Nationals' Pitcher Shuffle: Mikolas Shines, Cornelio Struggles

0:00It's April 25th. Welcome to Washington Nationals News Today, AI-powered coverage of your squad. I'm Cory with the story. The Nationals showed off their pitcher shuffle in Friday's game, a 5-4 loss that highlighted their season-long strategy. They started with lefty P.J. Pollan opening for the fourth time this year, handling the first inning scoreless before getting pulled in the second after. Hitting a batter. Then came Better in Miles McColas for three and two-thirds solid innings. McColas stepped up big after his best start lately, dropping his ERA below five in recent outings behind openers. He gave up just four hits and two runs, including a solo homer with no walks and sharp fastball command keeping things tight. Manager Blake Boutera praised McColas for going deep and staying in the fight, while the South Paul Bullpen got a workout too. Prospect. Riley Cornelio made his big league debut in the seventh, fresh from Triple A, where he earned minor league pitcher of the year honors as a starter. Cornelio hid 98 miles per hour, but struggled with control, walking four and allowing

1:05three runs over two innings in a close game. Boutera called his stuff elite, just a tough night in a high pressure spot. Postgame, they optioned Cornelio back to Rochester, mirroring last Sunday's move with Andrew Alvarez, who threw scoreless relief, then got sent down. It's all part of the net's mixing and matching to build depth without overworking arms.