Ramos motivated after catching Strasburg's BP

VIERA, Fla. -- Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos caught 20 minutes of batting practice Wednesday and didn't have any problems with his right knee, which was surgically repaired last summer.

Most impressive was that Ramos was able to block a couple of balls in the dirt thrown by right-hander Stephen Strasburg.

"I was very excited to be behind the plate again and [try to] get my job back," Ramos said. "I feel better. I was blocking the ball. A couple of days ago, I was scared. But now, I have more confidence. My mind is a little clearer. I think I'm ready to go."

Strasburg was pleased to throw to Ramos during the session.

"It was awesome throwing to him," Strasburg said. "He was pretty excited just to get back out there today. I think we can definitely relate how hard it is just to get back from a serious injury and spend so much time out here on the back field training and stuff. He looks great. He is only going to get better as time goes on."