As times are a bit slow right now at this stage of the offseason, let's take a look back on this date in Nationals history, where a shocking trade by General Manager Mike Rizzo ended up landing a key lineup piece for the 2015 season. In case you missed yesterday's flashback to the signing of Brian Dozier, you can check that out here.
The 2014 Washington Nationals finished 96-66, coming in 1st place in the NFC East. For a team that had long struggled with consistency in the back end of their bullpen, one of their best players and one of their two All-Stars from that season was fan favorite righty Tyler Clippard. He led the National League with 40 holds and had cemented himself as one of the best setup guys in all of baseball.
Heading into the 2015 season, the team was stacked with their lineup, with names like Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon, Ryan Zimmerman, Ian Desmond, Jayson Werth, Adam LaRoche, and Denard Span leading their lineup. Incumbent second baseman Danny Espinosa was coming off of a brutal 2014 season in which he posted just a .634 OPS and just 8 homers and 27 RBIs, causing the team to seek infield help on the trade market.
On this date exactly a decade ago, today, the Washington Nationals made a trade that would surprise many in the Nation's Capital. The team shipped off Clippard to the Oakland Athletics for infielder Yunel Escobar, who had been acquired by the club just a few days before that. This move would be one that paid off in a big way, as although Clippard would go on to have another solid season, the acquisition of Escobar would pay huge dividends.
Escobar would turn in a fantastic year, playing almost exclusively at third base after a Spring Training injury to Rendon, and would account for 2.0 bWAR over the course of the 2015 season. He would hit 9 homers and 56 RBIs, while having a .314/.375/.415 slash line with a .790 OPS across 139 games, which was his best year since 2012 when he was a member of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Without the acquisition, the club likely would have had to make another deal and potentially have risked overpaying out of desperation. He would also finish with 168 hits, which was the most he had ever had in any season of his career. A savvy trade by Mike Rizzo ended up saving the Nationals from having to give everyday at-bats to guys like Dan Uggla, Wilmer Difo, and top prospect Trea Turner, who would end up making his debut later that season as he prepared to take over the position from Ian Desmond.
Clippard, to his credit, would perform very well in the 2015 season, stepping into the role as the closer for the Athletics and going 17 for 21 in save opportunities with a 2.92 ERA before heading back to the NL East with the New York Mets at the trade deadline. He would bounce around throughout the rest of his career before coming back to the Nationals in 2022 for a couple of appearances before calling it a career in 2023.
Overall, this was a surprising move by Mike Rizzo & co. but a very smart one in the long run. Without the presence of Escobar in the lineup, the team's record might have been even worse than their 83-79 mark, and a young prospect like Trea Turner could have been forced into action at an uncomfortable position.
What was your favorite memory of Yunel Escobar with the Nationals? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.