Nationals Rumors

Nationals Expected To Place Anibal Sanchez On 10-Day IL

By Mark Polishuk | May 16, 2019 at 3:48pm CDT

Anibal Sanchez suffered a left hamstring strain that forced him out of today’s start in the second inning, and Nationals manager Davey Martinez told reporters (including Sam Fortier of the Washington Post) that Sanchez is headed for the injured list. This will keep Sanchez out of action for at least one start, though the veteran righty will undergo an MRI tomorrow to determine the extent of the hamstring problem.

Today’s news only adds to what has been a rough start to Sanchez’s stint with the Nationals, as he has managed only a 5.10 ERA over 42 1/3 innings with the club. Following a nice bounce-back year with Atlanta in 2018, Sanchez inked a two-year, $19MM free agent deal with Washington in December, but has thus far struggled to replicate his success from last season.

Sanchez is allowing significant less soft contact in 2019 than he did in 2018, and he has also displayed an uncharacteristic lack of control. Sanchez’s 5.31 BB/9 would be a career high over a full season, far exceeding his 2.7 BB/9 from 2010-18.

The Nationals have already been hit hard with injuries this season, and now have yet another hole to fill with Sanchez set to miss time. Erick Fedde would seem like the most logical candidate to start while Sanchez is out, though Martinez only said that the club was still discussing its options. While Fedde has a history as a starting pitcher, the Nats have been using him as a reliever this season, and a jump back to the rotation could disrupt that has thus far been a solid transition to the bullpen. Fedde allowed four runs to the Mets over 2 2/3 innings today, though he hadn’t allowed a run in eight innings prior to today’s rough outings.

Blue Jays Claim Jimmy Cordero

By Jeff Todd | May 15, 2019 at 1:34pm CDT

The Blue Jays have claimed righty Jimmy Cordero off waivers from the Nationals, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca was among those to cover on Twitter. Cordero was sent to Triple-A on optional assignment.

Despite the Nats’ bullpen malaise, other teams are interested in their relievers that have failed to receive MLB looks this year. Cordero follows Austin Adams (traded to the Mariners) in landing on another 40-man roster after being dropped from the D.C. list. Even as it deals with a struggling pitching staff, the Nationals have been forced to make some tough choices to address injuries to its position-player group.

Cordero will also hope also to follow Adams in getting a promotion with his new organization. He wasn’t able to capitalize on a chance last year, recording as many earned runs and walks as strikeouts (a dozen apiece) in 19 frames. No doubt the Jays also noticed that he pumped 98 mph heat and managed an 11.8% swinging-strike rate. Through 12 innings at Triple-A thus far in 2019, Cordero carries a 6.00 ERA with a 17:9 K/BB mix.

Latest On MASN Dispute

By Jeff Todd | May 14, 2019 at 2:22pm CDT

MAY 14: Court filings reveal that the recent arbitration ruling largely reflected the decision of the original panel, per a recent report from Jeff Barker of the Baltimore Sun. If the ruling is upheld, MASN will likely be required to disburse something on the order of $60MM to $70MM in back payments to the Nationals. (The panel awarded nearly $100MM in added rights fees, but the network’s profit recalculation would reduce the net dollar amount owed.)

APRIL 23: The Orioles and Nationals have long been embroiled in a dispute regarding TV rights fees from the jointly owned (but Orioles-controlled) Mid-Atlantic Sports Network. Sorting things out with finality has taken ages, but there are finally some new developments of note.

Another arbitration proceeding before MLB’s revenue sharing committee is finally in the books, though the results aren’t yet known, per Ben Strauss of the Washington Post (Twitter links). The Nats are seeking to have the results confirmed by the New York court that has overseen the related litigation between the ballclubs.

The sides originally went to court when the Orioles challenged the committee’s first award of rights fees to the Nats, successfully arguing that the D.C. organization’s counsel had a conflict of interest. Now, the revenue sharing committee has issued a new decision regarding what constitutes fair market value for the rights to televise Nationals games.

Typically, it’s quite difficult to upset an arbitration award in court, though that didn’t stop the Baltimore organization from securing a victory way back in the full of 2015. Whether and how the O’s will attack the new award isn’t known, but it seems likely that the club will keep up what has been an all-out battle until it has exhausted all its options.

