Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Implodes in ninth inning
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Finnegan (1-3) allowed three runs on three hits and two walks over one-third of an inning, taking the loss and a blown save in Saturday's 6-5 loss to the Brewers.
Finnegan had strung together 8.1 scoreless innings over his last eight appearances, allowing just two walks in that span. It came crashing down quickly Saturday, as he allowed three straight batters to reach base, including a two-run double by Andrew Vaughn that tied the game. Caleb Durbin delivered the final blow with a walk-off single. Finnegan has blown his last three save chances dating back to June 10 -- his recent strong pitching has come in non-save opportunities for the 38-56 Nationals. That poor record as a team suggests there won't be many saves to come by for any member of this bullpen, though Finnegan is on a one-year deal in 2025 and could be moved at the trade deadline. He remains Washington's best bet to see saves for now.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Goes three innings to grab win
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Finnegan (1-2) walked two and struck out two over three scoreless and hitless innings to earn the extra-innings win over the Angels on Sunday.
Finnegan was brought in to keep the game tied in the ninth inning. He achieved that goal and did the same in the 10th before protecting the three-run lead the Nationals generated in the 11th. It's just the fourth time all season he's been asked to cover more than one inning, though three of those instances have been in his last seven appearances. Finnegan was also fresh for this outing, while every other reliever in the Nationals' bullpen had pitched Friday or Saturday, and he got through it on 30 pitches (20 strikes). He's posted decent numbers with a 2.61 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 25:10 K:BB across 31 innings, and he's also converted 18 of 23 save chances in 30 appearances. The Nationals are traveling back home for a three-game series versus the Tigers that starts Tuesday, so Finnegan should have plenty of time to rest up for the next save chance that arises.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Blows second save in a row
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Finnegan was saddled with a blown save after allowing three runs on three hits, walking and striking out none, during Monday's 6-4 loss to the Rockies.
It was perhaps the worst outing of the season for Finnegan, allowing a season-high three runs and three hits. The 33-year-old has flirted with danger lately, allowing seven hits in his last five games, but this was the first time that he allowed a run credited to him over that stretch. The right-hander is now 18-for-23 on save opportunities for the season.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Notches 18th save
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Finnegan struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Friday to record his 18th save of the season in a 2-0 win over the Rangers.
He had to navigate around a CJ Abrams throwing error, but Finnegan was up to the task. The right-hander is tied with Carlos Estevez for second in the league in saves behind Robert Suarez's 20, and Finnegan has been especially sharp since the beginning of May, posting a 1.64 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 7:1 K:BB over his last 11 innings while converting nine of his 10 saves chances.
Finnegan was unavailable for Saturday's game against the Giants due to shoulder fatigue, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.
Finnegan hasn't pitched since blowing a save against Atlanta on Thursday. He reported soreness in his shoulder following his last outing, but manager Dave Martinez said that imaging on his shoulder came back negative, and the 33-year-old righty is considered day-to-day for now.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Collects 15th save
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Finnegan earned the save in Tuesday's 5-3 win over Atlanta, tossing a scoreless ninth inning without a hit, walk or strikeout.
All 10 pitches Finnegan tossed resulted in strikes as he was able to successfully defend the Nationals' two-run lead in the ninth. He's converted on each of his last six save opportunities, and his 15 saves are tied with Andres Munoz and Robert Suarez for most in the majors. Finnegan has a 2.55 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 17:7 K:BB across 17.2 innings this season.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Collects 12th save
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Finnegan recorded his 12th save of the season in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Guardians, giving up a run on two hits in the ninth inning without a walk or a strikeout.
There was drama right to the end of the matinee in a 10-9 win for the Nationals, as Finnegan gave up back-to-back singles and a sacrifice fly before getting Brayan Rocchio to line out to left field to end the contest. It's only the fourth time in 15 appearances that Finnegan has been tagged for a run, and through 14.2 innings he sports a 3.07 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 15:7 K:BB while converting 12 of 14 save chances.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Secures 11th save
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Finnegan struck out two in a perfect ninth inning Sunday to record his 11th save of the season in a win over the Reds.
The right-hander had trouble protecting a 4-1 lead, fanning Gavin Lux and Jose Trevino to end the game. Finnegan has been his usual reliable self as closer despite not re-signing with the Nationals until late February, converting 11-of-13 save chances with a 2.63 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and 15:7 K:BB through 13.2 innings to begin the season.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Stuck with blown save
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Finnegan was charged with a blown save Friday against the Mets, allowing one hit in one-third of an inning.
Finnegan was tasked with securing a four-out save Friday, inheriting a bases-loaded jam with two outs in the eighth. He gave up a bloop hit to Mark Vientos that went past a diving Dylan Crews, resulting in a three-run triple. While it was no real fault of his own, it still goes down as the first blown save of the year for Finnegan. The veteran closer has gotten off to a strong start this season, converting nine saves while posting a 1.64 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 13:6 K:BB across his first 11 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Notches save Tuesday
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Finnegan struck out two batters in a scoreless inning and earned a save against the Pirates on Tuesday.
Finnegan retired all three batters he faced to quickly close out the 3-0 victory. He's converted each of his six save chances this season and has thrown 4.2 consecutive scoreless frames. His ERA dropped to 1.17 with an 8:4 K:BB across 7.2 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Converts third save
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Finnegan earned the save in Sunday's 5-4 win over the Diamondbacks, tossing a scoreless ninth inning while allowing one hit and striking out one.
