Corbin won't pitch again in 2021, Sunday starter TBD

Turns out Patrick Corbin's start Tuesday night in Colorado was his final outing of the season.

Nationals manager Davey Martinez met with the left-hander this morning and emerged with the decision not to send him back to the mound for one final start in Sunday's season finale against the Red Sox, for both physical and emotional reasons.

"You saw Patrick make his last start yesterday," Martinez said in his Zoom session with reporters prior to today's game against the Rockies. "He's got a little blister going on in his finger, and I don't want to push it. I told him: 'You ended on a positive. I thought you pitched really well. Let's get to the offseason and continue to work and get ready for next year.' "

Corbin tossed six innings of two-run ball during Tuesday night's 3-1 loss, striking out nine. It was his fourth quality start over his final five outings and left him feeling more encouraged about himself than he had been earlier during a ragged season.

The lefty was particularly upbeat about his slider, which he used to record eight of his strikeouts and 18 swings-and-misses in this most recent start following another strong outing in Miami last week.

"I feel good about those last two (starts), where I was able to throw it," he said. "I just kind of felt back to normal a little bit, being able to use that slider, command my fastball to both sides of the plate."

Even so, Corbin ends his season with dismal overall numbers: a 9-16 record, 5.82 ERA and club record 37 homers allowed. This coming on the heels of a disappointing (if abbreviated) 2020 season in which he went 2-7 with a 4.66 ERA in 11 starts.

Because of his contract - he's signed for three more years and $82 million in total - Corbin isn't going anywhere. The Nationals will hope he takes the positives from his improved September and applies them to his offseason program and comes to spring training ready to return to something closer to his 2019 form.

Where does that leave the Nats rotation for this season's final weekend? The club announced Josh Rogers will start Friday's series opener against the Red Sox, with Josiah Gray on the mound Saturday. Both will be pitching on full rest.

Sunday's starter has yet to be determined. They could go with Erick Fedde, who had preceded Rogers in the rotation order until this week and would be on three days' extra rest. Or if they prefer to shut Fedde down after 27 starts and a career-high 131 2/3 innings, they may have little choice but to go with some type of bullpen game in the finale.

"After the game, I'll let you guys know how this is going to work out," Martinez said. "Definitely Sunday it will be TBD, and we'll go from there."