Indeed, the Orioles recently opened up something of a new front, as Eriq Gardner of the Hollywood Reporter has covered (here and here). MASN began withholding “cash flow payments” to the Nats early in 2018, then balked at a MLB-run arbitration process. While that’s called for contractually, the Orioles have taken the position that the league has an interest in the dispute because it made the Nationals a $25MM advance to deal with the long-ongoing issue discussed above.

The Baltimore organization then launched a proceeding before the American Arbitration Association. Their unhappy partners to the south responded by putting the matter to the New York court. The initial decision was in favor of the O’s, but it’s of limited moment: the court determined that the AAA panel has the authority in the first instance to determine whether the matter is properly before it, since the contract contemplates a AAA proceeding in the event of a conflict of interest.

Head spinning yet? It should be, as this is all now several layers removed from the underlying issue: what’s fair market value for the Nats’ TV rights? The Orioles have successfully introduced quite a few procedural roadblocks to the D.C. organization’s ability to receive stepped-up pay-outs and even created some possibility of securing a friendlier forum to decide the matter. As things stand, there’s a competing arbitration proceeding even as an award has come down from the revenue sharing committee, with ongoing litigation overlaying things. When and how it’ll all be resolved remains anyone’s guess.

Trea Turner Begins Rehab Assignment

By Jeff Todd | May 14, 2019 at 1:04pm CDT

Nationals shortstop Trea Turner is set to launch a rehab assignment today, Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com reports on Twitter. He’ll open at High-A Potomac.

Turner was off to a scorching start to the season before he suffered a broken right index finger, with two home runs and four steals in just four games of action. The club’s ensuing struggles can’t be blamed entirely on the absences of Turner and others, but it has most assuredly not helped.

It isn’t yet known how long Turner will need to ramp back up, but his rehab assignment is capped at twenty days. It seems reasonable to hope that the Nats will have Turner in action for most or all of the month of June; they’ll need him to be at his best if they’re to regain ground in the NL East.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/13/19

By Jeff Todd | May 13, 2019 at 10:07pm CDT

Here are the day’s minor moves from around the game:

The Pirates outrighted southpaw Tyler Lyons after he cleared waivers, per a club announcement. The 31-year-old reliever will have the option of electing free agency, if he has not already decided to accept the assignment. Through seven seasons in the majors, Lyons carries a 4.20 ERA with 9.2 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9. He gave up five earned in his four frames this year with Pittsburgh, though he had shown better at Triple-A to open the season.
Righty Michael Blazek is back in the affiliated ranks after signing on with the Nationals, Triple-A communications director Paul Braverman tweeted. Blazek is headed to Fresno after initially signing with the indy ball Lincoln Saltdogs. The 30-year-old reliever has thrown 123 innings in the bigs, mostly with the Brewers, working to a 4.39 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9. Blazek had not actually appeared yet for the Saltdogs, whose season hasn’t yet begun.

Erick Fedde Auditioning For Expanded Role In Nationals Bullpen

By TC Zencka | May 11, 2019 at 11:28am CDT

Results have been good thus far for Erick Fedde, who in limited action has made a good impression on a struggling Nationals bullpen, per Byron Kerr of MASN Sports. Fedde, a starter in the minors, was brought up for the first time this season on April 28th – and he immediately made an impact. He threw four scoreless innings in relief of Jeremy Hellickson against the Padres that day, keeping a 6-0 deficit at bay and giving the Nationals young bats a chance to heat up. Juan Soto, Victor Robles, and Carter Kieboom became the first trio of teammates younger than 22-years-old to homer in the same game as the Nationals came back to beat the Friars 7-6 in 10 innings. In an unceremonious thank-you, however, Fedde was sent back to Double-A the very next day.

