Fedde will get look in Harrisburg bullpen (Nats win 8-4)

PITTSBURGH - How significant is the Nationals' need for reliable relief pitching? Significant enough that they're moving their top prospect to the bullpen and will consider promoting him to the big leagues at some point to help shore up the club's biggest problem area.

Erick Fedde is due to pitch in relief for Double-A Harrisburg tonight and will continue to get a look in that role, according to organizational sources.

The Nationals have no immediate plans to promote the 24-year-old to the majors - he won't be Wednesday night's starter against the Pirates, with Jacob Turner the most likely candidate - but they want to see how he handles the switch to a relief role and could call him up at some point to help solidify that shaky position.

The role change has nothing to do with Fedde's performance - he has a 3.16 ERA and 1.125 WHIP in seven starts at Harrisburg - but rather is a reflection of the Nationals' overall bullpen woes and their willingness to consider unconventional solutions to that problem.

Fedde figured to be a candidate to serve as the Nationals' No. 5 starter at some point this summer, especially with Joe Ross struggling and now attempting to right himself at Triple-A Syracuse. The organization's first-round pick of the 2014 draft, he has come back from Tommy John surgery and established himself as the franchise's top pitching prospect.

The Nats do have to monitor Fedde's workload, though, as they do with all of their young pitchers. He totaled 121 innings last season with Harrisburg and Single-A Potomac, so he would typically be capped around 160 innings this season. As a reliever, he could significantly reduce that total, though the club would face a different challenge in trying not to throw him too regularly out of the bullpen.

SB Nation Radio host and local radio reporter Tim Murray was first to report Fedde's planned appearance out of the Harrisburg bullpen tonight.

Update: The Nationals jumped on Chad Kuhl for a first-inning run, and they haven't let up since, taking a 6-1 lead through five. Everybody except for Bryce Harper has recorded at least one hit so far, with Jayson Werth driving in the game's first run, Ryan Zimmerman driving in two more with a third-inning double, Wilmer Difo sending a two-run homer just over the right field wall in the fourth and Matt Wieters singling off the wall in the fifth, just after Kuhl was replaced by reliever Daniel Hudson.

Stephen Strasburg gave up a quick homer to Josh Harrison in the bottom of the first, but that's all the right-hander has allowed so far. He's through five innings having surrendered only two hits.

Update II: Well, here we go. Up five runs in the seventh, the Nats tried to get another inning out of Strasburg. He lasted only two batters, allowing a double and then issuing a walk. So Dusty Baker turned to his bullpen, needing nine outs tonight. The Pirates proceeded to score three runs before any more outs were recorded. Though, to be fair, two of them came on Zimmerman's ghastly throwing error on a potential 3-6-3 double play. Just when it looked like complete disaster, though, Blake Treinen came to the rescue. He got Josh Harrison to ground into a double play on his first pitch, then struck out Andrew McCutchen. Total line for Treinen: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 6 pitches, 6 strikes. It's a 6-4 Nats lead, still six outs to go.

Update III: Ballgame. Nats win 8-4 after Harper provided a big two-run homer in the top of the ninth. That allowed Koda Glover to pitch in a non-save situation and finish off the victory, getting the road trip off to a strong start.