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In the first Q&A of the season, get to know Nationals No. 16 prospect DJ Herz. The 23-year-old southpaw was drafted out of high school by the Cubs in 2019, and last season the Nats acquired him in the Jeimer Candelario trade.

Herz is participating in his first Major League Spring Training. In this interview, we go off the mound to talk his connection to the quarterback of the Washington Commanders, his close friend in the NBA, hometown ties and … spaghetti.

Which sports did you grow up playing besides baseball?

“I played football [quarterback] and basketball [shooting guard] growing up. While I was a kid, I thought basketball was going to be the sport. Then when I got older, pitching always just came natural. I was actually going to walk on to UNC to play football until [Commanders quarterback] Sam Howell decommitted from Florida State to UNC. He was a five-star, and I was like, ‘No, I’m good.’” (laughs)

What was it about football that you liked so much?

“Football was so much fun. It was just the adrenaline rush and being with the team, the team camaraderie-type thing. A lot of people love playing the games, but the practices were so much fun. Just being there with my best friends and being able to go compete on Friday and being able to lead a team, it was awesome. I loved quarterback. That was probably my favorite sport out of any sport.”

How did being a leader as a quarterback impact you in baseball?

“It’s about the same. When you’re the quarterback, it's kind of all on you. Even when people make mistakes or it's not really your fault, it's still kind of on you. It’s the same way with pitching. It’s like, everything starts with you. You get the ball the most, the quarterback touches the ball the most. It kind of all goes through you, and it’s cool to know that you’re that guy that has to start the momentum, start everything going.”

I saw a picture of you and Nets point guard Dennis Smith Jr. from years ago. What is the backstory?

“We’re from the same hometown. My dad and Dennis’ dad played adult slow pitch with each other, and me and Dennis grew up playing basketball together. Fayetteville’s super underrated in basketball. We played on the same AAU teams. It’s crazy to see how big he's gotten. We still text all the time.”

Does Dennis give you advice or talk about sports?

“No, we kind of just joke around. When I was in Fayetteville, he actually came to the game. Dennis is the man, he’s awesome. People from Fayetteville, we have a lot of pride from where we’re from. J. Cole’s from there, I went to the same high school as him [Terry Sanford High School].”

You may have just answered my next question: who is your favorite music artist?

“Probably J. Cole, but I really like Chris Stapleton. I really like country, I really like rap, but I’m a big country guy. … There’s a song called ‘Superhero’ by Metro Boomin, I like it as a walkup song. My girlfriend Shae recommended I do a Drake song, so I might change it. But I don’t like listening to too much music pregame. I don’t want to take it too seriously, and I just want to kind of stay laid back, relaxed and just go do my thing.”

What’s your favorite food you could eat a thousand times a day?

“Me and my girlfriend, we have a tradition: The day before I pitch, we always make spaghetti. Homemade spaghetti, maybe Olive Garden spaghetti, but it’s always spaghetti. … We don’t make the sauce [ourselves], but we really like Rao’s, it’s awesome. We’ve tried every single one of their different sauces.”

How did that tradition come to be?

“I think we probably made spaghetti one day and then [I] went out and had like double-digit strikeouts, and we were like, ‘All right, we’re not switching this up.’” (laughs)

To learn more about Herz on the field, check out his MLB Pipeline scouting report.