The Nationals announced that they have claimed left-hander Jake McGee off waivers from the Brewers. Outfielder Donovan Casey was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.
McGee, 36, is a veteran in his 13th MLB season, having previously suited up for the Rays, Rockies, Dodgers, Giants and Brewers. He signed a two-year deal with the Giants prior to the 2021 season, which went great for a while. He threw 59 2/3 innings for San Fran last year with a 2.72 ERA, 24.3% strikeout rate, 4.2% walk rate and 35.9% ground ball rate.
Unfortunately, the wheel of fortune has swung him around in the complete opposite direction this year, as he struggled badly with the Giants before being released, signing with the Brewers, struggling some more and then getting designated for assignment. Between the two clubs, he has an ERA of 7.00 on the year, with a 12.4% strikeout rate that’s barely half of what he registered last year.
In the short term, the move is sensible enough for the Nats, as they didn’t have a lefty in their bullpen prior to this move. Picking up McGee won’t cost really them anything financially, as the Giants are on the hook for the remainder of his salary with the Nats just paying the prorated league minimum.
From the big picture, however, the move is a little curious. The Nats have made a series of high profile trades in the past year-plus, shipping out Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, Josh Bell and Juan Soto, clearly signaling that they have no faith in their team’s ability to compete in the near future.
In order to grab the 36-year-old McGee, the Nats won’t break the bank, but they are risking losing Donovan Casey, a 26-year-old outfielder they just acquired last year in the Scherzer/Turner deal. Casey hit .269/.329/.430 between Double-A and Triple-A last year, with 16 home runs, 26 doubles, two triples and 22 stolen bases. He got added to the club’s 40-man roster in the offseason based on that showing and was considered the #16 prospect in the system by Baseball America coming into the year.
Casey has definitely had a down season here in 2022, hitting .219/.283/.364 for a wRC+ of just 71. He’s struck out in 32.5% of his plate appearances while walking just 6.7% of the time. Still, despite that tepid showing, it’s a bit surprising to see the Nats send him out onto the waiver wire in order to grab a couple months of a veteran reliever in a season when they’re 36-75, the worst record in all of baseball. With the trade deadline now passed, the Nats will only have the option of placing Casey on outright waivers or release waivers. He has never been outrighted before in his career, nor does he have three years of MLB service time, meaning he would be ineligible to reject an outright assignment if he clears waivers.
This is surprising to say the least.
The Nats have their best bullpen since 2014, not sure why they need this guy.
Are you being sarcastic? Because its really sad if a 4.29 ERA would qualify as their best since 2014.
Pretty sure it’s sarcasm. Having just seen 4 games worth of WSH BP, it stinks.
The Nats BP is the best part of a really bad team. It’s ERA probably would be better if it wasn’t so taxed due to their horrendous rotation.
I’m sort of being sarcastic, because even when the Nats were considered a competitive team, they never really had a good bullpen. I think they had the worst bullpen of any World Champion in history back in 2019, and it feels like it has improved since then (in spite of the team’s overall collapse).
You’re absolutely right.
Called that one. I guessed Pittsburgh, but Washington is pretty much the same. Good pitcher’s park and absolutely no pressure of winning. It is the perfect situation for McGee to rebuild his value and potentially get another deal next year.
They claim 36 year old McGee with his 7.00 ERA, but passed on Lamet?
And released a young guy who just last year was good enough to be part of the return for Max and Trea? I know he’s not 20, but he was wanted just a year ago.
Young guy? Casey is 26. He’ll be 27 next spring.
Effectively just swapped out Casey for Alex Call.
Probably a lot more roster churn ahead. For the first offseason in a while the Nats will have more than a couple of prospects to protect.
The man who only (mostly) throws fastballs. Everybody seems to know what he’s throwing now considering his ERA is 7.00 with a 4.70 FIP.
Jake McGee 7.17 ERA in mostly a pitcher friendly park, and 6.35 ERA in WSH
I guess that 2.72 from last year gives a glimmer of hope…I think McGee has reached EOL in his career. He is 35 not 25…downhill is expected
I think he is done. 35 years old
I agree that Alex Call made Casey dispensible, based on performance this year. The cruelest part of letting go is that they brought him up to Washington earlier in the year for several games, but never put him in. He as brought to the cafe, the cup of coffee was prepared and held to his lips, but he was not allowed to taste it. I hope he gets a chance to get into a big league game at some point, somewhere.
I also wonder if claiming Josh Palacios from the Blue Jays earlier in the year also came into play. He is someone who also has had a better year in the minors and is playing for the Nats right noww.
oh Jake, having a tough time latching on to a team. Sorry the Giants had to let you go bro. You were a good pitcher for us and a very competent closer.
Not gonna lie, that pic is not flattering. It looks like more than just Jakes ERA has ballooned.
His first 3 0r 4 games with the crew were excellent. 2 Bad games in a row, not disaster but runs. Brewers had to blame someone,it was him! If you think that the guy that brought back up is better, you do not know talent! Jake the traveling Alexander Rag time band, is his name! Look him up!
Just another example of Nationals “management” having NOOOOO idea what they are doing.