Hours before his Nationals teammates took the field Monday afternoon hoping to snap a five-game losing streak, Matt Wieters checked the final boxes in his rehab from a left oblique strain. With hitting coach Kevin Long and trainer Paul Lessard looking on, Wieters took swings from both sides of the plate. Then he threw to the bases, popping out of his crouch to simulate the real deal.
Wieters confirmed everything went well. He wasn’t hindered. The oblique didn’t bother him. He was so encouraged that he said he didn’t expect to need a rehab stint. He was confident he would come off the disabled list Wednesday, the first day he’s eligible because he had missed so little time. But a few minutes later, after meeting with Wieters, Manager Dave Martinez explained the catcher will indeed go on a rehab stint starting Tuesday in Potomac.
“We want him to get some at-bats and he’s good with it,” Martinez said. “I just left the room with him and we’re excited he’s ready to play.”
Martinez said he isn’t sure how many games Wieters will play in Potomac, only that it won’t be many. He suggested Wieters could catch one game and DH another. If that’s the case, Washington would activate Wieters on Thursday for its series opener against the Rockies.
“He hit yesterday,” Martinez said. “He hit today, looked really good. We just want to make sure he goes down and catches and gets at-bats.”
Wieters’s oblique discomfort surfaced near the end of spring training, but it was minor enough for him to believe it would dissipate. So he played through it until he realized it wasn’t going away. After playing in the Nationals’ first two games in Cincinnati, he said the decision was then made to shut him down before it worsened and his season got derailed. He went 1 for 7 with two walks in the two games against the Reds.
“We’ve strengthened the area around it to protect it a little bit,” Wieters said. “So I think that’s the big thing. We were patching it up and getting it ready to play every day, but we weren’t having the time to strengthen the time around it, which is what we did over the last eight days.”
Wieters’s return will force the Nationals to make a decision. With Miguel Montero slated to return from paternity leave on Tuesday, the club must decide if Pedro Severino will remain on the roster. A couple at-bats in Sunday night’s loss to the Mets aside, the 24-year-old has impressed when given the opportunity. Entering Monday, he’s 5 for 12 with three walks and a steal. He’s clearly the Nationals’ best defensive catcher, and Martinez said his game continues improving.
Martinez floated there’s “a good possibility” that the Nationals will carry three catchers. Matt Reynolds would likely be the odd man out in that scenario. Martinez said the team still hadn’t decided. They won’t need to for at least a couple days.
BRAVES (6-3)
Ender Inciarte CF
Ozzie Albies 2B
Freddie Freeman 1B
Nick Markakis RF
Kurt Suzuki C
Preston Tucker LF
Dansby Swanson SS
Ryan Flaherty 3B
Julio Teheran RHP
NATIONALS (4-5)
Trea Turner SS
Anthony Rendon 3B
Bryce Harper RF
Ryan Zimmerman 1B
Howie Kendrick 2B
Brian Goodwin LF
Michael A. Taylor CF
Pedro Severino C
Max Scherzer RHP
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