Hudson helping Nationals refill ’pen
Ex-Jay’s ‘moxie’ valued by Washington, whose bullpen has been brutal
It’s become a familiar ritual for the Washington Nationals under general manager Mike Rizzo: adding relievers at the trade deadline to address the biggest weakness on a contending team.
The Nationals were at it again on Wednesday, getting Daniel Hudson from the Toronto Blue Jays and Roenis Elias and Hunter Strickland from the Seattle Mariners in an effort to improve a bullpen that’s been overworked and sometimes overmatched. Washington sent minor league right-hander Kyle Johnston to Toronto for Hudson, who can become a free agent at the end of the season. The Nationals dealt three pitching prospects to Seattle for Elias and Strickland, both of whom are under team control through 2021.
“These aren’t the sexiest names in the trade market but I think we got good quality, reliable guys with some moxie and some experience,” Rizzo said. “We got guys who have accumulated a lot of saves in the past. We got a couple controllable relievers for not only this year but the foreseeable future, and the player return was something that was acceptable to us.”
Washington has a strong starting rotation led by Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin, but its bullpen ERA entering Wednesday’s loss to the Atlanta Braves was an NL-worst 5.97. The Nationals signed Trevor Rosenthal in the off-season to become a setup man for closer Sean Doolittle but ended up releasing him because of persistent control issues. Rosenthal now pitches for the Detroit Tigers, with Washington still paying most of his $7-million (U.S.) salary.
Washington trails first-place Atlanta by 6 1⁄2 games in the NL East and is in contention for an NL wild-card spot.
The Nationals signed 42-yearold Fernando Rodney in June, and he has been getting work in the eighth inning.
Hudson, a 32-year-old righthander, could be used in those high-leverage situations. He’s 6-3 with a 3.00 ERA and two saves in 45 games. He has a 3.92 ERA in 355 games over nine major league seasons.
“These guys are all qualified to pitch the seventh, eighth, and the ninth inning. They all have saves on their resumé, and they’re all stuff guys that can get big outs at big times,” Rizzo said. “The role system, I think that’ll kind of work itself out.”
Elias, a left-hander who turns 31on Thursday, went 4-1with14 saves and a 4.40 ERA for Seattle.
The 30-year-old Strickland missed most of the season with a right lat strain and has an 8.10 ERA in four appearances. The right-hander has a 2.98 career ERA over six seasons.
Washington has four division titles since 2012 but has never won a playoff series
Johnston, the 23-year-old right-hander sent to the Blue Jays organization, is 9-9 with a 4.03 ERA in 20 starts for Class A-Advanced Potomac.
Seattle gets 26-year-old lefthander Taylor Guilbeau, 23year-old left-hander Aaron Fletcher and 20-year-old righthander Elvis Alvarado, a former outfielder who converted to pitcher last year.