VIERA, Fla. — Nationals left fielder Jayson Werth took three at-bats in a minor-league game Monday, facing live pitching in a game for the first time since undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. While encouraged by the progress, he is still unsure if he’ll be ready by Opening Day.
“I just can’t say,” Werth said Tuesday. “I just don’t know how it’s going to progress from here. We’re on the field which is half the battle really. I just don’t know. Some years you need 50 to 60 at-bats to figure it out. Other years you need five. I don’t know how it’s going to go.”
Werth said he went 1 for 2 with an RBI groundout, a walk and a double in Monday’s game. He did not play Tuesday, instead resting and receiving treatment, but said he felt fine after returning to the batter’s box in a game.
“I felt like it was the first game of spring training,” Werth said. “If I had a month left I’d be right where I needed to be but I got six days, five now. We’re going to do all the work we can and we’re going to [do] everything we can to get there. I just don’t know if it’ll be enough. Again, that’s not my decision anyway.”
Werth had surgery to repair the acromioclavicular joint in his right shoulder in January. He has been running and fielding in minor-league games for more than a week and progressing from hitting off a tee to taking a full session of batting practice.
Nationals manager Matt Williams said the 35-year-old is “on track” but will not participate in a major-league game, whether in spring training or the regular season, until he is 100 percent ready.
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“Yesterday was really his first live, game at-bats day,” Williams said. “The day before, he took some [at-bats], didn’t really want to swing. He wanted to get a look at some pitches. Yesterday, he was full go. Reported today feeling pretty good.”
Werth had previously said that he felt discomfort in his shoulder depending on the swing. That remains the case, though Werth is growing increasingly optimistic.
“It seems like if I take a good swing, I’m OK. But if I take a bad swing or I get fooled or if I foul a pitch off or if I swing through it, it’s not totally normal just yet but it continues to progress,” Werth said. “The days that I have that are bad days, I wake up the next morning fine. So it’s just part of the progression.”
Storen continues to deal with blister
After leaving Monday’s game in the sixth inning with a blister on his right big toe, Drew Storen did not pitch Tuesday and is not expected to be available Wednesday, either.
“In a perfect world, he may have pitched [Wednesday],” Williams said. “We may have to push that a day or so. We’ll see where we’re at.”
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Storen developed the blister during Monday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, and it ripped while he was delivering a pitch. Williams said the medical staff could simply cover the wound, but the Nationals also want to give it time to heal before Opening Day.
Scherzer makes final spring start
Max Scherzer threw 102 pitches in a minor-league game Tuesday, his final tuneup before starting Opening Day at Nationals Park on Monday. Scherzer preferred to pitch in a minor-league game so he could reach his goal of throwing 95 pitches in a controlled environment.
• Tom Schad can be reached at tschad@washingtontimes.com.
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