Washington Nationals: Bullpen acquisitions off to great start

It’s now been two weeks since the trade deadline. The Washington Nationals made a few moves, and they’ve paid huge dividends.

With the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline a couple weeks in the rear-view, the Washington Nationals could not be happier with their “three-headed monster” in the back of the bullpen. The Nats acquired Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle from the Oakland A’s a few weeks before the deadline, mostly filling their bullpen need. They then acquired Brandon Kintzler from the Minnesota Twins just minutes before the deadline, completing their bullpen makeover.

Madson and Doolittle took over in the eighth and ninth before the acquisition of Kintzler, and did an outstanding job. Doolittle struggled a bit in his first couple outings with the Nats, but quickly settled in. Madson, who has thrived both as a setup man and closer throughout his 12-year MLB career, has been nearly flawless in a setup role.

Doolittle, a traditional closer, does not mess around. He pounds the zone and overpowers hitters, relying almost exclusively on his fastball. He also features a splitter, slider, and change-up, which he uses just enough to keep in the back of a hitter’s mind, causing them to be late on the fastball.

In 12 games with the Nats, Doolittle has pitched to a 3.00 ERA, has a 0.84 WHIP, and opponents have hit .176 against him. He is also 8-for-8 in save opportunities and the Nats are 12-0 when he pitches.

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Doolittle’s path to becoming an elite closer is an interesting one. He was teammates with Ryan Zimmerman at the University of Virginia, but played first base at the time. Doolittle even hit more homers than Zimmerman in college. Doolittle was a first round draft pick in 2007, drafted as a first baseman.

Once his professional career began, Doolittle struggled at the plate. He knew he’d never make it as a position player and had a good arm, so he gave pitching a try and the rest is history.

Madson, a 36-year-old reliever, has been better than advertised in his time with the Nats. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2012 and was unable to recover, forcing him to retire. Then he discovered an unorthodox form of shock therapy, which rejuvenated his arm, allowing him to return to baseball.

Now, after having been back in the league for a few years, Madson finds himself as a key contributor to a World Series-caliber team. His height, 6’6″, allows him to get lots of downward action on his fastball, which paired with his upper-90s velocity makes him nearly unhittable.

In nine games with the Nats, Madson has yet to allow a run, has a 0.67 WHIP, and has struck out 13 batters while only issuing one walk.

Finally, Kintzler has excelled with the Nats. The 33-year-old began the year as the Twins’ closer, a role in which he thrived. He was an All-Star for the first time in his career this year, and was third in the American League in saves at the time of the trade.

Since being acquired by the Nats, Kintzler has mostly pitched the seventh inning, setting things up for Madson and Doolittle. He has appeared in seven games for the Nats, not allowing a run while posting a 0.71 WHIP with a .130 opponents batting average.

Like Doolittle and Madson, Kintzler has quite the story behind his path to the Nats. He played division-two baseball at Dixie State University and was a 40th round draft pick. He also struggled to get a job in the independent leagues and was forced to lie about his height, making himself taller to appeal to independent league teams.

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The Nats acquired Doolittle, Madson, and Kintzler to fix the bullpen, and they have done just that. Before the three arrived, the Nats’ bullpen was a glaring weakness, but it is now a strength. With the “three-headed monster” looming in the back of the Nats’ bullpen, games have been shortened to six innings. Pitching and defense win games in the postseason and the Nats’ elite starting rotation paired with their suddenly solid bullpen will create headaches for whoever they face come October.