Riley Adams DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Washington Nationals catcher Riley Adams (wrist) is back in the Grapefruit League lineup on Monday against the division-rival Miami Marlins, doing the catching and batting eighth. Adams was hit by a pitch recently in spring training, which resulted in a sore wrist and caused him to sit out for a few days, but he's back in there now and is ready to go. The 28-year-old will continue to compete in camp with Drew Millas to be the backup to Keibert Ruiz to open the 2025 regular season. After an encouraging 2023 campaign in which he had an .807 OPS in 158 plate appearances as a backup catcher, Adams had a .629 OPS with two home runs and eight RBI in only 41 games for the Nats last year while also spending more time in the minor leagues. Adams probably has the edge over Millas because he doesn't have minor-league options remaining, but he doesn't have much upside as a backup in D.C. because of the fact that he doesn't bring much to the table with his glove.

Washington Nationals catcher Riley Adams (wrist) has been scratched ahead of Saturday's spring training contest. Adams was hit on the wrist by a pitch during Friday's game. He underwent X-rays were revealed a wrist contusion. That being said, Adams might need a few days of rest, but should be fine for the beginning of the season. He has slashed .224/.290/.377 with 11 home runs and 39 RBI across 133 combined games over the last three seasons with the Nationals. It's unlikely that Adams is going to be a reliable fantasy contributor.

Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez wants to ease catcher Keibert Ruiz in now that he's returned from a bad case of influenza that caused him to lose 18-20 pounds. It will also give the skipper the opportunity to keep catcher Riley Adams' bat in the lineup on a regular basis after he posted a .793 OPS when he caught 11 of the last 13 games with Ruiz out. "We're definitely going to use him," Martinez said. "One, let him catch. And two, we can also DH Keibert like we've done in the past and let him continue to catch. He's done a great job. He's learned a lot over the years. He's really coming into his own. It's good to have him, to watch him play and to watch him get better every day he's out there." As long as the 27-year-old continues to play several times a week, he'll be valuable in two-catcher fantasy leagues.