Braves shortstop Jack Wilson never had a chance. After seeing three consecutive 100 mile-per-hour fastballs from Nats reliever Henry Rodriguez, Wilson readied himself for another. Rodriguez had been firing his fastball all inning, overwhelming the first two Atlanta batters to the point that catcher David Ross chose to bunt with two strikes and no one on base. Instead, he fouled away the 101 mile-per-hour pitch for strike three.
So Wilson readied himself for another, only to freeze when an 88 mile-per-hour slider came tumbling into the strike zone. Called strike three. Inning over. And you could argue it was the most dominant frame any Washington reliever has thrown this season. You know a player has done something when his own teammates are in awe.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” closer Drew Storen said. “It was unfair.”
So good, in fact, the entire bullpen gave Rodriguez a standing ovation as he trotted off the mound. It leaves the Nats wondering what next season would be like if Rodriguez could harness that dominance. After all, they already have Storen and set-up man Tyler Clippard pitching at a high level. Rodriguez’ blazing fastball stayed down in the strike zone. The slider had a sharp break and sat in the upper 80s. He even has a change-up to mix in if hitters try to sit on either of those pitches. Clippard and Storen both joked they didn’t want to come into the game and have to follow that act.
“He’s got tremendous stuff, clearly,” Clippard said. “I don’t think you’re going to see anything like that out of anybody in the league.”
But it hasn’t always been that way for Rodriguez this season. Acquired from the Oakland A’s in the Josh Willingham trade last winter, the 24-year-old arrived with a reputation for wildness that Washington hoped it could smooth over. His ERA is 3.62 in 65 2/3 innings – not too bad for his first full big-league season. He’s struck out 73 batters (good), but also allowed 53 hits, another 45 walks and two hit batters (bad). You’re not going to have sustained success putting a runner-and-a-half on base every inning you pitch. Add in 14 wild pitches – only A.J. Burnett (Yankees) and Trevor Cahill (A’s) have more and both are starting pitchers with far more innings than Rodriguez – and you have a talent that can be as scary to the Nats as he is to their opponents. But a power arm like that is too tempting to move.
“That was another [whole] level,” Storen said. “And he’s got that. It’s just a matter of consistency for him. He’s come a long way this year, I feel like. And I think he’s going to be a big part of our bullpen next year.”
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