WASHINGTON -- With starting third baseman Brady House optioned to Triple-A Rochester this week, manager Blake Butera expects Curtis Mead will see 85 percent of his workload at the hot corner.
Make that infield position No. 3 Mead has played in his first season with the Nationals.
“Years of practice and experience,” Mead attributes to his defensive flexibility.
In a third-base platoon, the Nationals have the righty-batting Mead along with lefty-hitting José Tena and Jorbit Vivas. When he isn’t in the starting lineup, Mead still could be tabbed to come off the bench and play first base or second base to face right-handers.
“Against left-handed starters, I see him being at third,” said Butera. “He’s been putting in a lot of work in there anyways, because he likes working at third -- and short, too -- just in terms of range and arm strength. He’s been over there a lot so far, so he feels comfortable over there.”
Mead, 25, has played the majority of his innings at third base over the course of his career. He was ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 3 third base prospect in 2023 before making his debut that season with the Rays.
When Mead was acquired by the Nationals from the White Sox on March 28, House already was locked in as the starting third baseman. So Mead has played 29 games at first base and four at second base, committing to improving his defense around the infield.
In the ninth inning of Thursday’s 2-1 loss to the Mets at Nationals Park, Mead shifted from third to first.
“I feel comfortable at each spot, which has enabled me to be kind of thrown straight into third base and feel good about it,” Mead said. “I think the days that I don't play are important to make sure that I touch each position and feel comfortable that if I was to come in that night, I'd be ready to go.”
Now that third base has opened up, Mead is building on his previous experience and combining it with the work he’s done with the Nationals this season.
“I [am] making sure that I stay on top of my throwing,” Mead said. “I feel like that's the biggest difference going over there. Some of the footwork can be easier, because you're going towards first base with everything that's hit at you.”
A focus is maintaining his arm strength shifting from first to third.
“It's challenging,” said Mead. “I've done a range of things. Right now, I'm trying to stay consistent with a weighted ball routine before the game. Then being consistent with my throwing program, too, doing the same kind of drills that I think translate to throwing the ball well across the diamond.”
While Mead didn’t see a lot of balls hit to third base in the four-game series against the Mets, he will have more opportunities in Atlanta this weekend. In the upcoming series against the Braves, the Nationals are slated to face right-handers Bryce Elder and Grant Holmes in the first two games and lefty Martín Pérez on Sunday.
“He’s played well,” said Butera. “He hasn’t had a ton of balls his way, but his pregame work’s been awesome. He looks comfortable over there, feels good over there. He just gives us another option at third that we feel really good about.”