If you remember back about a year ago at this time, things looked pretty wild for the Washington Nationals and former closer Kyle Finnegan. The righty was coming off an All-Star 2024 campaign, but his underlying metrics told more of the full story.
Finnegan had been a beneficiary of some good luck, and his lack of swing-and-miss stuff was keeping him from unlocking his true potential as a late inning option for the Nationals. As a result of that evaluation, he was shockingly non-tendered by the Nationals, as the team was not looking to meet his salary demands or moving to an arbitration hearing with their former closer.
However, Finnegan's market would not end up being as busy as him and his camp had hoped, and he ultimately ended up re-signing with the Nationals later on during the offseason. He would turn in a very solid first half for the team in 2025, even earning some fringe All-Star consideration for the second consecutive season. After years of being in trade rumors, Finnegan was finally dealt at the 2025 trade deadline to one of the most prevalent contenders in the American League in the Detroit Tigers.
In return, the Nationals received a pair of pitching prospects in Josh Randall and RJ Sales, both of whom still have a pretty long way to go before being within range to reach the big leagues. For the Nationals, it was important to get value for Finnegan before letting him hit free agency, as holding on to an aging reliever for the second straight season would not have made a ton of sense.
After Finnegan was traded, he caught fire with the Tigers, as they worked to change his pitch mix to feature less fastballs, and that adjustment made him one of the best relievers in baseball down the stretch. Additionally, the Tigers did what most contending clubs did with their ace relievers, giving him a massive vote of confidence by making him into a relief ace - deploying him into situations outside of just the 9th inning.
He flourished as a result, and as of recent rumblings around the Motor City, it looks as if Finnegan and the Tigers are headed for a reunion. For the Tigers, it would be a great move to continue to keep their contending window open, and for Finnegan, it will be his opportunity to continue to have his latter-half career resurgence bolstered by the resources he has found useful in Detroit.
You have to wonder just how much the new analytical and forward-thinking coaching staff of the Nationals could help Finnegan out now, but it appears as if the Nationals won't even really get a chance to bring back their former closer. Obviously, it seems as if Finnegan wouldn't even really entertain coming back to DC again, but at this point you almost have to wonder what could have been.
What do you think of this latest Kyle Finnegan update? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.