Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday that Robles and Jacob Young will "battle" for the starting job in center field, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.
After being pressed about whether it was an open competition, Martinez conceded that Robles "has a little bit of the upper hand" entering spring training. Robles was limited to only 36 contests with the Nationals in 2023 due to nagging back issues and has posted just a .614 OPS since the start of the 2020 season. However, the former top prospect will turn just 27 in May and is valued for his defense, giving him a leg up for the center field gig heading into his walk year.