Madson, Romero return from DL to bolster Nationals bullpen

MILWAUKEE - Ryan Madson is back on the Nationals active roster. Whether he's ready to pitch quite yet remains to be seen.

Madson was one of five players added to the roster before tonight's game against the Brewers, joining fellow pitchers Enny Romero, Austin Adams and Erick Fedde, plus catcher Raudy Read as the club's first round of September call-ups. All technically are eligible to appear in games immediately, but Madson may need a bit more time.

Out since Aug. 14 with a sprained index finger, Madson spent the last week in Phoenix working with the personal trainer who helped him come back from Tommy John surgery two years ago. He flew to Milwaukee today, arrived at Miller Park shortly before 5 p.m. and was greeted warmly by teammates glad to have him back.

Madson arrived just as reporters were leaving the clubhouse, but manager Dusty Baker suggested the 37-year-old still needs to cross a few hurdles before he'll be cleared to pitch in games.

"He probably has to throw a bullpen, see how his finger's doing," Baker said. "I'm sure he's been working out. He's had nothing to do but work out, so he says he's probably in better shape now than when he left, even though he was in good shape when he left. We'll just have to lay eyes on him and see."

Madson participated in pregame workouts alongside his fellow relievers, so his return does appear to be coming sooner rather than later. Once that happens, Baker will have his entire late-inning bullpen trio at his disposal, with Madson rejoining Brandon Kintzler and Sean Doolittle.

"We sure miss him, because we had a pretty good thing going 7-8-9," Baker said. "We'll just hope that he's ready to come back soon."

Romero also returns after spending the last month on the disabled list with a forearm strain. The hard-throwing left-hander is ready to go now, though, after making seven rehab appearances for Triple-A Syracuse, during which time he made a specific point to work extensively on his offspeed pitches in an attempt to reduce his reliance on his fastball.

"I was working on my offspeed, because I have a good fastball," said Romero, who has regularly hit 100 mph this season. "I want to work on my offspeed pitches, and that was a good opportunity to work on my other pitches. Because my secondary pitches this September are more important to me."

Romero, who had a 3.99 ERA in 45 appearances for the Nationals before going on the DL, now has a month to make his case for a spot in the Nationals' postseason bullpen.

"The main thing is, he was starting to use (offspeed pitches) before he left," Baker said. "Which shows that his confidence in that pitch is growing. And it was easier to practice these things in the minors, versus up here with the scrutiny and the fear of giving it up for your team. I'm hoping this stint on the DL will help."

Adams returns after posting a 2.14 ERA in 44 appearances for Syracuse this season. He made his major league debut in July, failing to retire any of the five Reds batters he faced and getting optioned back to the minors with an unfortunate career ERA of infinity. He'll now get a chance to rectify that over the next month.

Fedde returns four days after he started the front end of Sunday's doubleheader for the Nationals. The rookie right-hander is likely to make another start soon, though it won't be this weekend.

Read, meanwhile, was a surprise call-up, and the only one of today's promoted players who hasn't previously reached the big leagues. The 23-year-old catcher is highly regarded within the organization and hit .265 with 17 homers for Double-A Harrisburg this season, but wasn't originally in the Nats' September plans.

But when Matt Wieters took a foul ball off his right knee during Thursday night's game, the club decided to add a third catcher immediately as a precaution. Pedro Severino would normally have been the choice, but he isn't eligible to be recalled until Monday, once 10 days have passed since he was optioned to Syracuse.

Read, who set a goal of reaching the majors this season, was thrilled to get the news and hop an unexpected flight to Milwaukee.

"It felt very good, great," Read said via interpreter Octavio Martinez. "As a little boy growing up, that's what you dream of: getting to the big leagues. And when I received the phone call, I felt excited and emotional. I almost wanted to cry."