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Washington Nationals: could Austin Adams be next bullpen callup?

By Ricky Keeler

Mar 16, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; A view of a Washington Nationals hat, sunglasses and glove in the dugout during a spring training game against the New York Mets at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 16, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; A view of a Washington Nationals hat, sunglasses and glove in the dugout during a spring training game against the New York Mets at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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One of the pitchers the Washington Nationals acquired in the Danny Espinosa trade this winter is off to a good start at triple-A Syracuse

When the Washington Nationals traded Danny Espinosa to the Los Angeles Angels in December, they acquired two pitchers in that deal. One of the pitchers in that trade was right-handed reliever Austin Adams. While there’s no room in the Nats bullpen right now, Adams has shown some good things at triple-A Syracuse where he could be a call-up down the road.

In his first 11 outings in the International League, Adams is 2-1 with a 1.62 ERA and has converted his only save opportunity. When you look at his stats, the one number that stands out is the strikeout totals. He has 26 K’s over the course of 16.2 innings.

Right now, his 26 strikeouts are the most of any reliever in the entire International League. To put that stat in perspective, he has only five strikeouts less than a former starter in the Nats organization, Lucas Giolito (31 in six starts).

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It shouldn’t be a surprise that Adams has a high strikeout rate early this season. Last season, across double-A Arkansas and triple-A Salt Lake City, he had 12.8 strikeouts per nine innings. He had 61 K’s in 32 outings while with Arkansas.

Sometimes, you will see the Chiefs use Adams for more than one inning in a ball game. This year, the 26-year-old right-hander has had three or more strikeouts in a game five times. This includes the five strikeouts he had over two perfect innings on April 10 against Pawtucket.

If there’s one thing that could be holding Adams back, it’s the amount of free passes he gives up to opposing hitters. This season, he has 15 walks (two of them intentional). Despite being tied for the team lead in walks, teams are only hitting .148 against him, which shows he has the ability to avoid giving up the crooked inning.

While you might only notice the problems the Nats bullpen has at the Major League level, keep these numbers in mind. So far, the Chiefs team ERA of 5.76 is the highest in the IL. Meanwhile, in double-A, the Harrisburg Senators team ERA of 4.56 is the second highest in the Eastern League.

At this current time, the Nats don’t have many players at the minor league level that can help a struggling Major League bullpen. True, they have veterans like Joe Nathan in Syracuse, but even he is off to a rough start.

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Adams may not be ready for his big league debut just yet. With that being said, if the strikeouts keep coming and the walks come down a little bit, don’t be surprised if he is pitching at Nats Park sometime this season since he is on the 40-man roster.

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