Closer Monkey

Category: Washington Nationals

  • Pirates deal Mark Melancon to Nationals

    July 30, 2016 Pittsburgh Pirates — The Pirates traded Mark Melancon to Washington for multiple players, including reliever Felipe Rivero. GM Neal Huntington has named Tony Watson the closer, with Neftali Feliz spelling him if necessary and Rivero pitching the seventh. Updated hierarchy: Watson | Feliz | Rivero. Washington Nationals — The Nationals acquired closer Mark Melancon from the Pirates in…

  • Pirates, Nationals, and Braves deep in trade deadline drama

    July 30, 2016 Pittsburgh Pirates — The Pirates are fielding offers from the Nationals, Indians, and Giants for closer Mark Melancon. Although Pittsburgh is in the playoff hunt and Melancon has been one of the most effective closers in the game, the team may be looking to improve other areas of its roster while trusting some combination of…

  • Jonathan Papelbon’s days as Nationals closer nearing end

    July 29, 2016 Washington Nationals — While the East Coast was sleeping, there was some late-innings drama in San Francisco when beleaguered closer Jonathan Papelbon entered the ninth inning with a 4-1 lead. He recorded one out, but allowed a single and a walk before he was pulled from the game, which had social media speculating…

  • Jeurys Familia blows his first (regular-season) save in a year

    July 28, 2016 New York Mets — Pour one out for Jeurys Familia’s 52-game regular-season save streak, the third-longest in MLB history (behind Tom Gordon and Eric Gagne). Familia’s streak is survived by Zach Britton’s 34-game regular-season save streak, Tony Wolters’s five-game hitting streak, and Vin Scully’s 67-year streak of being awesome. Hierarchy remains: Familia |…

  • Jonathan Papelbon’s struggles continue

    July 27, 2016 Washington Nationals – Jonathan Papelbon suffered his second loss in as many outings, blowing a three-run lead in the ninth without recording an out. He has now allowed six earned runs in his last two appearances, raising his ERA from 2.56 to 4.45. After the game, Papelbon’s confidence in himself hasn’t wavered,…