Carter Kieboom, a first-round draft pick and the expected starting third baseman for the Washington Nationals, was sent to the minor leagues on Saturday. Drafted in 2016, Kieboom has struggled at the plate in limited opportunities in the majors, batting .181 in 44 games over two seasons with Washington. Kieboom and Starlin Castro had been getting time at third in preseason camp. Also optioned to Triple-A Rochester were INF Luis Garcia, LHP Sam Clay, RHP Kyle McGowin and OF Yadiel Hernández. Surprising additions to the team’s major league roster were INF Jordy Mercer and INF/OF Hernán Pérez. Mercer has a split contract: $1,000,000 while he’s in the majors and $150,000 in the minors, plus $50,000 each for 100, 150, 200, and 250 plate appearances, and $100,000 each for 300 and 400 plate appearances. Re-assigned to minor league camp were RHP Aaron Barrett, RHP Paolo Espino, RHP Javy Guerra, RHP Todd Peterson, C Welington Castillo, C Brandon Snyder, C Blake Swihart, INF Adrían Sanchez, OF Gerardo Parra and OF Carlos Tocci. The Nationals also released Yasmany Tomás and T.J. McFarland from their minor league contracts and first baseman Jake Noll was designated for assignment to clear space on the 40-man roster. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Rays first. Austin Meadows pops out to shallow left field to Trea Turner. Brandon Lowe flies out to deep left center field to Juan Soto. Randy Arozarena hit by pitch. Nate Lowe doubles to deep right field. Randy Arozarena scores. Manuel Margot strikes out swinging.1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 left on. Rays 1, Nationals 0.Nationals sixth. Trea Turner flies out to deep right field to Manuel Margot. Juan Soto walks. Asdrubal Cabrera homers to right field. Juan Soto scores. Yan Gomes strikes out swinging. Carter Kieboom flies out to right center field to Kevin Kiermaier.2 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Nationals 2, Rays 1.Rays ninth. Mike Brosseau pinch-hitting for Michael Perez. Mike Brosseau strikes out on a foul tip. Austin Meadows flies out to right center field to Michael A. Taylor. Brandon Lowe homers to right field. Yoshi Tsutsugo strikes out swinging.1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Nationals 2, Rays 2.Nationals tenth. Luis Garcia homers to center field. Carter Kieboom scores. Victor Robles called out on strikes. Michael A. Taylor strikes out swinging. Jake Noll strikes out swinging.2 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Nationals 4, Rays 2.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Nationals released relief pitcher Hunter Strickland on Saturday.Unconditionally releasing Strickland and David Hernandez were among a handful of moves made by the Nationals. They also optioned Jake Noll, Ben Braymer, Aaron Barrett and Kyle McGowin to Triple A and assigned Jacob Wilson, Brandon Snyder, Taylor Gushue, JB Shuck, Dakota Bacus, Bryan Bonnell and Wil Crowe to minor league camp.Strickland was a trade-deadline pickup for Washington last season. The 31-year-old appeared in 24 regular-season games but none in the playoffs as the Nationals won the World Series.Strickland before that was most known around Washington for plunking and brawling with ex-Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper in 2018. Strickland spent his first five major league seasons with San Francisco. He was with Seattle before the trade to Washington.In 281 career games with the Giants, Mariners and Nationals, Strickland is 16-15 with a 3.16 ERA, 229 strikeouts, 87 walks and 21 saves.MLB announced Thursday the season will be delayed at least two weeks from its scheduled start on March 26 because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Teams speculated the season might not start until sometime in May, necessitating a reduced schedule.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports