At last, Josiah Gray is back in the Major Leagues.
The Washington Nationals activated Josiah Gray from the 60-day injured list on Thursday, ending a recovery process that stretched nearly two and a half years and included multiple setbacks. Gray last appeared in a Major League game on April 4, 2024, when he was Washington’s Opening Day starter.
That made the wait especially difficult. Only months earlier, Gray had been an All-Star for the first time, representing the Nationals at the 2023 Midsummer Classic after emerging as one of the club’s most important starting pitchers.
Now, 896 days after his last Major League appearance, Gray has another chance to contribute in Washington.
Josiah Gray’s Long Road Back
Gray’s return is not simply a routine injured-list activation. He has spent an extended period working his way back from elbow and forearm issues, trying to regain the ability to compete consistently and safely at the Major League level.
The Nationals’ decision to activate him is an important milestone, but it does not mean he is immediately prepared to resume a traditional starter’s workload.
Gray threw only 12 innings during his rehabilitation assignment this season and did not pitch more than two innings in any competitive outing. That workload is far below what a pitcher would normally need before joining a Major League rotation and being expected to work five or more innings every fifth day.
For that reason, the most realistic short-term role for Gray is likely in the bullpen.
A relief role would allow the Nationals to use him for an inning at a time, schedule rest more carefully, and monitor how his arm responds to big-league competition. It would also give the club an opportunity to evaluate his stuff and command without asking him to immediately carry the workload of a starting pitcher.
Why a Bullpen Role Makes Sense
The Nationals do not need to rush Gray back into a full-time rotation role. After nearly two and a half years away from Major League action, the priority has to be his health and long-term availability.
Using Gray in relief would offer several benefits:
It would limit his innings and reduce the immediate physical demands on his arm.
It would allow Washington to give him additional rest between appearances.
It would help the Nationals evaluate his velocity, command, and breaking-ball sharpness against Major League hitters.
It could give Gray a chance to rebuild confidence in lower-leverage situations before taking on a larger role.
It would preserve the possibility that he could eventually stretch back out as a starter if his health and performance warrant it.
The Nationals can treat the rest of the season as an evaluation period. There is no need for Gray to prove everything at once.
His first few appearances should be viewed less as a referendum on his future and more as the next stage of his recovery.
What to Expect From Gray’s Stuff
The early results may not be perfect, and that should not be surprising.
Gray could experience inconsistent command after such a long layoff. His velocity may also fluctuate as he readjusts to pitching in meaningful Major League games. Back during his brief Spring Training return, Gray’s fastball averaged 92.5 mph and topped out at 94 mph.
More notably, he appeared to lean heavily on his secondary pitches particularly his slider, curveball, and sweeper rather than relying on the fastball.
That approach could be especially important for Gray moving forward.
His fastball has long been the pitch most vulnerable to hard contact, while his breaking pitches have often been the foundation of his success. Gray’s ability to vary shapes, speeds, and movement profiles helped him keep hitters off balance at his best.
If he can regain feel for those pitches and throw enough strikes, he still has the tools to retire Major League hitters.
Gray’s 2023 All-Star Season Shows the Blueprint
Gray’s strongest Major League season came in 2023, when he posted a 3.91 ERA over 159 innings and earned his first All-Star selection.
He was not a finished product. Gray continued to battle walks at times and did not always work deep into games. But he found success by expanding his repertoire and leaning more heavily on his breaking pitches.
That helped him avoid some of the hard contact that had hurt him earlier in his career.
The version of Gray returning to the Nationals may need to embrace that formula even more. Rather than trying to win primarily with velocity, he could be most effective by emphasizing pitch mix, movement, deception, and command.
A bullpen role may even help that transition initially. Shorter outings could allow Gray to use his best breaking pitches more aggressively, rather than conserving his arsenal for five or six innings.
What Josiah Gray’s Return Means for the Nationals
There is no pressure for Gray to immediately resemble the pitcher who made the 2023 All-Star team.
After multiple elbow and forearm issues, the Nationals’ first goal is simply to confirm that he can take the mound, recover properly, and compete without another setback. Every healthy appearance is meaningful progress.
The longer-term question is whether Gray can return to the rotation or whether his eventual Major League future is in relief. That answer may not come this season, and it does not need to.
For now, Washington should focus on the encouraging reality in front of it: Gray is healthy enough to pitch in the Major Leagues again.
Anything the Nationals receive from him down the stretch is a bonus. If he begins to resemble the pitcher who represented Washington in the 2023 All-Star Game, his return will become even more promising.
But after 896 days away from a Major League mound, simply seeing Josiah Gray pitch for the Nationals again is already a meaningful victory.