WASHINGTON – During his rehab assignment, DJ Herz suffered a setback in his recovery from a left UCL sprain. The left-hander has been shut down after an MRI revealed a flexor muscle strain.
Herz has been returned from his rehab assignment where he threw 2 2/3 innings in a June 16 start for Single-A Fredericksburg, allowing one run on four hits with no walks and three K’s.
"It's unfortunate because he was throwing the ball really well,” said Nationals manager Blake Butera. “He felt like he was getting pretty close. The stuff looked good. So, it was a little bit of a surprise. At the end of the day we are just going to take some time now to shut it down and strengthen and recover a little bit.”
The 25-year-old underwent Tommy John surgery in April 2025. Herz put together a promising 2024 campaign with 19 starts for the Nationals, compiling a 4-9 record and a 4.16 ERA, recording 106 strikeouts and 36 walks on 76 hits in 88 2/3 innings.
Butera said he takes a little bit of solace in knowing this most recent issue is not as bad as the original sprain.
"It’s frustrating for DJ more than anything,” Butera said. “Obviously, we are excited to see him pitch and we're frustrated as well, but I feel for DJ more than anybody else because of the amount of time he has put into this and now here's another setback. At least it's a smaller setback than the original injury that he had. He's in good spirits."