Transaction Update
Less than a week to go before the full-season affiliate rosters are announced, but more than a week to go for “our” Opening Day.
On Monday, the Nats optioned SS Trea Turner and RHP Rafael Martin to Syracuse while picking up the contract of RHP Matt Belisle. This effectively reduces the battle for the Opening Day roster down to the last spot on the bench and/or bullpen, which can usually be handicapped by looking at the number of options left for a given player or pitcher, but may be less predictable for the latter with two to choose from (Treinen, Gott) and a southpaw who hasn’t pitched since 2014 and can become a free agent on Friday (Burnett).
In terms of what’s next, the usual pattern is for Harrisburg to announce its roster, then Syracuse, then Hagerstown, and then Potomac. I expect the press releases to begin on Tuesday morning, but it could be sooner. In 2013, for example, the news came six days ahead of the minor-league season start. But usually it’s 2-3 days before.
Reminder: Where the players are now (on paper) on the Big Board or the rosters on MiLB.com is not a guarantee of where they’ll be next week. These press releases will finalize the guessing game that our intrepid volunteer (SpringfieldFan) does during the offseason.
If you had to guess, which member of he 40-man roster would most likely be removed if the team decided to give one of the last spots to a non-roster player like Burnett?
The Nats can free one 40-man spot by moving Barrett to the 60-day DL. If they have to clear two spots (for someone like Heisey or Ryan), the most likely DFA candidate would seem to be Grace, perhaps followed by Goodwin.
Man, I find this option stuff frustrating. Belisle’s era two of the last three years is well over four, his whip 1.400 plus the last two years, and his spring era is over four. Heisey has been mediocre his whole career and his spring batting average is under .250.
Yet, there’s a good chance both will go north despite others who have far better stats, and upsides. The one thing both have in common is having played for Baker.
Why do they suggest that the best players will go north when that is nowhere near the truth.
Of course, setting up a good bullpen is not one of Rizzo’s strong points. He and his coaches will screw it up one way or another.
Excuse my negativity. And I still think the Nats will win the NL East.
For the record, I did agree with sending Turner down even if at the first of spring training the shortstop position was supposedly, wide open. Of course, none of us believed that. That extra year is important.
Belisle will probably be long forgotten by the end of the season, by which time I hope Treinen and Gott have had a chance to firmly establish themselves with the big club. Treinen has been great in the spring and still might get a roster spot.
Meanwhile, it looks like Badenhop has agreed to accept assignment to Syracuse.
Excepting last season, Rizzo has actually been pretty good at building bullpens. In 2009, as interim GM he inherited a complete disaster from Jim Bowden; released, traded or demoted every member of the opening day bullpen that year and somehow managed to stabilize it with waiver wire castoffs like Mike MacDougal (20 of 21 in SVOs). He even discovered a gem in Tyler Clippard that year who initially resisted being converted from starting to relief and went on to become the best relief pitcher in Nats’ history.
Last year was the result of the team trying to get by on the cheap after backing up the truck and showering money on Scherzer. This year’s pen looks to have a lot more depth and experience.
Spot on
Agree
Grissom??
On the minor-league rosters, I’m most interested to see how aggressive the Nats are in pushing forward some of the young pitchers. With a truckload of arms ready to move up from Auburn to Hagerstown, do the Nats push guys like Fedde, A. Lee, and Glover on to Potomac despite very limited time at Hagerstown?
Speaking of Glover, is he going to get a look as a starter? Byron Kerr hinted as much a few weeks ago. Will Andrew Lee stay as a starter after a strong run to end last season?
Robles won scrimmage for A minus squad
Vs Braves on a beautful afternoon in viera .
Joan Baez looked good pitching to Tillero
Robles played whole game
Kelvin G is looking Sterling with leather
@ 3 b.
Hearn looked good on mound for A plus
Squad .
Happy Birthday to me in sun.
I swear I saw Lenny Dykstra watching his son
Play for Braves A plus squad !
Tillero looking good All Round
He scored from 1b on gapper by Sagdal .
Not surprising Robles did the same on
Wiseman double to CF…
Jeff, if you are watching the games, you know more than all of us. Naturally, we are going to have to see how the rosters actually settle, but your Hearn reference caught my attention. With as much attention as has been given to the significantly enhanced depth of the system, from Latin America and from college products, no one has suggested the players who may get pushed up an unexpected level. Perhaps there will be no surprises — but there always are. No one expected Jason Martinson at AAA last year — and he ended up their lone all star. Will be exciting to see who surprises with a bump….
Baez is one of those folks I have my eye on as taking a big leap forward this year. But first he has to get out of short season. Sagdal was overshadowed last summer but got nice press from Byron Kerr, who gives better tip-offs than the Sickels folks because the Nats brass feeds him intel. And Tillero forgotten with Reetz, but Jakson had a couple of injuries and needs to claw back to where he was envisioned.
As for the bullpen, Nats get more value with their reclamations, even as a good team, than with their FA pickups (exception Scherzer). Ohlendorf, Matt Thornton come to mind. I’m still unsure why Rizzo would pay twice as much for Oliver Perez as he did for Thornton. Well, Matt signed late – perhaps price came way down. Hopefully Petit, another sign off the waiver wire, will pan out better than Janssen (but not Kelley)!
They signed Belisle late and now he made the team, possibly to displace Treinen. Go figure. Well, Rizzo wanted depth. Now he has so much depth that folks like Bryan Harper will be held down in AA unless Grace or Solis get shipped to the Braves/Orioles.
All that hitting makes some of this irrelevant. Happy to see Ramos bashing. Wasn’t so long ago that he was envisioned a cleanup hitter.
What do I think? I think Papelbon has fuel in the tank, if not gas, to get us there.
The Hearn comment came from a friendly brewers scout
Not my eyes
I was hooked on Anderson squad sitting behind
Gunter , Rivera 3 Wes Davis and two other
Pitchers talking road trips and best places to hang
In NYPL or Sally cities. ().
Wiseman had a deep double off the CF fence .
Ellison went deep for Braves
Today I sign as scout
April fools day !
AAÀ/Aa home
A kids bus out
My take from the 40 thousand jet cruising
Altitude
Paps and Harp was a clash of energies
Which Einstein might call : in passing but
The national U.S. media made way too much out of .
The local media treated it like an item chewed
On from old Redskins media churn style