Nationals Lose Bullpen Arm After He Elects Free Agency
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Three Washington Nationals players are getting set for the 2026 All-Star Game that's scheduled to take place on Tuesday night before a two-day rest for everyone across Major League Baseball.
But that break doesn't mean things aren't happening when it comes to the front office side of things for the Nationals. And according to an announcement from the team, Washington is now down a reliever after left-handed pitcher Matt Krook opted to become a free agent instead of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Rochester after he was designated for assignment on July 12 to make room for top prospect Abimelec Ortiz's MLB debut.
Matt Krook's Addition Backfired for Nationals
The Nationals claimed Krook off waivers from the Athletics on July 4. They brought him into the mix despite his 14.73 ERA across five appearances for the A's, which was a bit of a red flag when it came to his potential to be an impact arm for this already-struggling Washington bullpen. And ultimately, those concerns turned out to be valid, as the lefty allowed two earned runs across 2 2/3 innings pitched over three outings for the Nationals.
Krook was also the latest posterchild for Washington's inability to field a competent relief staff, along with manager Blake Butera's propensity to lean on split-specific matchups when it comes to who he calls upon out of the bullpen. Against the New York Yankees on July 10, Butera turned to Krook to face a lefty-heavy portion of the Yankees' lineup instead of keeping closer Clayton Beeter in the game to record a ninth-inning save. Krook then gave up two earned runs and was credited with the blown save and loss.
Now, the 31-year-old former fourth-round pick will try to find his next home after spending time with the Athletics and Nationals to start this season.
Will Nationals Learn From Their Poor Bullpen Additions?
With time to reflect after the first half of the season for this new regime, one can only hope that they will learn from the mistakes that have taken place this year. However, it's hard to envision anything really changing, because bullpen arms are always coveted by every team across the league and the elite ones very rarely end up on the waiver wire or available to be acquired via a trade without needing to give up a ton of assets.
Because of that, Washington is likely to do the same thing they did in the first half during the second. While they might add an arm or two ahead of the deadline if they are still in the playoff hunt, relievers like Krook will probably continue to be added throughout this season despite the fact they have gotten burned by those decisions.
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Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai