Major League Baseball

Nats' Strasburg pain-free, but Werth still hurting

Published May. 2, 2013 1:05 a.m. ET

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Washington pitcher Stephen Strasburg was expected to make his next scheduled start after experiencing no pain during a bullpen session Wednesday before the Nationals played the Atlanta Braves.

Strasburg had some discomfort in his right arm during a start Monday night against the Braves. While manager Davey Johnson initially was concerned it could be serious, it appears Strasburg had nothing more than an irritated nerve from using an electrical stimulation machine.

He threw two days after his start, the normal routine for the right-hander. His next turn in the rotation would be Saturday at Pittsburgh.

''He had a great bullpen,'' Johnson said. ''Didn't have any discomfort.''

Johnson was more worried about outfielder Jayson Werth, who missed his second game in a row with a strained right hamstring and a bruised left ankle.

Werth fouled a pitch off his ankle Monday, but the hamstring is potentially a bigger issue.

''I'm a little more concerned about his hamstring than the ankle,'' Johnson said. ''A bad bruise on the ankle is probably something that won't get much worse. Probably hard to run. Probably hard to land on. But a tight hamstring, you could pull it and be out for a couple weeks. That's something I don't want to take a chance on.''

Having dropped under .500 with three straight losses, the Nationals don't want to lose Werth for a significant amount of time just as third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is getting ready to come off the disabled list.

Recovering from a strained hamstring, Zimmerman was scheduled to play a rehab game for Class A Potomac on Wednesday night.

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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

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Associated Press freelance writer Amy Jinkner-Lloyd contributed to this report.

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