Apr 5, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher Kyle Finnegan (67) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park. Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

Nationals Closer Critical to Success Needs More Support from Lineup, Bullpen

Originally posted on Washington Nationals on SI
By Anders Pryor | Last updated May 11, 2025 4:00 PM ET

The Washington Nationals have some exciting players on their roster. But some of the most important ones have less flashy names. And they need to be recognizes more — not just by fans, but by the Nationals themselves.

Experts who picked Washington to exceed expectations made those predicted with roots in the team's offense. C.J. Abrams, James Wood, Luis Garcia Jr., Keibert Ruiz, and Dylan Crews are all ascending names in the MLB who each offer unique skills that give the Nationals one of the highest offensive ceilings in baseball.

But they can't do it on their own.

Why Kyle Finnegan Needs More Help

When Washington lost starting pitcher Josiah Gray for the 2025 season after a career year in 2024, the starting rotation became MacKenzie Gore and a bunch of, well, guys. None of them bad, but none of them able to offer the upside of Gray.

Naturally, more attention turned to the bullpen.

Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan was one of the hotter names on the free agent market in 2024, with several teams expressing strong interest. Be he chose to return on a one-year, $6 million contract — but only after the Nats non-tendered him in November.

Washington was lucky to get Finnegan back and he's been incredible when he's had the chances to save games. But those chances have not been as frequent as the Nats would have hoped.

Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

The Nationals have an argument to have the worst bullpen in all of baseball. According to FanGraphs, they rank last in ERA, WHIP, and walks per nine innings.

Not only do these numbers put extreme pressure on what is still a young and experience Washington lineup, but it undermines the importance of getting Finnegan back on the team, which the team worked incredibly hard to do.

Simply put, Finnegan's skills cannot be put to use properly if the Nationals aren't up late in games.

In an ideal world, the Washington would be trading for bullpen pieces at the trade deadline. But to justify doing that, they need to be in a position to buy, which depends on the bullpen getting better with the group it has now.

At 17-23, there's still time for a change in direction. It may be smart for the Nationals to trade for those pieces now before Finnegan and the rest of the team's fate is written in July and August.

This article first appeared on Washington Nationals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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