RADIO
Washington Nationals pitching prospect Joe Ross was called up to make his MLB debut on Saturday against the Chicago Cubs. Ross was impressive, pitching five innings while striking out four, walking zero, and giving up three earned runs on just six hits.
This could have been another opportunity for A.J. Cole to join the starting rotation, but Washington gave the nod to Ross and it appears they made the right decision. The 22-year-old Ross has only made 12 starts above A-ball. In nine starts this season with Double-A Harrisburg, he has a 2.81 ERA with 54 K’s in 51 1/3 innings pitched.
“I’m an aggressive pitcher,” Ross told the Washington Post about his game. “I like to go after hitters. There’s like the three, four hitter, a big guy, some guys like to go soft away. I like to go hard in. I take it as more of a challenge. Here and at high-A, you miss over the middle, you’re gonna pay for it. Pitching in is what I’ve liked to do the last couple years. You challenge them with a fastball. If they can hit it, they can hit it. If not, you win.”
Ross is the younger brother of the San Diego Padres’ starter, Tyson Ross. The right-hander could be here to stay with the Nationals as Stephen Strasburg is dealing with a neck injury and Doug Fister deals with an elbow injury.
