Ross on Friday return from Tommy John: "I want to compete"

Friday will be a special game for right-hander Joe Ross, who returns from Tommy John surgery for his first start one day short of 14 months away from the game.

Ross said it will be an incredible moment because there was always a slight fear in the back of his mind that he might never get back.

"You have the ups and downs," Ross said of the long road of recovery and rehab. "The uncertainty of how it's going to end, if you'll be back. If I'll be back was the toughest part of it for me. But kind of just went day by day and (I'm) back here again, so it paid off in the end."

Ross, 25, last started a game July 9, 2017. After Tommy John surgery, Ross was seen with a robot-like contraption on his arm so that it would bend correctly and, most importantly, be protected as he made movements. Those first few weeks were not that hard to work through because he was around the team in the clubhouse.

"I think early on it seemed a lot easier," Ross said. "I was here last year while the team was here the second half. The first half of the rehab seemed to fly by and the last half, actually throwing and kind of going through the growing pains of having soreness every day or feeling better, some days other than not.

"It was tough, but I kind of just took the advice that they gave me. A bunch of them said it's kind of a month at a time process. Each month, you'll get better and you'll progress. That was probably the biggest thing that helped me mentally, I think, to get through the whole process."

This year became a bit lonely down in Florida as the Nationals season progressed and he wasn't able to contribute. But having a few teammates come down to the facility, and being able to rehab with right-hander Koda Glover helped.

"Family and friends, talking to them," Ross said. "I was down in Florida with Koda for a while. We were kind of pushing each other back and forth, figuratively and literally. It was good to have someone down there to kind of work with and work to be back here for the last month of the year."

As Ross embarks on the Friday start against the Cubs, the same team he made his first start against on June 6, 2015, he says he has worked on a couple of his pitches.

"I think my changeup has gotten better, more than any of my other pitches," Ross said. "But they always say that off-speed kind of comes last. I've struggled a little bit with the slider and it's felt good. Hopefully, it will be there in the game. But the changeup, for sure, has been the biggest steppingstone for me."

Ross said he remembers the drive that brought him to the majors and the success he had in his first few campaigns. He wants to bring that to the mound Friday.

"Just kind of compete," Ross said. "Go throw strikes and do what I've always done is challenge batters. The last thing I want to do is kind of get that high pitch count early on in the game, so just be aggressive and try to get outs and trust the defense."

Does he feel like he must prove something so the Nats consider him a No. 4 starter in 2019?

"Obviously, No. 1 is being healthy," Ross said. "As long as I can finish the rest of this year and feel good and strong, then that's fine with me. But inside I want to compete, and when I go out and pitch, I'm going to try to win the game. It's not really a try and prove my worth to the team for the last 30 days, I just want to go out there and win a game."

With the departure of left-hander Gio Gonzalez, Ross is being counted on to be the next starter behind Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Tanner Roark. Ross is hopeful that Friday is the beginning of that quest to become a reliable member of the starting rotation for seasons to come.

"Yeah, I want him to compete and go out there and do what he's done in the past," said manager Davey Martinez. "He said he feels really good. His last outing, he threw the ball really, really well, so I told him just go out there and give me what you got. Of course, we're going to keep an eye on his pitch count, but just go out there and be who you are, and when he is, he's really good."