As Caleb Lomavita’s catching responsibilities increase at High-A Wilmington, he continues to hit while learning more nuances of working behind the plate.

Drafted 39th overall last year, Lomavita batted .302/.397/.365 in 19 April games. He hit his first professional home run after not homering in 17 games for Low-A Fredericksburg in 2024.

“He kind of came to me last year as a high-contact guy with a little bit of power who can control the strike zone,” said Jake Lowery, Lomavita’s manager at both Class A stops. “He’s as advertised this season as well. He’s not walking a ton, but he doesn’t chase and he hits to the opposite field.

“He’s driving the ball better. His home run was to right field through the wind at Wilmington, and that’s not an easy thing to do. He’s hitting anywhere from two to six in the lineup, depending on the day. The most important thing for him is getting at-bats.”

The 5-foot-10, 200-pound Lomavita was a three-year starter at California. He’s an above-average runner who stole 12 bases in his final year with the Golden Bears. His athleticism is helping him grasp a one-knee stance with runners on base.

“With his throwing mechanics, he came in pretty good,” Lowery said. “Now he’s just trying to get an ‘A’ throw off every time, especially with how important the running game has become at this level.”

For the first month of the season, Lowery had Lomavita catching three or four times a week, but he’s planning on upping that to five. In an early-season test, Lomavita caught an 11 a.m. game the morning after catching a night game.

“He handled it well,” Lowery said. “I gave him plenty of notice ahead of time. I said, ‘Don’t be surprised. You’re the main guy, and this is what they do in the big leagues sometimes when you’re the main guy.’ “

CAPITAL GAINS

— Shortstop Nasim Nunez dazzled defensively after a callup from Triple-A Rochester when CJ Abrams went on the injured list. He only had 61 major league at-bats in 2024 as a Rule 5 draftee and was hitting .172/.250/.207 in 29 at-bats with Washington this year.

“Experience is a huge thing, and I’m very thankful that the organization gave me an opportunity,” Nunez said on the MASN postgame show after he hit a two-run single in a 3-0 win against the Pirates.

— Lefthander Jake Bennett returned to the mound with a three-inning, one-run rehab start for Low-A Fredericksburg. A second-round pick in 2022 out of Oklahoma, Bennett missed the entire 2024 season while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.