If the Nationals are serious about making a run for the playoffs, they may have to fill Stephen Strasburg’s spot with a veteran pitcher. Could Dylan Bundy be that guy?
Word came down the pipeline Stephen Strasburg is suffering from a case of Carpel Tunnel Syndrome. The Nationals are weighing their options, with one of them being surgery. If he is on the shelf for an extended period of time the Nats may need to explore a veteran replacement. General Manager Mike Rizzo may want to do his due diligence on Dylan Bundy.
Bundy is having a good year for a bad team. The Los Angeles Angels are hitter heavy and lack quality pitching. Bundy is 3-2 with a 2.48 earned run average and is striking out 10.5 men per nine innings.
He is on a team friendly 1 YR/$5M contract and the Angles will most likely be fielding calls on him, as they sit ten games under .500 in a tough American League West Division.
The Nationals entered the year with a vaunted three-headed pitching monster, with Anibal Sanchez and Austin Voth in tow as well. Max Scherzer and Patrick Corbin have held their own while Strasburg hasn’t been on the field long enough to make a difference.
Sanchez has struggled to get going and both Voth and Eric Fedde have shown their youth at times. In a sixty game season there is not time to wait around for these young pitchers to get going.
Bundy is cheap from a monetary standpoint, though could be pricey in exchange rates. He is one of few veteran pitchers on the trade market, allowing the Angels to set their price or set the market.
Trading anything of supreme value would not be a smart move on the Nationals part, though if they could entice the Angels with some lower level talent, it may be worth the gamble.
The trade deadline is August 31st, though the Nationals may not want to wait around that long. They face an uphill climb as they are looking up at a lot of teams in both the division and wild card races.
Maybe pulling the trigger on a trade wouldn’t be such a bad idea.