Josiah Gray cutting down on homers, finding consistency as Nationals pitcher makes leap

Last season, Josiah Gray not only gave up the most home runs in the major leagues with 38, but the Washington Nationals pitcher only had five games in which he didn’t allow a home run. For context, he started 28 games — which means in 23 of them, Gray watched the ball come out of his hand and an opposing batter hit it over the fence at least once. 

But in 2023, Gray appears to have fixed that problem. Significantly. 

Gray already has gone four of his six outings without giving up a home run, and in that span, he’s lowered his ERA to a career-best 2.67. The 23-year-old finished April with 31 strikeouts and a WHIP (walks and hits allowed divided by innings pitched) of 1.277. Against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday, Gray went six innings and allowed just one run over 105 pitches in Washington’s 7-2 win. 

“In anything, especially pitching, it’s about consistency,” Gray told reporters. “I’m showing myself I can be consistent over the course of a month. Now, it’s the next month. It’s May. It’s what can I do for the rest of the five months we have ahead of us?”

Gray’s improvement in April, though, still mattered for the Nationals, especially because the pitcher’s month didn’t start out the way he or the team envisioned. In his season debut against the Atlanta Braves, Gray was battered on the mound as he surrendered five runs and three home runs. Atlanta punished Gray for his lack of precision as the hurler left a series of pitches over the middle of the plate. 

That rough outing turned out to be more the exception than the rule. There were signs in spring training, too, that Gray was on the verge of making a leap in 2023. The 2018 second-rounder added a cutter to his arsenal of pitches, which helped him fool batters with an off-speed pitch. And in five spring training starts, Gray went the entire spring without giving up the long ball.

Manager Dave Martinez said Gray is starting to understand “who he is and what he wants to do.” He pointed to the pitcher’s adjustment against the Pirates in which Gray racked up his pitch count early but settled down to last a full six innings. 

“He’s been unbelievable since spring training,” Martinez said. “His routine, the way he’s going about his business, the way he’s mapping out the gameplan … it’s just a testament to what he wants to do. Right now, he’s doing unbelievable. He’s giving us an opportunity to win.”

Gray’s win-loss record is still 2-4, and his winning percentage may not see a dramatic bump this season as the Nationals are still rebuilding. But Gray’s development for the Nationals matters much more in the long run. He and catcher Keibert Ruiz were the centerpieces of the Max Scherzer-Trea Turner trade in 2021 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Nationals already rewarded Ruiz with an eight-year, $50 million contract, and now Gray needs to continue to show his growth. 

So far, so good. Since that Atlanta game, Gray’s lone home run allowed was a solo shot in an April 11 loss to Los Angeles Angels. Beyond limiting his home runs, Gray has also reduced his number of walks. He’s holding opponents to just 3.5 walks per nine innings, also a career-best. 

In his last five starts, Gray has had a 1.57 ERA with 27 strikeouts, 23 hits and 11 walks. 

“I’m happy April was a successful month, but I don’t want to just call it a season because April was good,” Gray said.