Nationals' DJ Herz: Gets Tommy John surgery Wednesday
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Nationals manager Dave Martinez confirmed that Herz (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday in Dallas, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
TalkNats.com was first to report earlier Wednesday that Herz had decided to undergo the season-ending procedure, though it wasn't immediately clear when the surgery would take place. Rather than scheduling surgery for a later date, Herz elected to have the operation performed by renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. Keith Meister, whom he had recently visited for a second opinion on the partially torn UCL in his left elbow. Martinez noted that Herz's surgery didn't involve the insertion of an internal brace, so he'll likely be in line for a 14-to-18-month rehab process rather than a 12- or 13-month recovery. The 24-year-old is thus unlikely to be ready to contribute for the Nationals until around the middle of the 2026 season.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Headed for Tommy John surgery
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Herz (elbow) plans to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery, TalkNats.com reports.
After being diagnosed with a partial UCL sprain in his left elbow shortly before Opening Day, Herz was shut down for three weeks with the hope that some extended rest and rehab would allow him to pitch through the injury. Ultimately, after receiving two additional medical opinions on his elbow, Herz has decided that surgery is his best option. Herz will likely go under the knife in the coming days, and assuming no other additional damage is detected during surgery beyond the compromised UCL, he should be able to pitch again at some point around the All-Star break next season.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Getting second opinion on elbow
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Herz will receive a second opinion on his injured left elbow from Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.
Herz has been diagnosed with a sprained UCL, and he will determine after his visit with Dr. Meister whether to undergo surgery or attempt to rest and rehab the injury. If the southpaw does go under the knife, he could be sidelined until around the middle of next season.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Moved to 60-day IL
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The Nationals transferred Herz (elbow) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Wednesday.
Herz was diagnosed with a sprained UCL in his left elbow Tuesday, which typically leads to season-ending surgery. The 24-year-old southpaw may attempt to rehab the injury before resorting to surgery, but he's due for an extended absence either way. He'll cede his spot on the 40-man roster to right-hander Brad Lord, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Rochester.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Diagnosed with elbow UCL sprain
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Herz was diagnosed Tuesday with a left elbow UCL sprain, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
Herz's velocity was down this spring, which originally attributed to a "dead arm" phase. However, as it turns out, he's dealing with an injury that often requires season-ending UCL surgery, although it's not yet clear whether Herz might try the rest-and-rehab route first. At minimum, the lefty is likely to be out a few months, and in all likelihood, much longer.
The Nationals placed Herz on the 15-day injured list Monday due to an undisclosed injury.
Washington previously optioned Herz to Triple-A Rochester on Friday after he fell short in his bid for a spot in the Opening Day rotation, but as a result of his move to the IL, he won't immediately report to the minors. Though the nature of Herz's IL placement isn't known, the lefty dealt with dead arm in spring training, so he could just need more time to build up. Washington will presumably have more details on the nature of the 24-year-old's injury as well as a potential timeline for him to return from the IL in the coming days.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Might begin season in minors
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Herz appears to be on the outside looking in for a spot in the Nationals' Opening Day rotation, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports reports.
Mitchell Parker seems on track to claim the fifth starter role behind MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin, Trevor Williams and Michael Soroka. Herz tinkered with his mechanics this offseason, and the results this spring haven't been pretty, as he's walked nine batters in 9.2 Grapefruit League innings while recording only four strikeouts. The 24-year-old lefty may need some time at Triple-A to regain the form that saw him rack up a 27.7 percent strikeout rate against a 9.4 percent walk rate over his first 88.2 big-league innings in 2024.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Optioned to Triple-A
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The Nationals optioned Herz to Triple-A Rochester on Friday.
Herz will miss the cut for Washington's Opening Day rotation and wrap up Grapefruit League play with nine runs allowed (seven earned) over 9.2 innings. The 24-year-old southpaw posted a 4.16 ERA across 19 starts with the big club last season, and if he's able to return to form in Triple-A, he could rejoin the Nationals at some point this summer.
Herz gave up four runs (two earned) on four hits and a walk over 3.1 innings during Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals. He struck out one.
While his defense did him no favors -- Jacob Young in center field was the only likely Opening Day starter on the diamond behind him -- Herz also wasn't sharp, something that has been the story of his spring so far. The 24-year-old southpaw tweaked his mechanics this offseason, and he may still be getting comfortable with his new delivery. Through 6.2 innings this spring, Herz has stumbled to an 8.10 ERA and 3:7 K:BB. He still appears set for a spot in the Opening Day rotation, particularly if Mitchell Parker (neck) ends up on the shelf, but a good spring outing or two before camp breaks would go a long way toward reassuring fantasy investors that Herz's promising rookie campaign in 2024 wasn't a mirage.
