Washington Nationals: Mike Minor would be a worthwhile trade target
It’s Christmas Day and the Washington Nationals hope to unwrap more presents soon. Mike Minor would be a perfect trade target to find under the tree.
Happy Holidays to Washington Nationals fans everywhere! Hopefully, the front office takes a well-deserved break, before returning to their offseason plan. One name they could be monitoring after the festivities is Mike Minor of the Texas Rangers.
Minor is coming off of a so-so year for the Rangers in which he went 12-8 with a 4.18 ERA in 28 starts. Now, with Texas looking to rebuild and acquire younger players for the long-term, they have been tentatively shopping their experienced starter.
The left-hander has been drawing trade interest from fellow National League East teams in the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, according to Ken Rosenthal. But given the Nationals need for one last starter, they would be wise to get in on the act too.
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For starters, being able to put up a 4.18 ERA in the hitter-friendly Globe Life Park is pretty impressive. When you compare his ERA+, which is a stat that normalizes ballpark factor, Minor’s 116 ERA+ actually exceeds the 114 ERA+ that Stephen Strasburg posted last season. So if he can have a similar season to 2018, he would be an excellent fourth option in the rotation.
But even in a worst-case scenario, Minor also has experience in the bullpen and was a huge success in that role for the Kansas City Royals back in 2017. He made 65 appearances as a reliever that year, recording an impressive 2.55 ERA to go with 17 holds and six saves as he was routinely used in a high-leverage role.
For example, if someone gets injured and their replacement performs well, they could look to drop Minor back to being a reliever if he’s not performing that well in the rotation at the time. Or if the Nationals want to limit the innings of Joe Ross early on, they can do so and potentially demote Minor to the bullpen. The point is, having Minor there will give them flexibility.
Finally, Minor’s contract for a starting pitcher with his ability is incredibly favorable. In 2019 and 2020, the lefty is set to earn just $9.83 million is both seasons, while the annual average of his three-year deal is $8.33 million, according to Cots Baseball Contracts. That annual average is about $1 million less than new signing Anibal Sanchez is set to count against the luxury tax.
However, unlike Sanchez, Minor is going to cost the Nationals some prospects in return. The Nats could probably avoid dealing their very top guys in such a deal, but a pair of the secondary level prospects would be needed given Minor’s nice season.
Seth Romero would be a prime candidate to be dealt in this trade as a high-ceiling starter that the Nats appear to be souring on after his disciplinary issues at Spring Training. Then if they include the high-ceiling outfielder Telmito Agustin and quickly-developing starter Kyle Johnston, that may be enough to convince the Rangers to part with their starter.
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With the Washington Nationals hoping for some final finishing touches to their roster, Mike Minor would be a great way to round out the starting rotation.