Spring Training is a time for players to work at different positions in lower settings. Perhaps the most interesting development from the first week of Nationals camp is the All-Star outfielder James Wood get the couple started in the right place. Two of his first three Spring Training appearances have come in this position.
The 23-year-old did not play right field in an MLB regular season game. Wood had a little over 400 innings there in the minor leagues. He was the only left fielder or designated hitter in his season and a half in the majors.
Nats manager Blake Butera has yet to make an announcement about the position change. There is no harm in moving Wood back to the position even if they intend for him to see the majority of his regular season action in left field. The Nationals did nothing for him in right field during 2025 Spring Training.
Daylen Lee he was a right back after coming off in May. Lile hit the ground running offensively, hitting .299/.347/.498 in his first 91 MLB contests. It was a different story on the other side of the ball. Lile was among the worst defensive players in the league. He’s a good athlete with extra speed but has turned a few easy outs into hits with bad routes or questionable decisions to let catchable balls fall in front of him.
Lile made 21 starts in left field and 52 in right field. He did not pass well in any position. Wood also had poor defensive metrics, though not to the same extent. If the Nationals feel he is the better cornerback of the two, they may prefer to have Wood in right field against left-handed pitchers. Each will get a decent amount of DH work.
Dylan Crews he can play anywhere in the outfield, although he doesn’t have much left field experience in pro ball. Jacob Young he is the team’s best outside linebacker. He’ll be in the middle whenever he’s in the lineup but he’s a better fit in the fourth outfield role because of his easy belt.
However the outfield is working itself out, those four players all go into camp with spots on the MLB roster secured. That is not true of many players in the playgroup. Signers are free Miles Mikolas again Foster Griffin join in Cade Cavalli again Josiah Gray as potential members of the season opener. Gray missed all of last season recovering from July 2024 internal ligament surgery. Cavalli is back from Tommy John who was given his last year. He made 10 starts late in the season, posting a 4.25 ERA in 48 2/3 innings.
Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner wrote about the Pirates’ remodeling process this week. President of baseball operations Paul Toboni told reporters that Cavalli is “full of travel” this spring. That may include rehearsing the repertoire.
The 27-year-old righty said he worked with pitching coaches Simon Mathews and Sean Doolittle to install a sweeper. Cavalli’s primary breaking ball is an 86 mph knuckle-curve with a more vertical curve. A sweeper can give him something with an east-west profile that he can get away from right-handed hitters. Cavalli threw two scoreless innings in his first game this week.
Gray has yet to participate in Spring Training, although he is expected to be fully fit by Opening Day. If he secures the starting quarterback role, that will leave one spot available on the roster Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker, Brad Lord, Andrew Alvarez again Jake Eder.
A veteran right-hander Trevor Williams he is in the middle of his surgery. He did an internal procedure to put together the brace last July and the stats will come out at least by the All-Star Break. As Mark Zuckerman of the Nats Journal recently reported, Williams halted his pitching schedule and went to take some precautionary snaps after experiencing elbow soreness last weekend. It’s common for pitchers to pause a bit on the way back from elbow ligament procedures. Butera downplayed the team’s concerns Saturday, though the Nationals did not provide specifics about the MRI results.
