WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Alex Avila was tabbed to catch the Grapefruit League debut of Max Scherzer, his former teammate from the Tigers, on Friday. He called pitches -- and pummeled them, too.

In the first inning of the Nationals' 7-6 win over the Cardinals, Avila knocked a ball from John Gant into the grassy hill in left field. He drove in Starlin Castro and Josh Bell to put the Nats on the board.

“Overall, I actually feel really good with my swing,” Avila said. “Just a progression through spring, getting enough at-bats to feel comfortable and that you have a little rhythm and timing."

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Spoken like a true 13-year veteran, Avila was quick to note where he could improve. After he came out of the game, he still was thinking back to the third inning when he stranded runners.

“Obviously, it was nice to put the barrel on the ball,” he said. “[I was] kind of thinking about the second at-bat, the punchout. I wish I had a better one with two guys on there and two outs.”

Lester health update
Jon Lester underwent surgery to remove his thyroid gland on Friday in New York. Manager Dave Martinez said Lester was recovering and “doing well.” The team was awaiting word from doctors on Friday afternoon. Martinez said on Wednesday that Lester had been feeling tired, and he was hoping to have more energy following the procedure. The veteran southpaw was described by Martinez as “upbeat” prior to leaving camp.

Hand debuts
Left-hander Brad Hand became the first closer candidate to pitch this spring when he made his Nationals debut in the third inning Friday. Hand struck out two and allowed two hits and a run.

“He looked really good,” said Avila. “A couple of weak contact balls in play there that we probably should have made, but I think overall his fastball looked really good on both sides of the plate. He had a nice two-seamer working today with a couple of weak ground balls. His slider wasn't as sharp as it usually is, but that's his best pitch, that's his bread and butter. Like we were discussing after, it's not something that we're really concerned about because when you think of Brad, that's what you think of.”

Armenteros sidelined
Right-hander Rogelio Armenteros has been sidelined after experiencing discomfort in his arm following his first outing. He pitched one inning on Monday against the Astros, his former team, and issued a walk.

“He’s waiting to see the doctor and we’ll figure out what’s going to happen,” Martinez said. “But we shut him down for the time being.”

Armenteros had been mentioned by Martinez as a potential fifth starter candidate, along with Joe Ross, Erick Fedde and Austin Voth. The 26-year-old most recently appeared in five games for Houston (1-1, 4.00 ERA) in 2019.

Set your alarms
The Nationals played their first night game of Spring Training on Friday, with a 6:05 p.m. ET start five hours later than their previous afternoon action. Martinez, nonetheless, began his day bright and early.

“I woke up today at 5:30 [a.m.], and I was ready to go,” he said. “[I] had some breakfast and kind of had to sit around, waiting to get to the ballpark here.”

The Nats will return to their afternoon schedule on Saturday, when they play the Marlins at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter, Fla., at 1:05 p.m. ET. Left-hander Patrick Corbin is slated to make his Spring Training debut.

How the game was won