Game 27: Nats at White Sox

Both teams are using openers tonight before turning the game over to veteran right-handers. Plus, updates on several injured Nationals.

CHICAGO – Hello from … wait, what is this place called these days? Comiskey Park? US Cellular Field? Guaranteed Rate Field? Oh, it’s just simply Rate Field! Whatever the name, this is only the fifth time the Nationals have played here in club history. In the previous interleague matchups against the White Sox, they’ve gone 6-5, though they lost two of three their last trip here in May 2024, getting shut out in back-to-back games.

The big storyline tonight: Openers. Yes, both teams will be using one. The Nationals decided to go with PJ Poulin in the first inning once again, with Miles Mikolas and the newly recalled Riley Cornelio likely to follow him in some capacity. We don’t know exactly how Blake Butera plans to manage this, but recent patterns suggest Mikolas will replace Poulin and pitch 3-4 innings, with Cornelio after that for a similar amount of time, provided everyone is relatively effective.

The White Sox, meanwhile, are also using an opener, hoping to match up with James Wood, CJ Abrams and Co. in the top of the first with left-hander Bryan Hudson. The 28-year-old reliever sports a 1.69 ERA in 11 prior appearances, with both a high strikeout (11.8 per nine innings) and walk (5.9 per nine innings) rate. Patience is key, something most Nats hitters have done very well so far this season.

After Hudson, Chicago is expected to turn to old pal Erick Fedde, who is back for his second stint on the South Side. The former Nats first-round pick has been a nomad in recent years, going from the White Sox to the Cardinals to the Braves to the Brewers and now back to the White Sox. One consistent theme through it all: He has owned his former team: He has yet to surrender a run in 16 total innings against the Nationals, striking out 14 with zero walks.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Where: Rate Field
Gametime: 7:40 p.m. EDT
TV: Nationals TV (channel listings)
Radio: 106.7 FM
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 66 degrees, wind 8 mph out to center

NATIONALS
RF James Wood
LF Daylen Lile
DH Brady House
SS CJ Abrams
CF Jacob Young
3B Jorbit Vivas
2B Nasim Nuñez
1B Luis García Jr.
C Drew Millas

LHP PJ Poulin

WHITE SOX
DH Everson Pereira
2B Chase Meidroth
1B Munetaka Murakami
3B Miguel Vargas
SS Colson Montgomery
C Edgar Quero
LF Sam Antonacci
CF Luisangel Acuña
RF Tristan Peters

LHP Bryan Hudson

PREGAME NOTES

CORNELIO “READY TO GO”
Riley Cornelio didn’t exactly understand what Matt LeCroy meant when the Triple-A manager called him Thursday afternoon and asked if he was dressed and whether or not anyone else was in his hotel room in Scranton. Then LeCroy got to the point: The Nationals were calling Cornelio up, and he needed to get on a plane to Chicago as soon as possible.

After a quick call to his parents – his dad didn’t pick up, so his mom wound up getting the news first – Cornelio was on his way from Scranton. And when he arrived at Rate Field this afternoon, he was greeted by a number of familiar faces who welcomed him to the big leagues for the first time in his career.

“It means the world to be up here with these guys,” the 25-year-old right-hander said. “I couldn’t be more appreciative.”

Cornelio is expected to come out of the bullpen at some point during tonight’s game, likely after opener PJ Poulin and veteran Miles Mikolas. It’s the same strategy the Nationals used five days ago with Andrew Alvarez, another successful Triple-A starter who came up here to pitch in long relief.

Why not give these young guys a chance to start, like the Braves just did with rookies Didier Fuentes and JR Ritchie? There are multiple reasons, according to Blake Butera.

“I think when you look at what Atlanta did bringing up Fuentes or bringing up Ritchie, they had been taxed and they needed to rearrange some things and push some starters back,” the manager said, citing Atlanta’s big-league rotation issues. “We’re not in a position where we want to do that with our starters yet. So we’re trying to be creative. One, with the ‘soft landing’ to get their feet wet. And secondly, to also not change our starters’ routines and days. It’s a little more complicated going into that. So we thought the easiest plan here was to follow Riley and follow Alvarez after a starter.”

Though he’s been a starter in all but one of his 79 career minor-league appearances, Cornelio is fully prepared to pitch out of the bullpen tonight if asked.

“I’ve done the work, and I’m ready to go,” he said. “Treating it the same. I’m just ready to go whenever they need me.”

WALDICHUK HAS TOMMY JOHN, INTERNAL BRACE
After getting a second opinion on his injured elbow, left-hander Ken Waldichuk elected to undergo both Tommy John surgery and an internal brace procedure Tuesday. Waldichuk, who also had his flexor tendon repaired, will miss the rest of the season and hope to be healthy sometime early in 2027.

It’s the left-hander’s second Tommy John surgery in two years, a devastating blow for the 28-year-old, who felt something pop in his elbow after spiking a pitch April 12 in Milwaukee. He wound up making five appearances for the Nationals, finishing with a 6.75 ERA and 1.500 WHIP.

POSITIVE NEWS FOR GRAY, HENRY
Josiah Gray received encouraging news after his latest round of testing this week. The right-hander, who is on the 60-day IL with a flexor strain, underwent an electromyography (EMG) test, the results of which left doctors to recommend the initiation of plyometrics in preparation for the start of a throwing program.

Cole Henry has traveled to West Palm Beach to ramp up his throwing progression at extended spring training. The right-hander, who is on the 15-day IL with a rotator cuff strain, played catch out to 120 feet on Wednesday. Butera said Henry will need to pitch in some kind of game situations before he’s activated, but it hasn’t been decided yet if he’ll be able to accomplish that in West Palm Beach or if he’ll need to go on a brief minor-league rehab assignment.

DJ Herz and Trevor Williams, both recovering from elbow surgery last year, both threw bullpen sessions this week. Herz, who had Tommy John surgery last April, threw 25 pitches Wednesday. Williams, who had an internal brace procedure last July, threw 25 pitches Tuesday.