3:25pm: To make room for Venters and Rodney, the Nationals moved injured right-hander Jeremy Hellickson to the 60-day IL and optioned fellow righty Kyle McGowin to Triple-A Fresno.
11:30am: The Nationals will select the contract of left-hander Jonny Venters prior to tonight’s game against the Marlins, reports Grant Paulsen of NBC Sport Washington (via Twitter). He’ll join fellow veteran Fernando Rodney in a constantly changing Nats bullpen mix; the Washington Post’s Jesse Dougherty reported yesterday that Rodney is also set to have his contract selected. Both promotions will require corresponding 40-man and 25-man roster moves.
Venters, 34, was the National League Comeback Player of the Year in 2018 after he returned from three Tommy John surgeries and a five-year MLB absence in 2018 to give the Braves 34 1/3 innings of 3.67 ERA ball. Along the way, the southpaw averaged 7.1 K/9, 4.2 BB/9 and 0.26 HR/9 to go along with a superlative 69.1 percent ground-ball rate while holding left-handed opponents to a laughable .133/.200/.200 batting line.
The Braves naturally tendered a contract to Venters following that performance, but the 2019 season was nothing short of a nightmare. Venters appeared in just nine games with the Braves, pitching a total of 4 2/3 innings but surrendering nine earned runs (plus another four unearned runs). He faced 31 batters and allowed more to reach than he retired (nine hits, eight walks) before being released in May.
Since signing with the Nats on May 29, Venters has been pitching for the team’s Double-A club. While he’s allowed just one run in seven innings, the control problems that dogged him in Atlanta earlier this season have persisted. Venters has issued six walks in seven innings and also hit a batter. He’s generated grounders at a ridiculous 72.7 percent clip in that tiny sample, and lefties are hitting just .194 against him with a .323 slugging percentage between the Majors and Minors in 2019. However, he’s also walked 11 of the 43 lefties he’s faced (against 10 strikeouts), so he’ll need to quickly rediscover some semblance of control if he’s to have much hope of sticking in the Washington ’pen.
As has been well documented, the Nationals’ bullpen has been an unmitigated disaster so far in 2019, although they no longer lay claim to the league’s worst collective ERA, having narrowly squeaked ahead of Baltimore for that onerous distinction (6.29 to 6.34). Nationals relievers have the game’s fifth-worst collective FIP and second-worst xFIP, and they rank in the bottom third of MLB in BB/9 and HR/9 as well.
Very interesting to see the two people sent down/cut.
One of them (Rodney or Venters) will simply replace Rosenthal on both the 40-man and 25-man. Someone will be transferred to the 60-day IL (maybe Jeremy Hellickson), and then someone else will hit the 10-day IL (perhaps Tony Sipp or Matt Grace),
Phantom IL moves certainly a possibility too
They are pulling out all the stops. Best bullpen is 2010
Fedde already sent to AAA (and w Rosenthal release on Sunday), so only need to clear one spot. But need both a 25 & 40-man spot for Venters, so seems to be a release/DFA.
I wonder if things would be different if they never shutdown Strasburg in 2012 before the postseason. Seems like the baseball gods have cursed the Nationals ever since but also could be FO never putting value in the bullpen and ownership putting no value in a manager too.
I think they learned a painful lesson, in that when you have the chance to win a championship, you take advantage of the moment and play your best players. No guarantee you’ll even see the postseason again.
Painful indeed, Nationals likely pass the Cardinals in the NLDS that year and who knows what happens from there.
There is no guarantees in baseball, very humbling sport.
Matt Harvey says hi. He’s waving a hand that doesn’t have a 2015 World Series ring.
Actually he is not waving at all, he’s only nodding.
I just commented on Fernando Rodney coming up and now I see this. They are really grasping at straws now. Like I said a few hours ago, they should bring up Aaron Barrett. However, they need to make a trade for someone who has actually been good this year. They are making these band aid moves because they are very close to paying 50% in going over the luxury tax threshold for the third straight year. I don’t know why they keep Michael Taylor around. They should have non tendered him. That’s three million plus right there.
RIP Helli
Rodney is safer with the Mets than going to the Dominican Republic.
Garbage in, garbage out