The Washington Nationals have bolstered their late game effectiveness by picking up the Yankees' left-handed reliever Matt Thornton off of waivers.
Nationals claim Matt Thornton off waivers from Yankees
The NL East-leading Nationals have acquired a left-handed reliever at a reasonable rate in Matt Thornton.
Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
In his 11th year, Thornton has been very solid for New York this season with a 2.55 ERA in 24.2 innings pitched, and 12 holds in 46 appearances without surrendering a single home run. Relatively speaking, the former Red Sox pitcher is a strikeout machine. His 411 punch-outs since 2008 are the most by a left-handed reliever in that time frame.
Not surprisingly, the southpaw pitches particularly well against left-handed batters, who have hit just .233 against him in his career. A first round selection for the Seattle Mariners in 1998, the one thing that the Nationals won't be getting from Thornton is a significant amount of postseason experience. He has just one appearance on his resume -- a single scoreless three-inning performance against the Tampa Bay Rays from 2008 as a member of the Chicago White Sox.
Thornton's new team will pay a prorated portion of his $3.5 million dollar salary for the remainder of this season and the entirety of that same salary next year, bringing the total cost of the acquisition somewhere in the $4 million dollar range for the Nats. They sit just three games ahead of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East despite outpacing them by almost 70 in run differential.
See More:
