Nationals Cut Ties With Justin Lawrence, Recall Talented Youngster

The Washington Nationals have decided to move on from the veteran reliever.

Washington Nationals pitcher Justin Lawrence | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As has been the case throughout the season, the Washington Nationals once again made some changes to their bullpen.

Per an announcement from the team, veteran right-hander Justin Lawrence was designated for assignment ahead of Tuesday's game against the Colorado Rockies. As the corresponding move, right-handed pitcher Eddy Yean was recalled back to the big league roster.

In all likelihood, this ends the tenure for the 31-year-old in the nation's capital. He was originally added to the equation back on June 24 when the Nationals claimed him off waivers from the Minnesota Twins. But after seven outings where he gave up three earned runs on seven hits with six strikeouts to seven walks across 6 1/3 innings pitched, Washington decided to go in a different direction.

Eddy Yean Gets Huge Opportunity to Become Key Bullpen Figure

Washington Nationals pitcher Eddy Yean | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Yean gets the first opportunity to prove to the organization why he should remain in The Show.

Originally signed to a minor league contract this past November in the early stages of free agency, the 6-foot-3, 265-pounder performed well with Triple-A Rochester prior to getting promoted for his MLB debut on July 5. He had a 3.60 ERA across 39 appearances and 40 innings pitched with 45 K's and 19 walks. That caused Washington to give him a crack at the bigs, which was a test he passed with flying colors.

During his debut, Yean threw two scoreless innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He didn't allow a single hit, and he struck out three while walking one. Unfortunately, due to the pitch count Yean accrued, the Nationals decided to send him back down to the minors since he wouldn't have been available to pitch for a couple of days, which meant they opted to bring in a fresh arm instead of keeping a promising one in their bullpen.

But now, the 25-year-old gets another chance to prove what he can do in the majors. That comes at a perfect time for both him and the franchise, too, as Washington continues to search for go-to relievers and the front office is trying to decide if they need to trade for bullpen pieces. If Yean can perform well over the next couple of weeks, that might secure him a spot on this roster for the rest of the season, and the Nationals might only focus on adding one reliever instead of potentially multiple.

Regardless of what happens on the trade front, Yean has an opportunity to become a permanent fixture at the major league level now that he's been recalled to replace the DFA'd Lawrence.