Bullpen
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NASHVILLE — Needing an experienced long reliever to take over the role vacated by last week’s parting with Craig Stammen, the Nationals reportedly have come to terms with former Giants right-hander Yusmeiro Petit on a 1-year contract. The Petit agreement, reported by the New York Post’s Joel Sherman, has not been confirmed by the Nationals…
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NASHVILLE — The Nationals have been in discussions with right-hander Shawn Kelley at the Winter Meetings, general manager Mike Rizzo said, but the club has not come to terms with the free-agent reliever yet. “We have not completed a deal with Kelly, no,” Rizzo said during his Tuesday afternoon session with reporters at the Opryland…
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The Nationals have taken their first significant step toward overhauling their bullpen, agreeing to terms Friday with veteran left-hander Oliver Perez on a 2-year, $7 million deal, according to a source familiar with the contract. Perez, 34, has been around the block during a 15-year career featuring an assortment of highs and lows, but he…
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Scroll through the Nationals’ 2015 pitching register and then answer this question: Which relievers on that list are locks to make the 2016 Opening Day roster? Jonathan Papelbon and Drew Storen might return, but both right-handers are going to be the subject of plenty of trade speculation over the next several weeks after seeing their…
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ATLANTA — Felipe Rivero arrived at his first big-league spring training a promising-but-raw starter who figured to spend the season perfecting his stuff in the minors, hoping perhaps someday well down the road an opportunity would open for him to join the Nationals’ stacked rotation. That, of course, didn’t happen. Not that Rivero is complaining.…
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Matt Williams was asked, after yet another dagger of a loss Thursday evening, whether it’s fair to pin the Nationals’ overall predicament on a bullpen that seems to be at the center of just about every one of these. “I wouldn’t believe that that would be fair,” the manager said, “to point at one thing…
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The impetus for last week’s Jonathan Papelbon trade wasn’t so much about the Nationals trying to bolster the ninth inning as it was about bolstering the seventh and eighth innings. Mike Rizzo already knew he had an elite closer in Drew Storen; what he didn’t have were consistently reliable setup men to bridge the gap…
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Jonathan Papelbon found himself inside the home clubhouse at Nationals Park for the first time Monday afternoon, a full six days removed from his surprise trade from the Phillies, feeling comfortable with his new teammates but only now finally feeling comfortable with his surroundings. “I got my own football today,” the veteran closer said, holding…
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The Nationals plan to call up reliever Abel de los Santos from Class AA Harrisburg on Monday, according to a source with knowledge of the transaction, adding the hard-throwing right-hander to their bullpen. It’s not known yet who de los Santos will replace, but the Nationals will have to clear a spot on their 40-man…
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BALTIMORE — Casey Janssen sat at his locker inside the Camden Yards visiting clubhouse Friday night, a plate of food in his hands, and stared off into nothingness for several minutes. He had made only a brief appearance in the game earlier, but the little dribbler of a single he allowed to Chris Parmalee leading…
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The Nationals’ revolving-door bullpen spun around again Friday when the club placed Aaron Barrett on the 15-day disabled list with a strained biceps muscle and officially added fellow right-hander David Carpenter to the major-league roster. Barrett’s injury, which forced him from Thursday night’s game in Milwaukee during the bottom of the eighth inning, was diagnosed…
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Seeking an experienced arm to bolster a bullpen that has been made over several times already this season, the Nationals on Thursday acquired right-hander David Carpenter from the Yankees in exchange for minor-league infielder Tony Renda. The Yankees had designated Carpenter for assignment last week after he posted a 4.82 ERA in 22 appearances, putting…
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It was cause for concern in April, but then cause for comfort in May. What, then, will the Nationals’ bullpen cause in June: Soothing relief or heartburn? We won’t know the answer to that question for awhile, but we do know that group continues to deal with changes in personnel and in roles. The Nationals…
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Ryan Zimmerman got the headlines Tuesday night, and rightfully so after launching the 10th walk-off homer of his career to beat the Yankees in dramatic fashion. But that blast off the right-field foul pole might not have been possible if not for some yeoman’s work from the Nationals’ bullpen, which was forced into both early…
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PHOENIX — When he was called up two weeks ago to make his major-league debut, Sammy Solis immediately checked out the Nationals’ upcoming schedule and couldn’t help but notice the next road trip he’d make: Phoenix and San Diego, his hometown and his college town. “It’s the road trip of a lifetime for me,” the…
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After a month spent tinkering and trying out different candidates, the Nationals may have found a reliable setup man at last in Aaron Barrett. Now, they just have to make sure they don’t run the right-hander into the ground from too much use. Barrett has become among the Nationals’ effective relievers, sporting a 1.59 ERA…
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Updated at 6:06 p.m. ATLANTA — Seeking some experienced help for a bullpen that has struggled through the season’s first three weeks, the Nationals have signed veteran Jose Valverde to a minor-league contract, general manager Mike Rizzo confirmed Wednesday evening. Valverde, 37, has been at the Nationals’ spring training complex in Viera, Fla., for about…
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At 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Matt Grace was at NBT Bank Stadium in Syracuse, wearing his Chiefs uniform, looking forward to a matinee against Rochester that would begin 30 minutes later. Ten hours later, Grace found himself in the clubhouse at Nationals Park, a pack of reporters surrounding him and asking about the scoreless inning of…
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When Blake Treinen was a starter, both in the minors and in brief stints with the Nationals last season, he could take some comfort knowing one run surrendered in one inning likely wouldn’t spell doom for him or his team. Now that Treinen is pitching exclusively in relief, more specifically late-inning relief, that margin for…
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Felipe Rivero, who made his major-league debut for the Nationals on Friday, has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with gastrointestinal bleeding, a potentially serious ailment that has forced the club to add yet another rookie left-hander to its bullpen. Matt Grace, a highly touted 26-year-old reliever, was promoted from Class AAA Syracuse to…
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Craig Stammen has needed surgery on his throwing arm only once before — Sept. 2009, to have bone chips removed — and he’s never spent a day on the disabled list in his career, so the veteran reliever could be excused if he was down in the dumps upon learning Thursday he’s likely to miss…
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BOSTON — Every ballplayer, from a young age, has dreams about making his major-league debut, and probably a realistic scenario for how that life-changing event might play out. Often, reality doesn’t live up to the dream. A major-league ballgame can be a shock to the inexperienced, a whirlwind string of moments that happen too fast…
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Updated at 1:45 p.m. BOSTON — The Nationals bullpen suffered another blow Wednesday when Craig Stammen had to be placed on the 15-day disabled list with what is being called right forearm tightness for now but has the veteran right-hander at least somewhat concerned could be a significant elbow injury. Stammen said he had been…
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BOSTON — The Nationals made their first bullpen change of the season Tuesday, promoting right-hander Rafael Martin from Class AAA Syracuse and designating lefty Xavier Cedeno for assignment. The move comes only seven games into the season. Cedeno had pitched in five of them, including four times in the last five days, allowing two runs…
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PHILADELPHIA — Had Matt Williams, on April 10, 2014, found himself in the exact same situation he found himself in during the seventh inning on April 10, 2015 — bases loaded, one out, the Nationals clinging to a 1-run lead — he wouldn’t have needed to think much about which member of his bullpen to…
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