The Washington Nationals have a 7:05 pm game tonight and will submit their lineup card in about 4-to-5 hours from now. They are expected to make left-handed outfielder/first baseman Travis Blankenhorn official as a September 1 callup, as well as a reliever, most likely Amos Willingham to raise the roster to 28-players. To make room for Blankenhorn, the Nats will need to clear a 40-man roster spot — most likely as a DFA. There was no shocking add-ons through a waiver claim or even a promotion of a top prospect like James Wood.
Just kind of — it is what it is — and you hope what Blankenhorn has accomplished in Triple-A translates to MLB. It has not quite worked out that way for Jake Alu or Jacob Young … yet. It didn’t work out for Derek Hill or Blake Rutherford. The game is much harder than it looks, and most players don’t get much of a chance to prove themselves. You better do it quickly. Both Alu and Young have helped the Nats win games already — but then again, so did Jeter Downs and he was sent back to Triple-A and might be the odd man out in a DFA.
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