Strong return for Roark and Murphy; Nats make five cuts

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Dusty Baker didn't know what he could reasonably expect today from Tanner Roark, considering the right-hander hadn't pitched in Nationals uniform since March 10 and didn't get regular work while away from camp during the World Baseball Classic.

Suffice it to say Baker was more than pleased with what he wound up seeing from Roark: 5 1/3 innings of one-run, three-hit ball in a much sharper-than-expected performance given the circumstances.

"That's a tribute to Tanner," the manager said. "Because he had to be working to be as sharp as he was today. And, you know, he couldn't do his normal (bullpen sessions) and stuff (during the WBC) because they didn't know when he was going to be ready to have to pitch. Like I said, it's a tribute to Tanner."

Roark did all this only four days after tossing four scoreless innings for Team USA in its WBC semifinal victory over Japan. Despite the short rest - necessary to help line him up properly for the regular season rotation - he emerged feeling strong and close to where he'd ideally like to be at this late stage of spring training.

"I could obviously be a little more further along," said Roark, who threw 71 pitches. "But I think I'll be just fine. Just need to take care of my body and do my work to prepare myself for the season. I've got one more start, I believe, here. I don't know when ... six days from now. But I should be good to go."

The other Nationals player who returned to action today from the WBC, Daniel Murphy, wasn't quite as sharp as his teammate. Of course, a not-quite-sharp Murphy still is capable of going 2-for-4 with a two-run double (though he also struck out twice, a rarity for the contact specialist).

Murphy was struggling to find his swing when he left camp three weeks ago, and he barely played in the interim, getting only 13 total at-bats for Team USA (only six in the actual tournament). It's still going to be a tricky process for him to get himself into regular season mode in time for opening day, but he took some positive steps today during his five innings on the field.

"I wouldn't say smooth as usual, but I felt pretty good in there," he said. "I saw the ball OK. I wanted to get deep into counts today, see as many pitches as I could. I had two punch-outs, too, so I would prefer to cut down on those. But it was nice to get in there and get four (at-bats), play defense as well."

Baker has a delicate balancing act over the final week of the spring, wanting to get Murphy as many at-bats as possible without overworking him before his body is ready to play that many innings on consecutive days. One solution could be to serve as designated hitter in a minor league game, where the rules are more lax and the plate appearances are plentiful.

"I'd say more or less it's a question I'll be better equipped to answer tomorrow," Murphy said. "I'll see how I respond to this one. Another thing I'll say, as well, is with the minor league staff and minor league players being so accommodating, I have the possibility of going over, leading off a couple innings and maybe squeezing in five to eight to 10 at-bats without running the bases or playing the field. Which is nice."

* The Nationals announced five roster moves after the game, with catcher Pedro Severino, outfielder Brian Goodwin, right-hander Rafael Martín and left-hander Matt Grace optioned to Triple-A Syracuse, and infielder Emmanuel Burriss reassigned to minor league camp.

The cuts leave 37 healthy players in major league camp, with more moves expected on Sunday.

Severino will be the No. 1 catcher at Syracuse and likely the first one called up should something happen to Matt Wieters or backup Jose Lobaton. The 23-year-old hit .292 (7-for-24) with a double and two RBIs this spring and remains well-liked within the organization, so much so that general manager Mike Rizzo was not willing to include him in trade packages this winter.

Goodwin's demotion after hitting just .111 (5-for-44) this spring trims the contenders for the final two spots on the Nationals bench to five: Wilmer Difo, Adam Lind, Clint Robinson, Brandon Snyder and Michael A. Taylor. Lobaton, Stephen Drew and Chris Heisey already are locked into spots with guaranteed contracts.

Martín (1.23 ERA in eight appearances) and Grace (2.45 ERA in eight appearances) both will be candidates for promotions when the Nationals need bullpen help.

Burriss, the Washington native who played five games for the Nationals in 2015 and 39 games for the Phillies in 2016, figures to be among the infielders on Syracuse's opening day roster.