before he scored a run to put the Nationals up 3-1 on the A’s.

Adams was 7 for 22 with hits in 5 of 6 games played in 2024 going into the series finale with the A’s in Oakland, with hits in each of his last three games (5 for 11).

He went 2 for 4 with a run scored in the 7-6 loss on Sunday.

“He’s that godsend for me,” Martinez said after a 3-1 win on Saturday, “… because any time I call upon him he does the best he can.

“Today was another example: He did really well — him and MacKenzie [Gore] worked really well together, and he gets a couple big hits for us, so he better get some rest, because he’s probably going to be in there tomorrow.”

With Millas optioned out and Ruiz still unavailable, Ildemaro Vargas suited up as the Nats’ emergency catcher on Saturday…