The Washington Nationals are still searching for answers in the bullpen, and Sunday brought another sign that the club is willing to keep shuffling arms until something sticks.
After a rough series finale against the Pirates, in which Brad Lord was tagged for five earned runs in 1.1 innings and he and Justin Lawrence combined to allow seven earned runs in three innings of work during an 11-5 loss, the Nationals turned again to the waiver wire. The latest move came Sunday, when Washington claimed left-hander Matt Krook off waivers from the Athletics and designated right-hander Andre Granillo for assignment.
That transaction also set off a few more roster changes. The Nationals DFA’d former top prospect Robert Hassell III to clear space for right-hander Eddy Yean on the 40-man roster, and Yean was then sent down to Rochester after Sunday’s game following a solid debut. Krook now gets the next shot to carve out a role.
The numbers attached to Krook are hard to ignore. The 31-year-old has a career 16.50 ERA and 2.67 WHIP in 13 games out of the bullpen, with 13 strikeouts and 12 walks across 12.0 innings. He has already spent time in the majors with the New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, and Athletics, and Washington is now the next stop.
The Nationals are clearly still piecing things together in relief, and the hope is that Krook can provide something closer to what Richard Lovelady gave them earlier this year before getting injured. With the club trying to stay in the mix for playoff contention, every usable arm matters, especially when the late innings keep turning into a problem.
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