The Nationals announced they’re placing ace Max Scherzer on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 12, due to groin inflammation. Reliever Justin Miller has been selected to the roster to replace him. To clear space for Miller on the 40-man roster, Washington designated righty Rogelio Armenteros for assignment.
Scherzer was forced out of his start on Friday night in the first inning with the groin issue. He downplayed the injury after his start, but he’ll apparently still need some time on the IL to recover. The team didn’t announce an initial timetable for his return.
The 36-year-old Scherzer has been his usual incredible self this season. Through 77 1/3 innings, he’s worked to a pristine 2.21 ERA/2.67 SIERA, striking out a stellar 36% of opposing hitters while walking only 5.2%. Even a minimal IL stint is a tough blow to the 28-35 Nats, who sit in fourth place in the National League East. After wrapping up a series with the Pirates tomorrow, Washington will kick off a run of eleven consecutive games against divisional foes (including five meetings with the division-leading Mets).
If Washington doesn’t get back on track, Scherzer’s name figures to surface in plenty of trade speculation in the coming weeks. He’s slated to hit free agency at the end of the season, and there’d be plenty of demand from contenders for one of the top pitchers in the game. There’s no indication today’s IL stint will last long enough to jeopardize his potential trade candidacy, although it’s still unclear if the team would make him available. Moving star players midseason hasn’t traditionally been the Nationals style, but there’s a case they should listen to offers on Scherzer if they don’t close the division gap in the coming weeks. Having previously received a qualifying offer in his career (back in 2014 from the Tigers), Scherzer is ineligible to be tagged with a QO this winter. Thus, the Nationals could stand to lose him for no compensation if they don’t move him this summer.
Miller makes his way back to Washington for the first time in two years. The righty looked to have broken out with a strong 2018 season in the Nats bullpen, when he tossed 52 1/3 frames of 3.61 ERA/3.34 SIERA ball. A pair of IL stints the following season knocked him off course, though, and his strikeout rate plummeted from 27.9% in 2018 to 16.9% in 2019. The Nationals outrighted him off the 40-man roster that season.
The 34-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Blue Jays over the 2019-20 offseason. He wound up traded to the Reds but didn’t make it onto either club’s 40-man roster. Miller elected minor league free agency and re-signed with the Nationals this March. He’s been nothing short of dominant this year with Triple-A Rochester. Over 16 1/3 innings, Miller’s allowed just a single earned run, striking out 29 of the 62 batters he’s faced (46.8%) while walking just four.
Like Miller, Armenteros has spent the entire season at Triple-A. He’s been far less successful, though, pitching to a 5.83 ERA with an average 23.1% strikeout rate but an elevated 14.2% walk percentage. Washington will now have a week to trade or waive the 26-year-old, whom they claimed from the Diamondbacks last December. Armenteros was once a decently regarded prospect in the Astros system and still has a pair of minor league option years remaining, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a rival club that needs rotation depth acquire him in a small transaction.
RIP he will be missed
That’s unbelievably unfunny and I don’t understand how you waste your time typing that as often as you do.
The MLBTR comment section is Steve Nebraska’s life.
And yet here you are
Wonder if he actually does have a life
RIP Steve Nebraska’s non-MLBtraderumors comment section life
Thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery.
Why do you possibly care? If u dont find it funny then dont give it your time
Astros2017Champs: What is so “funny” about texting the SAME one line comment on practically EVERY article relating to AN INJURY to a player?
rip Rogelio
Ouch….really don’t like the sound of groin inflammation.
Reminds me of the time on national tv it was said that Derek Carr (raiders) had a “questionable groin”.
This is actually a very key moment for this to happen. Could the Nationals find themselves completely out of contention during his absence? If they do will it become more likely he gets traded? We will see. If the Nationals do put him on the market he will be wanted by everyone. As a Brewers fan I could only dream of adding him to their rotation. Thoughts of the Four Horseman come to mind.
Max has the ability to veto any trade as a 10/5 player, so he’ll probably only accept a trade to the Dodgers or another true contender. I’d love to see SF get him somehow and really upset the power balance in the NL West.
So are you saying a first place team is not a true contender? Considering the fact they already have three of the best starting pitchers in the game today, and a lights out closer. I grant you their offense isn’t anything to write home about, but he’s seen these guys pitch since they recently played against each other and I’m sure he knows what he could bring to a young and talented group of pitchers.
Those four in a seven game series. Literally who couldn’t they beat?
Scherzer is a native of St. Louis. He would definitely approve a trade to the Cardinals.
Plus—— The Cardinals need him Badly!
RIP Steve Nebraska
RIP’em back Steve
Who agrees that there should be limit on comments per post?
I’d be trying to get Armenteros to sign with the KT Wiz if I was his agent as William Cuevas has been bad this year.
Scherzer won’t veto a trade to the Cardinals!
Clearly, Scherzer is going into hibernation to avoid being caught for putting sticky substances on baseballs while he figures out a new pitching plan. Beiber, deGrom, etc. will all be heading to the IL by next Monday for a while as part of a clever avoidance plan.
I may not be serious. Maybe.
He could just use some of his sticky stuff to keep things in place down there……