Stevenson and Wiseman bring experience in big games to help boost Nats outfield depth

Continuing our focus on the early camp outfielders, Andrew Stevenson out of LSU and Rhett Wiseman out of Vanderbilt are unique in this group because they come from very good Southeastern Conference baseball programs. Both have played in the College World Series with Vanderbilt winning the title in 2014.

"(Stevenson) and Rhett Wiseman both played in college and both played games," said Nationals outfield coordinator Gary Thurman. "So the crowds with those guys is not going to be a distraction. They go about their business the right way. Wiseman is not the runner that Stevenson is, but Stevenson doesn't have the power that Wiseman does. They both have a lot of knowledge of the game. With all these outfielders, they are both humble, they are willing to learn. They soak that information in and they apply it to the game. Not only to the game, but their personalities and the way they go about their work."

Thurman said all six of the outfielders we have mentioned can play center field, though Wiseman is more likely a corner outfielder. Thurman said one focus for Stevenson this camp and in the offseason has been to improve his arm and throws from the outfield.

"Stevenson, his arm has gotten a lot better," Thurman said. "Tip my hat to him. (Nationals rehab pitching coordinator) Mark Grater showed him some throwing drills (because) he had some deficiencies with his arm. I don't see those deficiencies any more. He went home and worked very hard on his arm and his arm strength and getting into a good throwing position. A longer arm stroke is allowing him to throw the ball firmer and with a little bit more life.

"Even though it might have been something that we worried about last year - and you never know after playing a college season and then coming to play professional baseball and all the throws that he made and the games that he played - maybe we didn't see the arm strength that we wanted to. We see it this year."

Thurman said that accuracy on throws to infield and home plate are critical to outfield defense success and is always a top priority.

"One thing that I tell the outfielders an accurate arm is the best arm," Thurman said. "I don't care how hard you throw, if it's off line, it's no good. That is one thing that we instill in our outfielders: Sometimes less is more. Sometimes 80 percent is better than 100 percent because when an out is presented, we want to take that out. We work on accuracy every day. We throw for a reason, not just to throw. Everything we do, we do for a reason, not just to do it."

With Stevenson working on his arm, Thurman said the focus for Wiseman has been his footwork and timing in getting to line drives and fly balls.

"We have been working on his routes to balls," Thurman said. "We have been working on taking an eye off the ball and running to a spot, which is going to improve his range out there in the outfield. He's got a good strong arm. I think he's going to hit with power than all the rest of them. I think he performs in right field very well because of the arm strength that he has. He is learning to steal bases."