Nationals manager Davey Johnson is keeping John Lannan in the starting rotation.
"John's my guy," Johnson said on Monday in a comment reported via Twitter by Washington Post beat writer Adam Kilgore (@AdamKilgoreWP).
Lannan, 27, posted a career-best 3.70 ERA in 33 starts last season, going 10-13 for the Nationals. The 10 wins were the most of his major league career. This spring, Lannan is 0-1 with a 4.85 ERA in 13 innings of work for the Nationals.
The decision by Johnson, in his first full season with Washington after signing on as manager last June, sends Ross Detwiler to the Nationals' bullpen. Detwiler, 26, is 0-1 with a 3.72 ERA in nine innings of work this spring. He pitched in 15 games for the Nationals last season, starting 10 and posting a 4-5 record with a 3.00 ERA and 41 strikeouts.
Lannan joins Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Edwin Jackson and Chien-Ming Wang in the Washington starting rotation. The Nationals host the Astros on Monday afternoon in a Grapefruit League game at Space Coast Stadium in Viera, Florida.
