Glover No Surprise To Nats

VIERA, Fla.—As hard as 6-foot-5, 225-pound reliever Koda Glover throws his fastball and slider, it could take a while before the righthander has to worry about a second career.

Still, he already knows he would like to be a strength-and-conditioning coach.

“In the offseason, I show kids how to work out without getting themselves hurt,” said Glover, 22. “It’s a hobby of mine.”

Early in spring training, Glover also had to concern himself with his own strength, which was zapped by a virus that left him in Oklahoma during the first couple days of minor league camp.

He said he lost 16 pounds in a five-day stretch, but that he was working his way back to his normal weight.

Glover, an eighth-round pick last year out of Oklahoma State, hit triple digits with his fastball in 2015, when he reached low Class A Hagerstown for 16 appearances. He struck out 27 and walked one in 24 innings, notching four saves for the Suns.

Then he said he “wasn’t shell-shocked” when he went to instructional league and worked on maintaining a consistent delivery.

Glover’s first-year results came as no surprise to signing scout Ed Gustafson, who said the righthander has been a “known commodity” since the fall of 2011 and that Glover is throwing harder than he did before having Tommy John surgery in 2012. Glover played outfield and pitched at Heavener (Okla.) High, where his father Ray was coach.

“He has the really good arm strength,” Gustafson said, “but he also has the size and athleticism.”

Gustafson praised the patience of the coaching staffs at Eastern Oklahoma State JC and Oklahoma State. Now he has a slider and a curveball that can be plus pitches. He attacks hitters the way he approaches his strength and conditioning.

“I worked on my slider so much, it’s one of my better pitches now,” Glover said.

CAPITAL GAINS

• Double-A Harrisburg announced what it called the world’s only life-size bobblehead hall of fame. This year, the first three inductees will be former Senators Vladimir Guerrero, Cliff Floyd and Bryce Harper.

• The Nationals optioned second baseman Wilmer Difo to Triple-A Syracuse even though he went 3-for-10 in spring-training games. He committing three errors in 14 chances.