Worley, other vets

Are feeling the stress

Vance Worley smiled when he answered, something he has done a great deal this spring, despite the circumstances. The big right-hander could only chuckle at the notion that anyone in his position, a non-roster invitee fighting for a spot on a team that has few spots open, could be anything other than on edge.

“I would be lying to you if I said I wasn’t stressing,” Worley said Monday in West Palm Beach. “There’s nobody who is at this point in camp and not on a roster who says ‘I’m not stressed.’ I try to do everything the way I’ve done it everywhere else, and it’s really up to them. ... I try to put on a smile, be happy and be a good teammate.”

Worley is not alone in his position, because the Nationals brought in several experienced pitchers like him as non-roster invitees this spring. The man with the second-most saves of any active player, Joe Nathan, squeezes in a locker across the room, right next to a former World Series Game 7 starter, Jeremy Guthrie. Matt Albers has appeared in 452 major league games. Neal Cotts has appeared in 483.

While Cotts and Nathan seem better suited to a single-inning type role, Manager Dusty Baker said Worley, Guthrie and even Albers are in consideration for the “utility pitcher” job — the one Yusmeiro Petit held last season. At the most, all of them are competing for one spot. At the least, they are auditioning for other interested teams, because the Nationals’ bullpen began the spring crowded, and got more crowded when they signed Joe Blanton.

“Early on in camp, it was a good opportunity here, and I think it still is,” Worley said. “But they went out and signed a few guys, and some of them got spots. It’s tough not to think about it, but at the same time, this is pretty much a tryout for everybody.”

Worley got his first start of the spring Monday in the Nationals’ loss to the Yankees, and struggled early, allowing four runs before he got his fifth out, and walking back-toback men to start the second. He finished after 3⅓ innings and did not allow another run. For what it’s worth, and usually it is worth very little, Worley’s spring ERA is now 5.84 in six appearances.

Guthrie also pitched on Monday. He allowed a double to Greg Bird and a home run to Matt Holliday in two innings of work. Guthrie’s fastball sat around 93 mph at times this spring, and he showcased good command of his secondary stuff — including a 60-mph eephus pitched he dropped against the Marlins last weekend. In seven appearances, the 37-year-old Guthrie has a 3.48 ERA.

Nathan relieved Guthrie, his ninth appearance of a busy spring, which is exactly what his former Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux promised him when he signed with the Nationals. While multiple scouts said they have not seen much life in Nathan’s stuff this spring, the 42-yearold said he feels more comfortable than he has since his second Tommy John surgery in 2014.

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