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Jonathan Papelbon cried out for a trade at the All-Star break, and the Philadelphia Phillies finally granted his wish Tuesday, dealing the closer to the Washington Nationals in exchange for right-hander Nick Pivetta.
The Nationals also picked up Papelbon's 2016 option, and the All-Star is reportedly leaving money on the table in order to leave Philadelphia. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that Papelbon will receive $11 million in guaranteed salary next season in exchange for giving up his $13-million vesting option.
The Phillies are paying part of Papelbon's salary for the remainder of this season, with that portion rumored to be $4.5 million.
"We didn't want to just get rid of him," Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. told reporters. "He had an extraordinary career with us. The fact of the matter is, he was as good as advertised and maybe better. We just didn't play very well around him. Unfortunately, we didn't have the kind of club that was the reason for him to be here."
| 2015 | SV | K/9 | BB/9 | ERA | WAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Papelbon | 17 | 9.08 | 1.82 | 1.59 | 0.5 |
| Storen | 29 | 10.90 | 2.23 | 1.73 | 1.2 |
The veteran has converted all 17 of his save opportunities this season, and his addition solidifies the back end of Washington's bullpen along with Drew Storen. Papelbon, who had Washington on his no-trade list, was only willing to approve deals to destinations where he could maintain his closer status, meaning Storen will be bumped to a setup role.
"Papelbon is our ninth-inning pitcher," Nationals GM Mike Rizzo said after orchestrating the deal. "Drew will pitch the ninth inning at times when Papelbon's not available and be our setup guy in the eighth inning ... We feel that we really intensified our efforts in the bullpen, and we think we got ourselves a bullpen that can really shut down the opposing teams."
Papelbon, a World Series champion in 2007 with the Boston Red Sox, brings 27 innings of playoff experience to the table. October seems to bring out the best in the right-hander, who owns a sparkling 1.00 ERA and 0.81 WHIP in the postseason while converting all seven of his save opportunities.
Pivetta is the 13th-ranked prospect in the Nationals' farm system, according to MLB.com. The 22-year-old began the year with Class-A Advanced Potomac, recording a 7-4 record with a 2.29 ERA and 7.5 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He hasn't fared as well since his promotion to Double-A Harrisburg, however, allowing 12 earned runs over 15 innings.