Washington Nationals Boss, All-Star Closer Remain in Contact About Deal

The Washington Nationals made one of the most curious moves of the offseason but may still lure this free agent back to the team.

Aug 4, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan (67) throws a pitch against the Milwaukee Brewers during the ninth inning at Nationals Park. | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals have two pressing issues in spring training — third base and closer.

With third base, there are options, though none have produced reliably at the Major League level. But some, such as third base prospect Brady House, have promise.

The closer position could be more worrisome. The in-house candidate is likely Jose A. Ferrer, who has one MLB save. Jorge López, who joined the team as a free agent, has 31 career saves and should be in competition as well.

Washington is looking for a new closer because it opted to non-tender last year’s closer, Kyle Finnegan, at the November roster deadline. At the time, it was stunning. Reliable closers are hard to find, and Finnegan had 38 saves last season, leading to his first All-Star Game selection.

But the Nats didn’t want to pay the expected $8.6 million to avoid his final year of arbitration and released.

Well, he’s still available. No one has signed Finnegan and on Friday Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said that he and Finnegan’s representatives are still in contact.

Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com was among those that reported Rizzo’s comments. The long-time GM didn’t say much beyond the fact that the two sides were talking and that “it takes two to tango.”

Washington hasn’t had a winning season since its 2019 World Series. Finally, out from under several horrible contracts, the Nationals have built one of the most exciting young cores in baseball. After back-to-back 71-win seasons, Washington looks like a team that could, at minimum, get back to .500 in 2025. That would represent progress.

Much has been made about Finnegan’s downturn at the end of last season. Yes, his ERA in August and September was 4.12 and batters hit .333 against him. But, in the 19 games he pitched he finished 16 of them, Washington went 14-5 and he locked down 10 saves. He blew only one save.

He finished the season with a 3-8 record and a 3.68 ERA. The 33-year-old right-hander has a career record of 22-26 with 88 saves and a 3.56 ERA. He has 288 strikeouts and 117 walks since he was promoted to the Majors in 2020.

This is likely more about security for Finnegan than it is about money. North of 30 years old, the right-hander knows his chances of finding a multi-year deal are running short. Washington may not see him as the multi-year contract type of player.

The good news is that the two sides are still talking, even if it hasn’t led to anything — yet.