Nationals' DJ Herz: Cleans up mechanics over offseason
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Herz focused on adding strength and cutting out unneeded movement in his pitching mechanics this offseason, leaving him optimistic that he'll be able to build off a promising rookie season in 2025, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports. "Everything's in the zone, everything's where you want it. And it's cool to see that all of my bullpens have been like that so far," Herz said Saturday, after his first official bullpen session of spring training. "Now it's time to translate to the game."
After some early struggles upon his initial call-up to the big leagues in early June, Herz settled in nicely following the All-Star break and was arguably performing as Washington's best starter by season's end. Altogether, Herz turned in a 4.16 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 106:36 K:BB in 88.2 innings with the big club, but he'll still have to fight for a back-end rotation spot throughout spring training. Herz displayed a well-developed fastball and changeup as a rookie, but honing the command of his breaking pitches this spring will likely be essential if he's to break camp with the big club. Herz has cleaned up his delivery from the windup and eliminated an unnecessary backward step he had been taking last season, resulting in a smoother operation.
Washington optioned Herz to the Florida Complex League Nationals on Friday, Bobby Blanco of MASNSports.com reports.
With Herz not scheduled to start during the weekend series against the Phillies, the Nationals will switch out the 23-year-old southpaw for long reliever Jackson Rutledge. Herz started 19 games for the Nationals this season, posting a 4-9 record with a 4.16 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 106:36 K:BB across 88.2 innings. He was briefly sent down to Triple-A Rochester in early July, but he returned to the big club after the All-Star break. Since his recall, his numbers slightly improved to a 3.61 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 57.1 frames.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Allows one run in loss
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Herz (4-9) took the loss against the Royals on Wednesday, allowing one run on three hits and three walks with three strikeouts over five innings.
Herz threw 52 of 81 pitches for strikes and yielded just one run in the third inning, but the Nationals' offense wasn't able to muster any support for the rookie. While he endured a seven-run disaster in his most recent outing prior to Wednesday, the southpaw yielded just two earned runs across 15 innings in his other three September starts. He'll finish his first season with a 4.16 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and an impressive 10.8 K/9 across 88.2 innings.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Crumbles in fourth inning
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Herz (4-8) took the loss Wednesday versus the Mets, allowing seven runs on six hits and three walks while striking out five over 3.1 innings.
Herz cruised through three innings, but he was pulled after allowing the first eight batters to reach in the fourth. He had already given up four runs at the time of his exit, and Jacob Barnes let all three inherited runners cross the plate to put more damage on Herz's line. This was the southpaw's worst outing of the year, though he was able to avoid giving up a home run for the fifth time in six appearances. He's now at a 4.30 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 103:33 K:BB through 83.2 innings over 18 starts. His next projected start will likely be his last one of the campaign, which is tentatively set to be at home versus the Royals.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Earns fourth win
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Herz (4-7) yielded a run on four hits and a walk over five innings Friday, striking out five and earning a win over the Marlins.
Herz turned in three scoreless frames before coughing up a solo homer to Otto Lopez in the fourth inning. It was Herz's second straight win after going 0-3 over his previous five outings. He hasn't thrown six innings in a start since Aug. 14 but has registered a 2.49 ERA over five appearances since then. Herz owns a 3.70 ERA with a 98:30 K:BB through 80.1 innings this season. He's projected for a road matchup with the Mets next week.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Fires five hitless frames
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Herz (3-7) earned the win over Pittsburgh in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, issuing three walks and striking out five batters over five hitless and scoreless innings.
Herz walked one batter in each of his first three frames, but each was with two outs, and none of those batters reached second base. The rookie left-hander finished his outing by retiring the final seven hitters he faced, with four going down on strikeouts. A no-hitter was never really feasible for Herz since he needed 87 pitches to get through five innings, but some fantasy managers may be a little disappointed that he wasn't allowed to remain in the game for the sixth to try for a quality start. Regardless, this was an impressive performance by the 23-year-old, who has more than held his own in his first major-league campaign with a 3.82 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 93:29 K:BB over 75.1 frames.
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Nationals' DJ Herz: Start pushed to Saturday
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Herz will not start Friday against the Pirates as the game has been postponed due to inclement weather.
Friday's tilt will be made up Saturday as part of a doubleheader, and Herz will likely pitch in the first game. The southpaw is 2-7 across 15 starts this season with a 4.09 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 88:26 K:BB in 70.1 innings.
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