Washington Nationals Surprisingly Linked As Landing Spot for Expensive Closer
It's well-known that the Washington Nationals want to contend soon, but are they ready to open their pocket books in order to do so?
Jim Bowden of The Athletic recently made his overview of the best free agents available this offseason and surprisingly had the Nationals connected to San Diego Padres flamethrower Tanner Scott.
"Scott will be the best left-handed high-leverage reliever on the free-agent market. He can be deployed at any time and in any role — closer, set up, match up — to get left- or right-handed hitters out," said Bowden. "He had a banner year, registering a 1.75 ERA in 72 appearances with 22 saves. Batters hit .134 against his four-seam fastball and .231 against his wipeout slider."
The reliever is also predicted to land a sizeable four-year, $60 million contract in free agency. That would almost double up the next highest contract on their books, which is actually their current closer (though still not as much as Stephen Strasburg is on the books for).
Kyle Finnegan handled the closing role for the Nationals this past season and did well enough to not be a huge red flag that needed to be replaced in free agency.
In fact, Finnegan actually only pitched well in save situations a year ago.
Over 22 non-save appearances, he posted a 7.08 ERA and walked 11 batters to just 22 strikeouts. In the 43 save chances, he put up a 2.08 ERA and 38 saves with 13 walks to 38 strikeouts.
He's under contract for another season so picking up another closer would be a bit of a head scratcher, especially when the guy you had did so well in the role.
The biggest argument to be made would be that you could use Scott in the same way that the Padres did. Have him be an elite setup guy for Finnegan this season and then shift roles next offseason.
There's not much precedence for paying a setup guy $15 million, the Houston Astros do have three separate relievers making at least $11.5 million right now.
Another option would be to hand the keys to the closer role to Scott and then trading Finnegan as a rental to another contender. Adding more assets elsewhere while getting a longer term upgrade at an important bullpen role.
In the end, if they're serious about contending, they probably should bring in a guy as talented as Scott if the opportunity presents itself. Figure out the minutia later.
