Kyle Finnegan Stats
- Height / Weight
- 6' 2" / 198 lbs.
- Date of Birth (Age)
- 9/4/1991 (32)
- Experience
- 4
- College
- Texas State
Kyle Finnegan Season Stats
Last 10 Games
Kyle Finnegan News
Washington Nationals right-handed reliever Kyle Finnegan (back) returned to the mound on Thursday in a Grapefruit League game after a nine-day layoff due to lower-back tightness. He took a comebacker off his right foot in the top of the seventh inning, but it ended up being harmless. "Physically I felt great," Finnegan said. "I would've argued to keep going, finish my inning. But 25 is a good place to land. I was excited to get back out there and come out of it feeling good. That was the most pitches I threw all spring. To feel good after that, after the layoff, is positive." The 32-year-old gave up one earned run on three hits with a strikeout in two-thirds of an inning against the Minnesota Twins. Finnegan has fantasy value as the primary closing option for the Nats to open the regular season, but Hunter Harvey is a candidate to surpass him on the depth chart if he struggles in the ninth inning.
Washington Nationals right-hander Kyle Finnegan (back), who hasn't pitched in a Grapefruit League game since March 12 due to a tight back, is healthy. He was originally going to pitch on Wednesday night, but he and the team decided to push him back to Thursday. When healthy, Finnegan should be the favorite for saves for the rebuilding Nats in 2024, although he could lose some save chances to Hunter Harvey. Finnegan, 32, had a career-high 28 saves in 67 appearances last year for Washington while also posting a career-high 3.76 ERA and 1.29 WHIP with 24 walks and 63 strikeouts in 69 1/3 relief innings. He saw the vast majority of save opps for the team but ran out of gas late. Finnegan throws gas but had a below-average strikeout rate (21.7%) and allowed too many home runs, which makes him a fantasy closer to avoid in 2024.
Washington Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan tried out a new sweeper for the first time in a Grapefruit League game on Wednesday. "Finnegan's always been toying around with trying to get a third pitch," manager Davey Martinez said. "Cause everything he throws is hard. So, he wanted to create some kind of deception, more or less." The new pitch has been registering 78-79 mph, and its spin rate, horizontal break, and pitch shape have all been in line with the numbers for a quality sweeper to complement his high-90s fastball, slider and splitter. Finnegan's sweepers registered 84 and 85 mph on Wednesday, and one of them induced a strikeout. The new pitch could help boost the 32-year-old's career-low 21.9% strikeout rate from a season ago as Washington's co-closer.
Batting Order
1 | CJ Abrams |
2 | Lane Thomas |
3 | Jesse Winker |
4 | Joey Meneses |
5 | Joey Gallo |
6 | Keibert Ruiz |
7 | Eddie Rosario |
8 | Ildemaro Vargas |
9 | Luis García Jr. |
Kyle Finnegan Stats
Last 10 Games
Batting Order
1 | CJ Abrams |
2 | Lane Thomas |
3 | Jesse Winker |
4 | Joey Meneses |
5 | Joey Gallo |
6 | Keibert Ruiz |
7 | Eddie Rosario |
8 | Ildemaro Vargas |
9 | Luis García Jr. |
Washington Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan should return to the closer job in Washington but could be on a short leash this season. The 32-year-old righty posted seven wins, 28 saves, a 3.76 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. Finnegan's repertoire features a four-seam fastball that he throws a whopping 70% of the time and a splitter. The fastball is in the 93rd percentile for velocity at a 97.3 MPH average. His xERA was a full run higher in 2023 at 4.73, and his 92.2 MPH average exit velocity was in the bottom 1% of MLB. Finnegan has a low 21.9K%. Hunter Harvey is the better pitcher for the Washington Nationals, but Finnegan has the experience. One interesting development is that he is throwing a sweeper this spring. The ATC projections show 19 saves for Finnegan with an ERA of 4.06. He has a 236 NFBC ADP, which seems a steep price for a mediocre closer who could quickly lose the job.