The Guardians have acquired left-hander Foster Griffin from the Nationals, as first reported by MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. The Athletic’s Spencer Nusbaum reports that Washington will receive four players — left-handers Will Dion and Josh Hartle, right-hander Kendeglys Virguez, and outfielder Nick Mitchell.
Griffin signed a one-year, $5.5MM free agent deal this past winter, as the rebuilding Nationals took a flier on a veteran lefty after he enjoyed three successful years in Japan. Griffin’s prior MLB experience had consisted of just eight innings of 6.75 ERA ball with the Royals and Blue Jays in 2020-22, but he revived his career by posting a 2.57 ERA and a 25.1% strikeout rate over 315 2/3 innings with the Yomiuri Giants from 2023-25.
The breakout carried over to the majors, as Griffin basically replicated that performance over 22 starts for the Nationals. Griffin has as 3.15 ERA, 22.1K%, and an excellent 5.7% walk rate to show for his 129 1/3 innings in a Nats uniform, and his strong performance earned a selection to the NL All-Star roster.
More to come…
