Based on his recent trades of aging veterans for prospects, it’s apparent that Nats GM Mike Rizzo subscribes to the belief that you can never have enough pitching in your farm system.
Last week’s swap of Ronnie Belliard to the Dodgers for a pair of minor league relievers was an impressive return for a 34-year-old soon-to-be free agent who did not factor into the club’s long term plans. Yes, Belliard contributed some key hits along the way in his three seasons in D.C., but his return to the club next year was iffy at best.
Situational lefty Victor Garate, a 24-year-old from Maracay, Venezuela, had 56 strikeouts in 53 innings at AA Chattanooga, a minor league town with historic ties to Washington. He was added to the big league roster on Friday. The other hurler, Luis Garcia, a 22-year-old righty from Santo Domingo, DR, has a 3.5-to-1 K/BB ratio in 34 appearances and 71 innings in Class A.
One thing you need to know about the Los Angeles Dodgers: They’re deeper than most big league franchises in quality arms. They exhaustively scout the Latin American countries and, as many scouts will tell you, they’re notoriously slow in moving their young pitchers through the system. Like most clubs, they tend to favor the higher draft picks when it’s time for a promotion, and the international signings, like Garcia and Garate, sometimes get lost in the shuffle.
July’s trade of Nick Johnson to the Marlins, in town over the weekend, offers a similar story, though some fans seem to think the club gave him away. Lefty Aaron Thompson, Florida’s first-round pick in 2005, has a 5-12 record this year in AA, but a sub-4.00 ERA.
Minor league pitching statistics can be deceptive. There’s no shortage of examples. Jorge Julio was coming off of a 2-10, 5.90 season in A ball when Baltimore traded for him in December 2000. While no Hall of Famer, he’s had a nine-season big league career, and was recently signed by Tampa Bay.
You want a future Hall inductee? When the Braves sent Doyle Alexander to Detroit in 1987 for John Smoltz — a deal that helped put the Tigers in the ALCS — Smoltz was 4-10, 5.68, in AA ball. At the time Tiger fans didn’t think twice about that deal.
Nick Johnson paid some heavy dues with Washington, including a lot of injury rehab, but the facts are that he was hitting a lot to left field and not by design, and had lost some range at first base. I’m not sure what fans thought the Nats might get for Johnson, but it was anything but a giveaway.
It frequently takes a few seasons to accurately gauge a veteran-for-prospects deadline deal. The Nationals aren’t likely to contend next season and figure to have numerous vacancies throughout their farm system. It’s a process that, after an almost disastrous false start, seems to finally have some legs.
Phil Wood is a contributor to Nats Xtra on MASN. Contact him at [email protected].
