After trade from Dodgers, Josiah Gray finding his own path with Washington Nationals

For Josiah Gray, his MLB journey from Cincinnati Reds and Los Angeles Dodgers prospect to Washington Nationals cornerstone of the future continued on Thursday at Coors Field.

The last time that Gray took the mound in the Mile High City, it was also the last time that he would pitch in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform. Gray’s outing on July 25, 2021, was five days before he was sent to Washington as one of the key pieces of the deal that brought Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to Chavez Ravine.

Now, Gray is carving a name for himself in the Washington rotation, and took another step toward that on Thursday by scattering eight hits over six innings and allowing just one run in a 1-0 loss to Colorado. With six strikeouts versus one walk, the 25-year-old right-hander limited the opportunities the Rockies had to do damage, always a key when pitching at Coors Field.

Thursday was also Gray’s fifth career start of at least six innings while allowing one run or less. It was a solid rebound from a first outing of the season that had Gray discussing how he needed to “be better” heading into his start in Colorado … and that’s exactly what he did.

“My last start was just a lot of ball out of hand misses,” Gray said of his first start of the season where he surrendered three home runs in five innings as part of a home loss to the Atlanta Braves. “So I needed to understand that my stuff plays and plays in the zone. Understanding that and sequencing a little better. All sorts of things, but just trusting my stuff, and being able to do it here at Coors is really fun and really special.”

Changes for Josiah Gray since Dodgers-Nationals trade

A lot has changed in less than two years for Gray, and he sees the different kind of pitcher he is now versus who he was in a Dodgers uniform in 2021.

“It’s been huge,” Gray said of his evolution as a pitcher. “I think just learning myself a little bit more and learning what I do well, what I don’t do well, and what I need to work on. When I pitched here last, I was 23, so I was obviously a lot different.

“It’s learning what I do well, game planning better, and just sequencing better. I think with every year, you get better and better with who you are as a pitcher. For me, it’s that natural maturation and here I am now, and it’s only going to get bigger and better as the years go on.”

Washington manager Dave Martinez liked the steps in the journey he saw from Gray on Thursday.

“He was awesome,” Martinez said. “He pounded the strike zone. He got behind a couple of times but was able to come back and pound that strike zone again. The slider was really good. It kept hitters off balance. I thought he used his fastball well as well.”

Gray gathered 19 swings and misses on Tuesday, with 11 of those coming via the slider. He also worked his way out of a jam in the sixth inning when a pair of singles gave the Rockies a one-out threat. After a mound visit, Gray retired the next two batters to wriggle free, ending his outing on a high note.

“I wanted to see him work through that,” Martinez said. “Those were his runs. He deserved a chance to get those guys out.”

Gray echoed that the ability to get out of the inning was a confidence-builder.

“That was huge,” Gray said. “After the flyout (by Colorado’s Yonathan Daza), I peeked in the dugout and wanted to make sure he wasn’t going to come out. If he had, I obviously would have lobbied for myself. I don’t know if I would have been successful, but I think everyone in the dugout had confidence in me going out there and getting that last out.”

That confidence provided another milestone along the journey for Gray, one that has had him in three different franchises, but seemingly feeling at home in the nation’s capital.