The Washington Nationals have made the playoffs in four of the past six seasons, but they have not been able to advance beyond the NLDS. Perhaps if they put together one of the greatest starting rotations in MLB history, the results will be better going forward.
Jon Heyman of FanRag sports reported on Tuesday that the Nationals are considering signing Jake Arrieta, mainly because the right-hander has proven he can win in the postseason.
Nats, determined to end their postseason issues, continue to seriously consider Arrieta, who’s been terrific in October for Cubs. “Not a bad number three starter’” remarked one person.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 12, 2017
Of course, Scott Boras would love the Nationals to get in on the bidding for one of his biggest free agent prizes.
Scott Boras is trying to engage the #Nationals on Jake Arrieta, sources say. The Nats already have $385M invested in Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. But that hasn’t stopped Boras from making his pitch to Ted Lerner.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) December 12, 2017
If he signed with Washington, the 31-year-old Arrieta would be joining a rotation that already features Stephen Strasburg, Max Scherzer and Gio Gonzalez. Those four could make up half of the NL All-Star team pitching staff in any given year.
Of course, it may be a long-shot to think the Nationals would take on the kind of salary Arrieta will command. In addition to having hundreds of millions committed to Strasburg and Scherzer, they also need to find a way to re-sign Bryce Harper, who will be a free agent next offseason and could command the biggest contract in MLB history.
We have already heard Arrieta linked to some other intriguing situations, so Boras is undoubtedly going to get the big pay day he is seeking. He almost always does.
