The Washington Nationals had Brad Lord start Saturday's game against the New York Mets to see what he could do in that role.
This regime said they viewed Lord as a starter during spring training , but they ultimately decided to put him in the bullpen. But now, with veterans Miles Mikolas and Zack Littell no longer part of this roster, Lord got an opportunity to prove why he should be considered for a long-term rotation spot.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. The right-hander was pulled from the game in the first inning after recording just two outs. He walked the first two batters he faced before striking out the third on an overturned strike three call. Then, Lord walked another batter to load up the bases before giving up a two-run RBI double. After he allowed an infield single and walked another batter, manager Blake Butera made an early pitching change.
Washington Nationals pitcher Will Dion | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
In came Will Dion, the left-handed reliever the Nationals acquired from the Cleveland Guardians as part of the Foster Griffin return package . Dion, who had a 4.58 ERA across 12 outings for his former team, has been lights out for Washington .
Saturday was no different, as he came in and didn't allow a single hit across 4 1/3 innings. He also struck out seven batters and walked just one, with the Nationals' team account sharing that the seven K's from Dion were tied for the second-most by a reliever in franchise history (2005-present).
Across three appearances for Washington, Dion has not allowed a run over eight innings pitched. He's also given up just a single hit with eight strikeouts to two walks. Right now, the 26-year-old looks like a future piece of this bullpen, which is something the front office was trying to secure ahead of the trade deadline .
Washington Nationals pitcher Brad Lord | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
This was a tough outing by Lord for a bunch of different reasons. But the one that stands out is how it's starting to become very clear that the 26-year-old is just not a major league starting pitcher. While that might feel a bit reactive after just one start, the statistics back that up.
Last season, when Lord was shifting between starting games and coming out of the bullpen, he had a much better ERA as a reliever (2.79) than when he was a starter (4.99). While it's tough to make an apples-to-apples comparison for his career when it comes to starting vs. relieving splits since he has also been used as an opener at times when he's started games, it's still clear he's more effective when coming out of the bullpen.
-ERA:3.49
-Innings Pitched:95.1
-Batting Average Against:.221
-OPS Against:.629
-Strikeouts:86
-Walks:33
-K Rate:21.5%
-BB Rate:8.3%
-ERA:4.82
-Innings Pitched:97
-Batting Average Against:.268
-OPS Against:.772
-Strikeouts:78
-Walks:31
-K Rate:19.1%
-BB Rate:17.6%
The Nationals' front office has their sights on planning for the future when it comes to closing out the season. So by giving Lord some chances to start, they might be able to officially rule him out as a starter going forward. On the other side, he might be able to put this blunder in the past and become a breakout rotation arm, just like left-hander Andrew Alvarez has done with his opportunities.
But right now, it looks like Lord is destined for a bullpen role, especially as other top pitching prospects arrive in The Show.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/nationals/onsi as Will Dion Got Into Nationals' History Book After Brad Lord's Disastrous Showing .
