Nationals activate Anthony Rendon, 3B to make season debut Thursday
The Washington Nationals activated third baseman Anthony Rendon on Thursday, and he made his 2015 season debut against the Chicago Cubs on Thursday night.
Rendon started at second base before later moving to third, going 2 for 4 with two strikeouts.
Rendon has battled separate right knee and oblique injuries in 2015 that had prevented him from seeing action.
The sixth overall pick in the 2011 MLB draft completed an eight-game rehabilitation stint with Double A affiliate Harrisburg (Pa.) this week, with whom he had six hits in 24 at-bats.
The knee injury stems from a play during a Mar. 9 spring training game in which Rendon dove for a ground ball. He suffered what was termed at the time a mild MCL sprain and was only expected to miss a few games.
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An undisclosed injury in late April to Rendon's oblique limited his MCL rehabilitation efforts in May.
In 2014, Rendon hit .287 with 21 home runs and 111 runs scored.
The 24-year-old's contract with the Nationals expires at the end of the 2015 season.