Nationals vs Red Sox: Grapefruit League GameThread...

Joe Ross tossed two scoreless in his Grapefruit League debut, earning a meaningless Spring Training win for his efforts in what ended up a 9-1 win for the Nationals over the Detroit Tigers.

This afternoon, in West Palm Beach, Florida’s Ballpark of the Palm Beaches, Ross takes on another American League foe when the Boston Red Sox visit Washington’s Spring home for a 1:05 PM EST matchup.

Ross, 23, struggled with shoulder inflammation last season, and spent considerable time on the DL from July to September, but he returned in time to make a few late season starts and pitch in the postseason, though he later admitted that he wasn’t where he wanted to be in the NLDS.

With a healthy winter to work his way back to 100%, Ross is looking to build on the success he’s had on the mound in his first few major league seasons.

Through 35 appearances, 32 as a starter, Ross has posted a 3.52 ERA, a 3.46 FIP, 2.48 BB/9 and 8.03 K/9 in 181 ²⁄₃ innings pitched.

Ross talked after the outing against the Tigers about testing himself against a solid lineup so early in the Spring.

“They’ve got some of the best hitters in baseball over here,” Ross told reporters last week, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman.

“To go out there and do relatively well for my first outing,” he said, “it’s a little bit of a confidence-booster for myself. I’m sure I’ll face some more ‘A’ lineups coming up, but yeah it was good.”

Ross will make his second start of the Spring this afternoon, in a game being broadcast on MASN at 1:05 PM EST.

Here’s the lineup that will be backing the right-hander up in Grapefruit League action in West Palm Beach: