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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 Hyun-Jin Ryu
LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 21: Hyun-Jin Ryu #99 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches in the first inning of the game against the Washington Nationals at Dodger Stadium on April 21, 2018, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea of Getty Images) /

Hyun-Jin Ryu

Speaking of a very impressive postseason performance, the next pitcher we look at is left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu. The former Dodger could make the trip across the country to join the Washington Nationals in free agency.

Much like Nathan Eovaldi, Ryu saved his best year for 2018 as he was dominant when healthy. He finished his season with a 7-3 record, to go with a pristine 1.97 ERA and 1.008 WHIP while striking out over a batter per inning.

The knock on Ryu’s fantastic season was the left groin strain that caused him to miss over three months of action. He’s also been on the DL every year since 2014, so health concerns are going to come up with the left-hander.

Once again though, it will be a tick in the plus column for Ryu as a left-handed pitcher. Having a southpaw obviously gives opposing teams selection issues when they may play lesser players to try and gain a platoon advantage.

MLBTradeRumors has predicted Ryu to pick up $33 million over three years to stay in L.A. with the Dodgers. They are the only major league organization he’s known, so staying put would make the most sense.

But if the Dodgers want to spend big on one of the top free agents, the Nats would be wise to pursue the South Korean.

EDIT 11/13: Hyun-Jin Ryu accepted the Dodgers’ qualifying offer of $17.9 million and will remain in L.A. for the 2019 season.

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