Finnegan was called upon to protect a 5-4 lead in the ninth and worked around a Corbin Carroll double to secure his second save in as many days. The closer has now converted all three of his save opportunities this season, posting a 2.25 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 3:3 K:BB across four innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Back in Washington on one-year deal
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The Nationals re-signed Finnegan to a one-year, $6 million contract Tuesday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.
The Nationals non-tendered Finnegan back in late November to avoid giving him a big raise in arbitration, but he has found his way back to the club three months later on a salary similar to the $5.1 million he made in 2024. Finnegan will probably need some time to get back up to speed, but he immediately becomes the favorite for saves in a Washington bullpen lacking established late-inning options. The 33-year-old notched 38 saves last season, although that came with a relatively uninspiring 3.68 ERA and 60:24 K:BB over 63.2 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Logs pair of saves Saturday
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Finnegan notched a save in each game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Pirates, allowing one run on three hits and a walk in Game 1 and pitching a perfect frame with two strikeouts in Game 2.
Finnegan struggled a bit in the matinee, allowing four of the first five batters he faced to reach base to allow a run to cross the plate and load the bases with one out. He was able to escape the jam, however, by getting Bryan De La Cruz to ground into a game-ending double play. Finnegan tossed 23 pitches in that outing, but that didn't stop Nationals manager Dave Martinez from going to him again with the team up by two runs in the ninth inning of the nightcap. This time Finnegan got the job done with ease, retiring the side in order on 19 pitches. With the pair of saves, Finnegan is up to 36 on the season, third most in the majors.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Secures another save
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Finnegan earned a save against the Yankees on Wednesday, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out one batter in one inning.
Finnegan was called upon in the ninth inning to protect a three-run lead. He started the frame in shaky fashion, allowing a single and a walk to the first two batters he faced to bring the tying run to the plate with no outs. However, Finnegan bounced back to retire the next three batters without allowing a run to score. The save was his third in the past four days and his 34th of the season, third most in the majors.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Shaky in four-out save
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Finnegan earned the save in Tuesday's 4-2 victory over the Yankees, allowing a run on three hits and no walks over 1.1 innings with no strikeouts.
The Washington closer entered the eighth with two outs and a runner on third and escaped cleanly thanks to a Giancarlo Stanton groundout. However, the ninth started ominously for Finnegan, as he yielded a leadoff double to Jazz Chisholm but managed to finish the game, laboring through 24 pitches in the inning. Despite struggling with a 7.30 ERA across 12.1 innings since the All-Star break, Finnegan remains cemented as the Nationals closer while the team is out of playoff position and eyeing 2025.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Logs four-out save
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Finnegan picked up the save Sunday against Atlanta, allowing one hit and no walks with two strikeouts across 1.1 scoreless innings.
Sunday's save pushed Finnegan's season total to 32, which ranks third in all of baseball. It was just his sixth time throwing more than one inning in 2024 but the third time he's done so in August. While Finnegan sports a 3.51 ERA through 51.1 innings this season, he's been shaky lately, allowing nine runs in his last nine outings (8.2 innings).
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Collects 31st save
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Finnegan pitched a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his 31st save of the season Sunday against the Phillies, allowing one hit with zero strikeouts.
Finnegan allowed a leadoff single to Edmundo Sosa, but he quickly put an end to the scare, inducing a double play and a groundout to secure his 31st save of the season, good for third in MLB. The 32-year-old has been shaky since the All-Star break, logging an unsightly 8.38 ERA, 2.07 WHIP and 6:5 K:BB in 9.2 innings. Despite the rough patch, Finnegan has converted all six save chances during that span and is now 31-for-35 in save opportunities this season.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Matches career high with 28th save
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Finnegan struck out one in a perfect ninth inning to record his 28th save of the season in Sunday's 5-2 win over the Reds.
Despite turning to Finnegan for save chances Friday and Saturday against Cincinnati, Washington manager Dave Martinez went back to the well again for the third game of the series. The right-hander nailed down the sweep for the Nationals on only five pitches, all strikes. Finnegan's 28 saves matched the career high he set in 2023, and his heavy workload this season hasn't been affecting his performance -- over 10 appearances in July he's posted a 2.89 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 7:2 K:BB in 9.1 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Blows save Friday
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Finnegan blew a save against the Cardinals on Friday, allowing two hits and one run in the ninth inning.
Finnegan was summoned to protect a 5-4 lead in the ninth inning but surrendered a solo home run to Willson Contreras. The closer had thrown five straight scoreless appearances but left a 2-2 fastball down the middle for his fourth blown save of the season. On the year, he has secured 23 saves with a 2.17 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 39:12 K:BB over 37.1 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Notches 23rd save
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Finnegan earned a save against the Mets on Wednesday with a perfect inning of work.
Finnegan protected a two-run, ninth-inning lead by retiring the side in order on 11 pitches. The right-hander has converted 10 of his past 11 save chances and has allowed just four runs over 17.1 innings during that span. Finnegan has been one of MLB's best closers this season, ranking third in the league with 23 saves while posting a 1.98 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 39:12 K:BB over 36.1 frames.
