Washington Nationals: Ryan Madson’s 2017 report card

Washington Nationals reliever Ryan Madson served as a tremendous mid-season addition in 2017. What grade does he deserve?

After the Washington Nationals‘ bullpen ranked among the worst in the league throughout the first half of the 2017 season, it became obvious that a mid-season trade was necessary. In mid-July, they did just that, acquiring relievers Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle from the Oakland A’s.

Doolittle was the big name in the trade due to the fact that he would become the closer and had several seasons of team control remaining. However, Madson was a fantastic reliever in his own right.

Madson, who was 36 at the time of the trade, had pitched to a 2.06 ERA in 40 games for the A’s. While he was phenomenal in Oakland, he was better in Washington. In 20 games with the Nats, Madson pitched to a 1.37 ERA and converted his lone save opportunity.

Much of Madson’s success comes thanks to his filthy sinker. He may be a 37-year-old reliever with a Tommy John Surgery in his past, but he can still dominate with exceptional velocity. His sinker, which is his primary pitch, averaged about 96 mph during his time with the Nats.

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A sinker thrown with that much velocity is very difficult to hit, and nearly impossible to square up. Madson’s power sinker is reminiscent of that of Blake Treinen, one of the players heading to Oakland in the trade. However, Madson has much better control, which enabled him to be much more successful.

Madson also excelled at inducing ground balls and weak contact. Including his time with the A’s, he induced ground balls at a 54.7 percent rate, which was the second-highest of his career, according to FanGraphs. He also induced weak contact at a 28.1 percent rate, which was the second-highest of his career as well.

Unfortunately, Madson was forced to miss a couple weeks in late-August due to a right finger sprain. However, he returned reasonably quickly and continued to dominate upon returning.

In addition to Madson’s regular season success, he also dominated in the postseason. Although the Nats lost the National League Division Series to the Chicago Cubs, Madson was a bright spot.

By the end of the series, Madson had pitched in four of the five games, racking up four strikeouts and pitching to a 2.25 ERA. This postseason success was nothing new for Madson, as he has pitched to a 2.85 ERA in 46 postseason games throughout his career, including pitching in three World Series.

To make the trade even more rewarding, Madson has another year of team control. In 2018, he should once again dominate while setting games up for Doolittle. Although Doolittle headlined the trade, Madson was just as effective, if not more.

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Madson may have traded the “A” on his chest for a “W” in July, but the letter A remains on his report card.