Nationals select contract of right-hander Koda Glover

The Washington Nationals selected the contract of right-handed pitcher Koda Glover from Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday and optioned right-handed pitcher Reynaldo Lopez to Syracuse. Additionally, left-handed pitcher Nick Lee was designated for assignment. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcements. Glover, 22, has advanced through three levels of Washington's Minor League system this season, going 3-0 with six saves and a 2.18 ERA (11 ER/45.1 IP) in 33 games with Single-A Potomac, Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Syracuse. He has recorded 52 strikeouts and 14 walks while limiting batters to just two home runs and a .196 batting average against him across the three stops. Earning the first Major League assignment of his career, Glover becomes just the second member of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft to make the big leagues. Chicago White Sox first-round pick, right-hander Carson Fulmer made his Major League debut on July 17. Glover, a 6-foot-5, 225-pound righty, has struck out 10.8 batters per nine innings, posted 0.92 walks/hits per innings pitched and a 5.63 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 75.1 professional innings since joining the organization following the 2015 First-Year Player Draft. Last season, Glover went 1-1 with five saves and a 1.80 ERA (6 ER/34.0 IP) in 19 games between short-season Single-A Auburn and Single-A Hagerstown. He struck out 38 batters and walked just two in his first professional season. A native of Monroe, Oklahoma, Glover was selected in the eighth round of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft out of Oklahoma State University. Lopez, 22, had his contract selected on Tuesday and made his Major League debut later that night against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He struck out nine batters, the second-most by a starting pitcher in his debut in Nationals history (2005-present). Only Stephen Strasburg (14, 6/8/14 vs. PIT) fanned more in his big league debut. From the middle of the second inning until the end of the fourth, Lopez retired eight batters in a row, including six strikeouts along the way. Lee, 25, went 1-1 with one save and a 4.54 ERA (18 ER/35.2 IP) in 32 games for Double-A Harrisburg in 2016. He was added to Washington's 40-man roster following the 2015 season.