Scott Olsen, by all reports, pitched very well last night for Class AAA Syracuse. The numbers were good — six innings, two runs, five strikeouts, one walk, 58 of 75 pitches for strikes — but so were the intangibles. Olsen apparently is throwing with much more velocity than earlier this season, regularly in the 90-92 mph range. And he’s hitting his spots.
All of which means he’s ready to come off the DL. The Nats haven’t made any official announcements, but I’m told it will be coming soon, possibly tonight. You’ve got to think that Olsen will be activated and start Monday night at Florida. And that Craig Stammen, who would be scheduled to pitch that night, will likely be sent back to Syracuse.
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It’s not that Stammen hasn’t pitched well here. It’s just that he’s still quite inexperienced and could use some more seasoning. Olsen, as bad as he was before going on the DL, is a major league pitcher with a track record and a $2.8 million contract. The Nats need to see him back on the mound and see if he’s healthy and productive.
Not much pther pregame news to report, so here are tonight’s lineups for the series finale against the Red Sox…
NATIONALS
SS Cristian Guzman
1B Nick Johnson
3B Ryan Zimmerman
LF Adam Dunn
RF Josh Willingham
C Josh Bard
CF Willie Harris
2B Anderson Hernandez
P Jordan Zimmermann
RED SOX
2B Dustin Pedroia
RF J.D. Drew
LF Jason Bay
1B David Ortiz
3B Mike Lowell
C Jason Varitek
CF Jacoby Ellsbury
SS Nick Green
P John Smoltz
