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Washington Nationals: Six free agent starting pitchers to pursue

By Blake Finney

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 20: Starting pitcher Max Scherzer #31 of the Washington Nationals talks the mound for the start of the ninth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Nationals Park on June 20, 2015 in Washington, DC. Scherzer threw a no hitter during the Nationals 6-0 win. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 20: Starting pitcher Max Scherzer #31 of the Washington Nationals talks the mound for the start of the ninth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Nationals Park on June 20, 2015 in Washington, DC. Scherzer threw a no hitter during the Nationals 6-0 win. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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Washington Nationals Nathan Eovaldi
BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 23: Nathan Eovaldi #17 of the Boston Red Sox reacts during the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game One of the 2018 World Series at Fenway Park on October 23, 2018, in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

Nathan Eovaldi

One of the stars of the Boston Red Sox charge to the World Series was Nathan Eovaldi. The Washington Nationals would be wise to consider attaining his signature this offseason.

The danger in pursuing Eovaldi is to not get too sucked into the postseason hype and overpay based on that. However, in saying that, the last time the Nationals did that, it worked out pretty well when the signed Daniel Murphy after a historic postseason run.

You could argue that Eovaldi has one of the highest upsides in this free agent class. His fastball came steaming in at an average of 97.2 mph in 2018 and has increased every season in the big leagues. He pairs that with a cutter that averaged 92.8 mph last season as well as a slider at 86.8 mph and a curveball at 78.8 mph. A downright filthy arsenal.

After years of never really harnessing his stuff, he appeared to put it all together in 2018. He ended the year with a 3.81 ERA, an 8.2 K/9 and a 1.6 BB/9 which were all among the best figures of his career.

The Nats were in constant contact with the Tampa Bay Rays before the deadline as they hoped to acquire Eovaldi and Wilson Ramos. Evidently, neither came off, but there’s sure to be some interest from the team’s front office this winter.

MLBTradeRumors has the Red Sox winning the bidding war for their postseason hero. The affinity the team now has for Eovaldi may play a factor in the four-year, $60 million that they project for him, as it seems steep for someone without a long track record.

If Nathan Eovaldi can replicate his late-season form, then the Nats could score a bargain here with the right-hander.

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