While the Washington Nationals were back in the news recently with their signing of infielder Amed Rosario, who should hopefully be a somewhat valuable addition to the ballclub for 2024. Although he is not the signing that all of the fans are hoping for, the thought process is clear to see that the team is making upgrades at specific spots without breaking the bank at this time.
One area where the club has made a handful of these smaller additions already during this offseason is in the bullpen, where they have a dire need for arms. After a few Nationals relievers from the 2024 season including Robert Garcia, Tanner Rainey, and Jordan Weems, among others, signed with other clubs for the 2025 season and beyond, the club still has to fill a couple of slots before they kick off Spring Training in the not too distant future.
This is even considering the status of free agent closer Kyle Finnegan, who was non-tendered by the Nationals earlier on in the offseason, and his market has been somewhat slow to develop. Perhaps the Nationals will explore a reunion with Finnegan or fellow righty Jacob Barnes? We can only hope the club will make a big move soon, but in the meantime they did make an addition to add depth to the bullpen.
Ivan Armstrong is the newest member of the Washington Nationals, after he signed an MiLB deal with the Nationals on January 7th. Who is Armstrong? He is a former international free agent signing by the San Francisco Giants organization when he was just 18-year-old, who stuck around in their system for a couple years before being dealt to the Los Angeles Angels.
During his time with the Angels, he progressed all the way up to AAA Salt Lake, and his potential is pretty easy to see, literally. The righty stands at an imposing 6'5" and 247 pounds, with velocity that can get up to 100 MPH. Still just 24-years-old, he has an invitation to Spring Training and will have an opportunity to factor into a bullpen situation with the Nationals that is questionable at best.
He definitely looks the part of a future MLB reliever, but will it translate? It remains to be seen, but his 3.41 ERA between AA and AAA is somewhat encouraging, although his numbers in AA were significantly better than his numbers in AAA. The bottom line is, he's got a lot of potential, and this is a worthwhile dart throw as the team tries to sort out the bullpen for 2025.
What do you think of the Ivan Rodriguez signing? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.