Nats send No. 3 prospect Ford to Triple-A for regular reps 

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Nationals entered Spring Training with a competition at catcher, and that role became more clear on Wednesday.

The Nats optioned Harry Ford (No. 3 prospect, MLB No. 71) to Triple-A Rochester and reassigned Riley Adams to Minor League camp. Keibert Ruiz and Drew Millas remain in big league camp poised to make the Opening Day roster.

“I told Harry today when we sent him down, he's going to be a huge part of our future,” manager Blake Butera said. “Him going to Triple-A right now has nothing to do with, like, all right, we don't think highly of him anymore. No, that’s not it. And it’s not anything he did or didn’t do, right or wrong.”

There had been two question marks heading into this season: the health and availability of starting catcher Ruiz, who battled concussions in the second half of last season; and, if Ruiz was healthy, who would join the catching tandem with him?

The Nationals acquired Ford from the Mariners in December in exchange for Jose A. Ferrer, and he is projected to have a promising future – while being under team control until 2032. But Ford, 23, only has eight games of Major League experience and could benefit from consistent playing time.

That wouldn’t be available at the Major League level if Ruiz is tabbed to start the majority of the games. Instead, Ford will begin the season with the Red Wings, where he can get plenty of reps.

“As a catcher, there's a lot that goes into that position that might not be on the stat sheet,” Butera said. “It’s calling a game, it’s handling a pitching staff. It's obviously the offensive side of the game, the throwing, all of it. …

“We told him, 'There is no timetable of, like, you have to stay down there for X amount of days. No, you go down there and you dominate and you force our hand, we will make sure you’re up there with us'.”

Ford will be tasked with learning a Rochester pitching staff that includes starting pitchers with Major League experience, like Mitchell Parker and Andrew Alvarez, and those projected to reach the bigs this season, like Riley Cornelio. The Nationals have put an emphasis on keeping lines of communication open across levels so there is continuity in development.

“We’re going to be really close with our Triple-A staff with Harry,” Butera said. “Understanding how the pitchers feel throwing to him, that’s a big part of the catching game, obviously. Making sure that our pitchers in Triple-A are having success with Harry catching. Then also understanding that the blocking’s good, the receiving numbers are good, and then you see the offense, hopefully he continues to do what he’s done in his career so far. Those are the big ticket items.”

When Ford played with Team Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic, he stayed in touch daily with catching coach Bobby Wilson. They did a recap after each of Ford’s games.

“It’s hard, it’s really hard,” Butera said of learning a new staff. “But Harry’s such a special person. He pays close attention to the game. Even yesterday, he wasn’t in the lineup. He’s in the dugout asking questions of our pitching coach, ‘Why’d he throw this pitch? What do you think he should throw to this hitter?’ He’s trying to speed up that process of learning how we go about our business and learning these pitchers. And just the makeup of Harry helps probably speed that up more than some other catchers.”

As for Ruiz, he has been healthy in camp and impressing the new coaching staff. He was tasked with maintaining his role ahead of his seventh Major League season, and he did that.

“The biggest thing for Keibert coming into Spring Training was health, of course, just with the history he’s had,” Butera said. “But then on top of that, 'Hey man, go earn your job.' And he has. He’s played really well.”