García sits, but hamstring injury not believed serious

DENVER – Luis García is out of the lineup for tonight’s game against the Rockies, but the Nationals continue to believe his right hamstring is only tight and not cause for any significant concern.

García pulled up and grabbed his right leg as he was running out a grounder in the sixth inning of Friday night’s 10-5 win at Coors Field. After a brief talk with director of athletic training Paul Lessard, he walked off the field, replaced at second base by Ildemaro Vargas.

Tests conducted after the game showed no serious issues, and García himself said he wasn’t worried about the hamstring.

“Everything seems to be fine,” manager Davey Martinez said. “This is going to be a day-to-day thing.”

García went through some agility drills today and did say his leg still felt sore. Martinez decided to play it safe and not include him in the lineup.

“He feels a little better. He’s still a little sore,” the manager said. “So the smart thing to do is to give him a day and see how he feels throughout the day.”

With left-hander Austin Gomber starting for Colorado, it made all the more sense to sit García tonight. Right-handed-hitting infielder Michael Chavis will start in his place.

Martinez actually loaded up his lineup with as many right-handed hitters as he could against Gomber. Dominic Smith and Keibert Ruiz each get the night off, with Joey Meneses taking over at first base and Riley Adams catching.

Stone Garrett also gets his second start since getting called up from Triple-A Rochester on Sunday, and this time the slugger will bat second while serving as designated hitter. Martinez liked Garrett’s approach in his previous start Wednesday against Rays lefty Shane McClanahan, in which he went 1-for-2 with a pair of walks.

“I loved it,” Martinez said. “Don’t chase. We talked a lot about it with him in spring training: Don’t chase. Stay in the middle of the field. He did all of that his first game, swung the bat well. If he can do that, when he hits the ball, he hits it hard. If he can lay off some pitches, get the ball in the zone, he’ll put a good swing on it.”

Today’s lineup changes were made in part because of lefty-righty matchups, but Martinez also said he wanted to make sure certain players got a chance to rest, believing a four-game series in the thin air here is particularly tough and creates an increased possibility of injury.

“Perfect example with Luis, him having a little hamstring issue right now,” Martinez said. “At this altitude, it could become a problem. So we want to make sure moving forward it doesn’t become a bigger problem. You come here for four days and try to get used to it, it takes a toll.”

* Paolo Espino was placed on the 7-day injured list by Triple-A Rochester with a tight hamstring. The veteran right-hander, who was optioned to the minors at the end of spring training after spending the majority of the last two seasons on the major league roster, hurt himself after pitching only two innings in his 2023 debut Tuesday in Syracuse. The injury isn’t believed to be serious.

“They thought the best thing to do was put him on the IL,” Martinez said. “Hopefully it’s not a big issue, and hopefully he comes back soon.”