Roark to start on three days' rest as Nats shuffle rotation

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - As they start to line up the members of their rotation for the regular season, the Nationals are left to juggle a few assignments during this early portion of the exhibition slate.

Thus, Tanner Roark (who made his spring debut Saturday against the Marlins in Jupiter) will be back on the mound Wednesday against the Marlins in Jupiter, despite pitching on only three days' rest.

The Nationals mapped it out like this, and Roark (who threw 33 pitches over two innings on Saturday) gave his blessing.

"He feels good, so we're trying to get him another quick start," manager Davey Martinez said. "I talk to (pitching coach Derek Lilliquist) all the time about how we're going to use these guys, and how many innings they're going to pitch. If it works out, they're all going to be in good shape."

Stephen Strasburg, meanwhile, isn't slated to make his Grapefruit League debut until this weekend, most likely Saturday against the Astros in West Palm Beach. Strasburg is being lined up to follow opening day starter Max Scherzer, who pitched yesterday against the Braves, which put him on schedule for today's game.

Rather than make the 2 1/2-hour drive to Walt Disney World, though, Strasburg stayed back in West Palm Beach to throw a live batting practice session (his second of the spring). That will set him up to face hitters in an actual game five days from now, slotting back into the rotation behind Scherzer (who figures to make his next start Friday against the Mets in Port St. Lucie).

"He wanted one more touch-and-feel kind of outing, so we let him do it with a live BP," Martinez said. "This way you don't have to worry about how many innings, how many pitches he throws. It's more controlled."

So if you've lost track - and nobody will blame you if you have - here's how the Nationals rotation shapes up for the rest of the week ...

Today vs. Braves in Lake Buena Vista: Erick Fedde
Tuesday vs. Marlins in West Palm Beach: Gio Gonzalez
Wednesday vs. Marlins in Jupiter: Roark
Thursday vs. Braves in Lake Buena Vista: TBA (probably A.J. Cole or Tommy Milone)
Friday vs. Mets in Port St. Lucie: Scherzer
Saturday vs. Astros in West Palm Beach: Strasburg