Washington Nationals boost ‘pen with Casey Janssen signing
As the ink dries on Max Scherzer‘s seven-year, $210 million dollar contract, the Washington Nationals continue to improve and have added another righty to their pitching staff. According to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, the Nationals have signed former Toronto Blue Jays closer Casey Janssen to a one-year, $5 million dollar deal with a mutual option for 2016.
Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post tweets that Janssen will receive a $3.5 million base salary for 2015 plus at least $1.5 million in 2016. Janssen has a mutual option at $7 million for the latter season, and he will receive a $1.5 million buyout instead if either him or the team chooses not to exercise the option.
Two weeks ago, the Nats traded away a key piece in their bullpen, sending Tyler Clippard to the Oakland Athletics for shortstop Yunel Escobar to sharpen their infield. After such a deal, inking another reliever was a bolded item on General Manager Mike Rizzo’s offseason to-do list. It figures that Janssen will be the setup man and add some insurance in case of a Drew Storen meltdown.
Washington possesses one the best starting rotation in baseball between the newly signed Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, Doug Fister, and Gio Gonzalez. The rich keep getting richer with the signing of Janssen to join Storen, Aaron Barrett, and Matt Thornton to what looks to be a solid bullpen.
Janssen, 33, served as the Blue Jays closer from 2012 through 2014 and saved 81 games in 91 opportunities throughout those two seasons. However, he is coming off a rocky 2015 campaign in which he posted a 3.94 ERA, his highest since 2009.
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Casey Janssen‘s strikeout rate dipped to 5.5 per nine innings in 2014 after being at 8.7 per nine from 2010 to 2013. He had a 6.46 ERA in the second half and finished the season with 25 saves over 45 2/3 innings. However, he has awfully good excuse for his struggles. Janssen dealt with food poisoning, and it got bad enough that he lost eight pounds in one day. With that behind him, he could be primed to return to his previous dominance.
Since 2010, Janssen has a 2.99 ERA and a nearly 4-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in an average of 57 innings per season. Although he is coming off an unsteady season, it doesn’t hurt Washington to have an experience closer and a veteran presence in the clubhouse. Together, Escobar and Janssen will make less than Clippard, and Janssen has the ability to replace most of his production.
This seems to be the last significant offseason move Rizzo will maks, but we can’t rule out the trade rumors lurking around the organization involving Strasburg and Zimmermann. In the end, there are still some question marks surrounding the Nationals’ offense, but going into spring training, the Casey Janssen signing gives Washington a clearer picture of what their bullpen will look like.