DJ

Herz

Activated to make two very late starts for the Nationals, Herz ends up with a 10.29 ERA, but he did get to show he’s healthy against after Tommy John. He’ll probably get to compete for a rotation spot in spring training, but since he does have a couple of option years left, it’s pretty likely that he’ll open up in Triple-A.

Herz was tagged for five hits, including a two-run homer by veteran Javier Báez in his first big-league outing since last year’s Tommy John surgery. He struck out four and only issued a pair of walks. The 25-year-old figures to be in the mix for a spot in Washington’s rotation next spring. He’ll face the Mets to close out the season on Sunday. He’s not a recommended streaming option for fantasy managers.

Herz will start tonight against the Tigers and potentially throw 70-75 pitches in his return from Tommy John surgery.

Herz is returning from Tommy John and will be making his first major league appearance since Sept. 2024. Since returning last month from a June setback, he has a 4.24 ERA over 17 innings in six minor league starts. He got up to 65 pitches last time out, so four innings would seem to be a realistic expectation for him tomorrow.

Herz walked two, allowed one hit, and struck out two in the outing. The left-hander sat 91.7 mph on his four-seamer and threw 54 percent of his pitches for strikes while recording just a seven percent swinging strike rate. Herz is making his way back from Tommy John surgery but was also shut down in June with forearm tightness. Right now, it would just be great to see him pitch a few healthy innings for the Nationals in any capacity this year before heading into the offseason.

Butera added that Herz will be pulled off a minor league rehab assignment and shut down for a couple weeks after experiencing forearm tightness. It’s never an encouraging sign to see a pitcher experiencing forearm issues coming off Tommy John surgery, so the Nationals are likely to send him for precautionary imaging to rule out any structural issues. There should be additional clarity on his status in the near future.

This was Herz’s first rehab start outside of the complex league, and it went pretty well. The left-hander also struck out three and didn’t walk a single batter while throwing 29 of his 38 pitches for strikes. We don’t have Statcast data at Single-A, but seeing that level of command is nice for Herz coming off Tommy John surgery. There’s a chance that his next start is at Double-A.

Herz is still recovering from Tommy John surgery from last April. He started his rehab assignment in the FCL earlier this month and could move to Double-A or Triple-A after this start. The 25-year-old had a 4.16 ERA in 88 2/3 innings in 2024 and could make a handful of starts for the Nationals to end the season if all goes well.

Herz figures to get a long buildup after just throwing to live hitters for the first time in mid-May. Depending on how it goes, he could be a factor in the second half of the season. Herz, still just 25, had a 4.16 ERA in 88 2/3 innings pitched in 2024 while striking out 106.

Herz missed all of the 2025 season and is trying to find his way back to the mound late in the 2026 season after undergoing a traditional Tommy John surgery in April 2025. We’ll follow his rehab, but it would be surprising if he came into fantasy relevance in 2026.