WASHINGTON -- There were only five days on the calendar before Opening Day when Victor Robles was cleared to begin participating in workouts with the Nationals on Saturday. Would less than a week be enough time for the energetic 23-year-old center fielder to be ready for the first game of the season?

“Absolutely,” Robles said. “I think I have the ability and the youth that helps me get ready quickly.”

Robles went through outfield drills, ran the bases, took batting practice and got six at-bats in a sim game on Sunday. Manager Dave Martinez said he “looked good,” and exuded the enthusiasm they are used to seeing from him.

“The beauty about Victor is, he brings all this energy,” Martinez said. “He was funny today. He sounded like [Pedro] Cerrano from ‘Major League 2.’ [Javy] Guerra threw him a really nice pitch and he just looked at him and said, 'Good pitch, good pitch.’ We all started cracking up. But just to have him in camp, he's bubbly, he's entertaining. … It's good to have him around.”

Robles had been eager to receive the green light to get back on the field. Because of the pandemic, he faced restrictions on what he could do baseball-wise while he was in the Dominican Republic during the shutdown. Robles quarantined when he arrived in Washington, where he made the most of what he could do within his limitations. He also watched Netflix and listened to music to pass the time.

“With the things that the team brought to me, I was able to stay physically fit,” Robles said. “There were some weights, so I definitely did some weight training in my room. I was able to do a little bit of running in the parking lot complex, as well as just get my arm loose because we weren’t allowed to leave the building itself. So we were able to actually get quite a bit accomplished in what we were allowed to do.”

The Nationals will play exhibition games on Monday and Tuesday (both against the Orioles) before hosting the Yankees on Opening Day on Thursday. Martinez doesn’t want to rush any players into doing too much too soon, and it remains to be seen how much playing time Robles will get in those preseason contests. Robles is preparing over the next few days with July 23 on his radar.

“I definitely know that it’s a short window for me to get ready,” Robles said. “I feel like I’m there. I’m staying positive and mentally prepared, so I think I’ll be fine for Opening Day.”

Action out of the ‘pen
After playing an exhibition game against the Phillies on Saturday night, the Nationals held a workout the following morning. Among position players, Martinez said four or five got in hitting and baserunning.

Right-handed reliever Wander Suero joined the Nats for his first workout of Summer Camp. He and lefty Roenis Elías threw live side sessions. Both pitchers had been placed on the injured list (undisclosed reasons) on July 13.

“It’s going to take those guys some time, which we kind of figured,” Martinez said. “They’re a little bit behind. Hopefully we can get them cranked up. We’ve got to get them a couple sides before we can get them to face any live batters.”

The Nationals worked on getting their bullpen arms ramped up. Sean Doolittle, Guerra, Daniel Hudson, Kevin Quackenbush and Tanner Rainey each threw one inning of 25 pitches in a sim game.

“A lot of guys, I gave the option of come in and get a quick workout and go home early today. It’s hot,” Martinez said. “It was, all in all, a good day.”