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Washington Nationals Release Former All-Star Joe Nathan

By Andrew Schmid

Feb 16, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Joe Nathan (74) throws in the bullpen during spring training workouts at the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 16, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; Washington Nationals relief pitcher Joe Nathan (74) throws in the bullpen during spring training workouts at the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Washington Nationals have parted ways with former All-Star Joe Nathan.

According to ESPN, the Washington Nationals have parted ways with reliever Joe Nathan. Despite not having a job, the 42-year-old has said that he has no intention to retire, telling MASNSPorts.com that there are still 29 other teams for which he could pitch.

For Joe Nathan, this continues a troubled stretch of recent history. He has only pitched a bit more than a handful of innings since 2014, most of it due to injury issues. The former closer underwent a second Tommy John surgery in April of 2015 and would miss the rest of that season and much of the next. He did appear in about 20 innings strewn about the minor and major leagues last season, and our own Benjamin Chase examined his value back then.

During Nathan’s last full season of work in 2014, he pitched in 62 games for the Detroit Tigers, recording 35 saves in the process. Despite this high save total, his season was generally a disappointment. Nathan posted a 4.81 earned run average, and advanced metrics were quite pessimistic as well. Much of this stemmed from a reduced strikeout rate while simultaneously allowing higher rates of both walks and hits than ever before in his career.

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Not too long before then, however, Nathan held a reputation for being one of the best closers in all of MLB. His 377 career saves rank eighth all-time and second among active members. From 2003 through 2013, only once did the righty post an earned run average above three, with that figure often landing somewhere south of two.

Even as his velocity declined with age, Nathan managed to punch out quite a few batters and hold hits to an absolute minimum. Sure, pitching in the Minnesota Twins’ ballpark probably helped his work a bit, but Nathan’s talent was truly exceptional.

Where he will go from here, however, remains to be seen. It is entirely possible that the righty latches on with another team to try out for a spot. Perhaps the largest question aside from the quality of innings that he will provide could be the number of bullets left in his shoulder.

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As for the Washington Nationals, it is probably of little surprise that they have let Joe Nathan go. They may not have the best bullpen, but they do have a plethora of options. Keeping an aging veteran with durability issues in hopes that he will out produce many other qualified candidates would probably not have been a smart move.

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