In Harrisburg, Fedde has roasted the competition so far this season, 2.55 ERA, 2.84 FIP, 2.63 xFIP with 9.85 K/9 to 1.82 BB/9, which includes two-thirds of a combined no-hitter in early April. Fedde, 26, is miscast in Double-A after a full season between Triple-A Syracuse and the majors in 2018, but with their Triple-A affiliate now cross-country in Fresno, the Nationals have kept a few ML-hopefuls close at hand in Harrisburg. Current teammates in D.C. Dan Jennings, Michael A. Taylor, and Adrian Sanchez have all spent time in Harrisburg this year before recalls with quick turnarounds. Fedde is back in the Nats’ bullpen now and potentially in line to take on a larger role, whether as a long man, in a setup capacity, or both.

There is little doubt as to the need for the Nationals, whose bullpen has imploded time and again in 2019 as Dave Martinez searches for a reliable option in the middle-to-late innings. The three-headed monster in the rotation (Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Patrick Corbin) somewhat mitigates usage of the pen (111 innings is the lowest mark in the National League), and Sean Doolittle is as good as it gets at the back-end, but there’s still that pesky eighth inning to worry about, and forty percent of the rotation is not among the NL’s top ten in strikeouts, K/9, innings, and WAR as are Scherzer, Strasburg, and Corbin. (Admittedly, Corbin ranks tied for 14th in the NL with 1.0 fWAR, though his 2.0 rWAR jumps him to second by that measure, while rWAR drops Scherzer out of the top ten into a seven-way tie for 12th. Among those seven is Doolittle, tied with John Gant for the NL rWAR lead among relievers.) Anibal Sanchez and Jeremy Hellickson have lasted six full innings only once apiece en route to respective ERAs of 5.27 and 5.52, and between the implosion of Trevor Rosenthal, some bad bounces, and a difficulty in stranding inherited runners, the bullpen ahead of Doolittle has been a mess.

Washington’s pen boasts some ugly numbers with a 6.24 ERA, 5.06 xFIP, .342 BABIP, and 65.1 LOB% – all of which rank dead last in the Majors. Still, it’s hard to know exactly what the Nationals have in their pen, as BABIP and LOB% have a tendency to fluctuate, and many of their pen hands have much stronger FIPs than ERAs (Wander Suero, Matt Grace, Joe Ross), and while that could point to some bad luck, they have an equal number of arms on the flip side of the ledger as Doolittle, Justin Miller and Kyle Barraclough’s ERAs are all outperforming xFIP. Outside of Doolittle, the pen is functioning largely without defined roles so far this season, which is where Fedde’s newfound versatility could prove invaluable. Fedde is adjusting to life in a potential fireman role, but if he can muster a quality outing or two in high-leverage situations – arguably the Nats’ greatest area of need – he will make it very difficult for the Washington brass to shuttle him back to Harrisburg.

Nationals Designate Jimmy Cordero For Assignment

By Mark Polishuk | May 9, 2019 at 5:51pm CDT

The Nationals announced a trio of roster moves, including the news that right-hander Jimmy Cordero has been designated for assignment. The club’s previously-reported signing of outfielder Gerardo Parra was also made official, while outfielder Andrew Stevenson has been sent to the 10-day IL due to back spasms to create room for Parra on the 25-man roster. Cordero’s designation creates a 40-man spot for Parra.

The 27-year-old Cordero made his Major League debut last season, posting a 5.68 ERA and an even 12 walks and 12 strikeouts over 19 innings out of Washington’s bullpen in 2018. The righty earned that promotion after a strong showing (1.96 ERA, 10.4 K/9) over 46 Triple-A innings last season, though he struggled at the same level this year, with just a 6.00 ERA over 15 innings.

Cordero is a hard-thrower who averaged 97.5mph on his fastball during his brief stint in the bigs, and he also has a grounder rate of better than 50% over his 282 2/3 career minor league innings. That said, he has also begun to experience some issues with both the home run ball and limiting walks over the last few seasons.

Nationals Sign Gerardo Parra

By Jeff Todd | May 9, 2019 at 5:47pm CDT

TODAY: The Nationals have officially announced the signing, adding Parra on a one-year contract.

YESTERDAY: The Nationals are moving fast on newly minted free agent outfielder Gerardo Parra. After hitting the open market just yesterday, he’s now reportedly due to join the Nats on their current road trip.

Parra, 32, had been designated for assignment by the Giants as they cleared the deck for younger options. He is slashing just .198/.278/.267 through 97 plate appearances on the season.

