Washington Nationals News: Nats, Reds have reportedly discussed Aroldis Chapman
By Pablo Roa
Good afternoon DoD readers, and welcome to today’s District Daily! Get caught up on all the latest Nats news with some Washington Nationals tweets and articles from around the web below.
In today’s Daily, Fox Sports’s Jon Morosi reports that the Nationals have expressed interest in Cincinnati Reds reliever Aroldis Chapman. As Morosi notes in his tweets, no deal is close as of yet and talks between the two teams have been preliminary in nature.
Of course, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Nationals are, in fact, interested in Chapman. The bullpen has been the biggest concern for the Nationals this season and Chapman—one of the best closers in baseball over the last few years—could provide a major boost.
This year’s ‘pen is very different from the one that helped guide the Nationals to their second NL East title last year. Tyler Clippard, Rafael Soriano and Jerry Blevins have all left via trade or free agency, and longtime anchor of the bullpen Craig Stammen is on the disabled list for the rest of the season. With those key names no longer in the bullpen, the Nationals have had to rely on veterans Casey Janssen and Matt Thornton and youngsters like Blake Treinen and Matt Grace, and it hasn’t been an easy ride.
Janssen has been inconsistent since coming off the disabled list last month and the young guns in the ‘pen have struggled to adapt to high-pressure roles in the seventh and eighth innings. Closer Drew Storen has been phenomenal, boasting a 1.11 ERA with 19 saves, but the rest of the ‘pen has been hit or miss all season long.
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While it’s unclear how serious the Nationals’ interest in the flame throwing right-hander is, there’s no doubt that Chapman and his triple-digit fastball could provide a big boost to a bullpen that desperately needs one. We’ll continue to monitor the Chapman rumors as they develop.
Also in today’s Daily, the Washington Post’s James Wagner has a very interesting article on Mariano Rivera Jr.—the Nationals’ fourth round draft pick and the son of future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera. Be sure to check out the article below, it’s definitely worth a read. And as always, stay tuned to DoD for all your Washington Nationals needs.
Sources: Aroldis Chapman has been the subject of trade discussions between #Nats and #Reds. No deal is close. @FOXSports
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 12, 2015
Add: My understanding is trade talks between Nats and Reds have been very preliminary in nature, with Nats expressing interest in Aroldis.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 12, 2015
Re Chapman fit with Nats: They have only one veteran LH in pen (Thornton) and could encounter Dodgers in playoffs (Pederson, A-Gon, Ethier).
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 13, 2015
Mariano Rivera Jr. on getting drafted by the Nationals, his future and father
(James Wagner, Washington Post)
Mariano Rivera Jr. was sitting at home in Harrison, N.Y., on Tuesday, nervous about his future. The Yankees drafted the son of their former reliever, the greatest closer of all time, in the 29th round of last year’s draft but he decided to return to Iona College.
As the rounds ticked by on the second day of this year’s draft, Rivera sat on the couch and talked with his mother and girlfriend, trying to get himself to think about something else.
“I was getting nervous at this point,” Rivera said.
Then the 21-year-old got a congratulatory text message from his college pitching coach. Confused, Rivera looked at his computer and saw the Nationals had picked him in the fourth round with the 134th overall pick. Read full article here.