Nats ready to get underway in West Palm Beach

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It’s been a long winter. And it may be a very long summer back home in D.C. as the Nationals navigate their way through another rebuilding season.

But if ever there’s a time for optimism, this is it. It’s the first day of spring training, and while there’s little reason to believe the 2023 Nationals are going to be dramatically better than the 2022 Nationals were, they begin today with a clean slate and at least the hope of better things to come.

There are six weeks to prepare for a March 30 Opening Day date with the Braves. Much can and will happen between now and then, some of it expected, some of it unexpected.

Here’s what to expect on day one …

With some pitchers and catchers still getting their physicals completed, the day actually will get off to a later start than usual. Most days, the team will take the back fields behind The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches a little after 9 a.m. for Davey Martinez’s “Circle of Trust” meeting, then stretch and workouts. But for day one, that meeting won’t begin until 12:45 p.m., so the first workout of the spring will be an afternoon affair.

(As always, the workouts are open to the public, free of charge, and offer some of the best, up-close interaction you’ll ever get with big leaguers.)

Many pitchers have been in West Palm Beach for a while now, so most have already been throwing off a mound for days, if not weeks. We should get our first looks at MacKenzie Gore and Cade Cavalli as each young starter looks to return from season-ending injuries. We should also get our first look at Josiah Gray, who has been working on adjusting his mechanics to create straighter line to the plate and hopefully prevent some of those fastballs that are aimed at the outside corner from tailing back over the heart of the plate.

We don’t know yet if we’ll get a first look at Stephen Strasburg, whose status has been very much up in the air all winter after the right-hander missed nearly the entire 2022 season while still dealing with the aftereffects of his 2021 thoracic outlet surgery. If there’s any reason to be optimistic about Strasburg’s chances of returning the mound, it should be on display here soon.

We’ll also see Keibert Ruiz behind the plate for the first time since he suffered a testicular contusion in early September, bringing an unfortunate and abrupt halt to his first full big league season. This is a big year for the young catcher, who will be asked to show real strides in his offensive and game-calling skills.

We’ll see two pitchers who are going to be leaving camp within a couple weeks to compete in the World Baseball Classic: Paolo Espino (Panama) and Erasmo Ramirez (Nicaragua). Much as it will be an honor for each to represent their home countries in the international event, there’s no denying the disruption it causes for their regular season preparation, all the more so for Espino, who has to travel to Taiwan for his team’s preliminary-round games.

There will be a handful of early-arriving position players, as well, with Joey Meneses among the most notable names expected to be here early. Like Espino and Ramirez, Meneses will play for his home country, Mexico, in the WBC, heading to Phoenix in early March and hoping to keep his bat hot throughout the spring so he can pick up right where he left off in October.

We’ll hear today from Davey Martinez, who enters his sixth season as Nationals manager. We should hear within the next few days from Mike Rizzo, who enters his 15th season as Nationals general manager.

Everyone should be in an upbeat mood. Sure, they know the situation that awaits them this season. But if you can’t be in a good mood on the first day of spring training, what’s the point, really?