After tossing four scoreless innings last time out, in his third Grapefruit League start, A.J. Cole took the mound against the Houston Astros this afternoon and struggled.
Cole gave up six hits, two of them home runs, three walks and seven runs total in 3 2⁄3 innings of work in what ended up an 8-2 loss for the Nationals.
The outing left Cole with 16 hits and 15 runs (14 earned) allowed over 12 1⁄3 innings pitched this Spring as he competes for a spot in either the major league bullpen or rotation.