MLB trade roundup: Nats swap prospects for closer Melancon to replace Papelbon

Pittsburgh general manager Neal Huntington tried to tell Mark Melancon he had been traded. And tried. And tried.

“I felt bad because I missed his call three times because my phone was on silent, so I woke up to that,” the reliever said Saturday after he woke up from a nap and learned he had been dealt to the Washington Nationals.

Washington sent reliever Felipe Rivero and pitching prospect Taylor Hearn to the Pirates for Melancon, who supplants struggling Jonathan Papelbon as Washington’s closer. Melancon is expected to join the Nationals on Sunday for their series finale at San Francisco. Also Saturday: The Oakland A’s dealt outfielder Billy Burns to the Kansas City Royals on Saturday for outfield prospect Brett Eibner. The A’s also placed lefty Rich Hill, the subject of much trade speculation, on the 15-day disabled list with a blister on his pitching hand.

The San Diego Padres were reportedly finalizing a deal that would send outfielder Matt Kemp to the Atlanta Braves for utilityman Hector Olivera, who is serving an 82-game suspension under MLB’s domestic abuse policy. Kemp is owed $54 million over the next three seasons. Olivera has $28.5 million left on his contract, which has four seasons to go.

Melancon, a 31-year-old righthander, has converted 30 of 33 save chances with a 1.51 ERA this season and joins his fifth organization in eight years. He is making $9.65 million and is eligible for free agency after the World Series; as part of the swap, the Pirates will pay Washington $500,000 on Sept. 1.

Once considered a possible successor to Mariano Rivera when he broke into the majors with the New York Yankees in 2009, Melancon said during the all-star break he knew a trade was possible.

While Huntington stressed the team remains committed to reach- ing the playoffs for a fourth straight season, the opportunity to deal Melancon — who has also pitched for the Astros and Red Sox and led the majors with 51 saves in 2015, after 33 in 2014 — for two young arms with friendly long-term contracts was too good to pass up.

Papelbon is 2-4 with a 4.41 ERA and has allowed eight runs and seven hits in his past three outings. Nationals manager Dusty Baker pulled Papelbon from Thursday’s game in the ninth inning.