Kyle Finnegan Gives His Thoughts on Struggles of Young Nationals Relievers

The veteran Washington Nationals pitcher gave his thoughts on the state of this bullpen.

Jun 6, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan (67) reacts after an error at first base during the ninth inning against the Texas Rangers at Nationals Park | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

Even though the Washington Nationals weren't expected to contend in any way this year, that doesn't make the losing any more bearable.

And it's the way they've lost at times this season that has been frustrating.

Armed with a roster that has plenty of rising stars, the Nationals have done enough early in games to put themselves in positions to win. But their bullpen has often given away many of the leads, causing them to sit with a 35-49 record entering July, the fifth-worst mark in the Majors.

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While Washington continues to work through their rebuild, at some point the team has to learn how to win to establish a culture that will allow them to compete with the giants of their division.

Learning is exactly what Kyle Finnegan hopes the young, struggling relievers are doing this year.

"But as a young player, I think it's important to learn on your own. Unfortunately, in this game you learn from mistakes a lot of times. I hope these guys learn from things that have hurt them and always remember the things that have gone well," he said, per Mark Zuckerman of MASN.

Finnegan is in an interesting position.

Virtually everyone knows he won't be on the team after July 31, getting shipped to a contender for the stretch run of the season.

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The veteran has often seen his production plummet after the All-Star break, so perhaps it's not a surprise the Nationals are limiting the amount of appearances he's made in the first half to preserve the peak of his trade value.

That strategy has largely hurt the Nationals in the short-term.

Instead of calling on their best reliever in high-leverage situations that could help them secure a win, manager Dave Martinez has turned to the younger arms and has kept Finnegan in strictly a ninth-inning and save situation role.

Time will tell if Washington's current set of young arms is able to grow from this experience.

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Outside of Finnegan, the only player who has 20-plus appearances and an ERA under 3.00 is Brad Lord, a rookie reliever who has shined thus far. Cole Henry has the second-lowest ERA out of those who meet those parameters, posting a 3.45 ERA in his 29 outings.

Jose A. Ferrer has a 5.28 ERA, Jackson Rutledge has a 6.03, Zach Brzykcy has a 6.86 and Eduardo Salazar has a 9.00, leaving Martinez without a ton of reliable options to choose from.

It's been another year full of growing pains for the Nationals, and if they're going to take the next step, they have to learn from these experiences.

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