Nationals Sign Former A's Minor Leaguer Kyle Finnegan to MLB Contract
By Michael Luciano
The Washington Nationals signed a free agent! No, it's not Stephen Strasburg or Anthony Rendon. It's one of Triple-A's best closers.
The Nationals agreed to an MLB deal with 28-year-old former Oakland A's minor league Kyle Finnegan, who has not yet made an appearance in the bigs.
Nationals To Sign Kyle Finnegan https://t.co/gSSrz5y7pX pic.twitter.com/qj3ltY2Ewu
— MLB Trade Rumors (@mlbtraderumors) December 8, 2019
Gambling on relievers with great stuff has been somewhat of a trademark of GM Mike Rizzo's tenure, as evidenced by the signings of Trevor Rosenthal, Kyle Barraclough, and Fernando Rodney last year to varying degrees of success.
Finnegan has yet to appear in an MLB game, but his track record in the minors should give Nationals fans plenty of optimism. Finnegan posted a 2.31 ERA with the Double-A Midland Rockhounds and Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators last season. Considering pitching in Las Vegas essentially akin to pitching in Coors Field on steroids, Finnegan's 2.89 ERA in Vegas looks even more impressive.
Nats announce they’ve signed right-handed reliever Kyle Finnegan to a major league deal. Finnegan, 28, has not yet appeared in an MLB game, but posted very strong numbers in ‘19 between AA and AAA, including in the hitter-friendly PCL. Last two seasons, he’s 28-for-30 in save ops
— Dan Kolko (@masnKolko) December 8, 2019
If Finnegan can master pitching in Las Vegas, than mastering Nationals Park in Washington should be no problem at all for him.