Nats ink veteran P Jason Marquis

The Washington Nationals made their second substantial pitching acquisition, this time bolstering starting pitching, by preparing to sign veteran starter Jason Marquis, pending his passing a physical.  The deal is said to be a 2 year deal around $15 million.

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I spoke with National’s pitcher Jason Bergmann a few minutes ago who said, “I am excited that we are able to add a starting pitcher of his caliber. It is a good day for our team and our fan base. It shows the league that the Nats are serious about getting better and contending. Marquis is a top of rotation starter that can go deep into games. He was an all star last year and is a ground ball pitcher. He is a veteran presence on our pitching staff and can be a mentor for our younger players.”

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Marquis was 15-13 with a 4.04 ERA in 33 starts last season for Colorado.  He has double digits wins the past 6 seasons.  The big thing the Nationals also get from Marquis is an innings eater.  he consistently tosses 190-210 inning per season.  Last year he pitched 216 innings.

The Marquis signing follows an earlier trade with the New York Yankees for reliever Brian Bruney.  The Nationals are not expected to be done in rebuilding the bullpen.  They are know to have strong interest in Prates free agent Matt Capps.  Capps was 4-8 with 27 saves last season posting an ERA of 5.80.  The attraction for Capps is that he would likely land the closer role in Washington.  Not sure I like that idea given an ERA that approached 6.00.

Another thing that is unclear is whether the Nationals are done in obtaining veteran starters or if they will continue to seek one more.  They reportedly have strong interest in Jon Garland.

Read more news at

http://dcprosportsreport.com/2009/12/21/nats-ink-veteran-p-jason-marquis.html