For the Nats, the veteran left-handed hitter may help plug one of the team’s many leaks. Andrew Stevenson suffered a back injury after being called up to bolster the outfield unit while Juan Soto works back to health. With lefty slugger Matt Adams also sidelined, the club is short of southpaw swingers.

Parra is known more for his glovework in the outfield than his bat, though he has at times been an above-average hitter. Through nearly five thousand MLB plate appearances over eleven seasons, he owns an 88 wRC+ — though he’s closer to league-average (96 wRC+) when hitting with the platoon advantage, as he likely will for the most part in D.C.

It is not yet known how the Nationals will clear the necessary roster space for this move. Placing Stevenson on the injured list could open an active roster spot, but that wouldn’t account for the 40-man.

Kerry Crowley of the Mercury News first made the connection on Twitter. ESPN’s Jose Rivera first tweeted that a deal was agreed to. Also reporting the match were Sam Fortier of the Washington Post (Twitter link) and Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter).

MLBTR Poll: Is It Time For Nats To Make A Managerial Change?

By Jeff Todd | May 9, 2019 at 2:25pm CDT

You’re amply familiar by now with the narratives surrounding the Nationals’ managerial situation. Four skippers have presided over the past eight seasons, dating back to the team’s breakout 2012 campaign. The drama goes back further, but it’s most remarkable that the Nats have managed not to stick with a single manager for very long even as they’ve churned out winning campaigns.

For all the disappointing seasons and heartbreaking postseason showings, the Nats have arguably never faced a situation as dire as the present one since they began their winning ways. After barely topping .500 last year, the first under manager Dave Martinez, the team has limped to a 14-22 start in 2019.

It wasn’t long ago that the Nationals sat at an uninspiring 11-11 record — just 1.5 games out of first place in a packed division and hardly cause for concern in and of itself. The bullpen was a mess, but otherwise the club was getting along well enough. The vibe has changed since, as the Nats have managed only two wins out of their past 13 contests while injury issues mount. Martinez’s charges have a negative-34 run differential in that brief span. Pitching coach Derek Lilliquist was canned a week ago.

There are many different ways to interpret these results. It’d be foolish to lay all the blame on Martinez; veteran Ryan Zimmerman said as much today in support of the sophomore-year skipper. President of baseball operations Mike Rizzo has been unequivocal in his support, saying that Martinez is “doing a great job” in the wake of the Lilliquist firing.

At the same time, it’s hard to deny that the results have fallen well short of expectations since Martinez came aboard. He was hired only after the club parted with Dusty Baker over the failure to advance in the postseason. The premise was that the talented outfit would thrive all the more under new leadership. For whatever reason, Martinez’s efforts haven’t translated to this point. There are complaints over his bullpen management and strategic decisionmaking, though that’s a common refrain for many managers. Even if Martinez isn’t truly doing a poor job, it’s arguably time for the club to receive a real jolt.

So, readers, where do you come down on the matter? (Link to poll for app users; response order randomized.)

Should the Nationals fire Dave Martinez?

He's doing a poor job and needs to go. 31.32% (2,021 votes)

He's not the problem and should be retained. 28.06% (1,811 votes)

He's not the problem, but a managerial change is still needed. 26.33% (1,699 votes)

He's doing a poor job, but it's not the right time for a change. 14.29% (922 votes)

Total Votes: 6,453

NL Injury Notes: Cain, Matz, Vargas, Taylor

By Mark Polishuk | May 5, 2019 at 8:48pm CDT

X-rays were negative on Lorenzo Cain’s left hand after the Brewers outfielder was hit by a Tim Peterson pitch during the sixth inning of today’s 3-2 win over the Mets. Cain was removed from the game after his HBP, though told reporters (including MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy) that he is hopeful of playing on Tuesday, when Milwaukee hosts the Nationals. Cain has hit .259/.316/.406 through 158 plate appearances this season, though he has made up for that slow start at the plate with his usual excellent center field defense. It doesn’t seem like this injury will require a DL stint or perhaps even an absence whatsoever, though it’s still worth monitoring, as the Brewers can ill-afford to lose any of their stars amidst a tightly-contested NL Central race.

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