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The Washington nationals made the signing of reliever Greg Holland official on Tuesday. Holland joined the team after being released by the St. Louis Cardinals on Aug. 1. Holland’s addition comes as the team traded away Shawn Kelley to Oakland, and before their first game of a doubleheader against Atlanta, Nats manager Davey Martinez told reporters Holland initial role on the team.
Davey says he told Greg Holland that his role could change as the final two months play out, but for now, he’ll line up as a 6th/7th inning guy. Nats trust that Holland can get back on track given his history for getting big outs.
— Dan Kolko (@masnKolko) August 7, 2018
Holland will be the sixth and seventh inning reliever although Martinez admitted that role can change as the final two months of the season progresses. Holland posted a 7.92 ERA in 25 inning with the Cardinals before his release. His struggles came in his season since undergoing Tommy John Surgery.
While being introduced, Holland said he has been throwing to hitters since his release and trying to reset both mentally and mechanically.
Greg Holland says he’s been throwing to hitters since getting let go by the Cardinals, trying to reset mentally and find consistent mechanics. Says the Nats called his agent a few days ago and worked out a deal. Called this a good fit; already knows Madson, Herrera, others.
— Dan Kolko (@masnKolko) August 7, 2018
Holland is trying to rediscover the magic that made him a lethal closer before his Tommy John surgery. He spent six seasons with the Kansas City Royals, the last two as an All-Star before he suffered the torn UCL in September 2015 — that year the Royals went on to win the World Series in large due to outstanding play by Kelvin Herrera as a setup reliever. Herrera is of course now a teammate once again with the Nationals.
The Nationals are set to embark on a critical four-game series with Atlanta who sits 4.5 games ahead of the Nats for the second NL wild card spot. The Nationals stood pat at the trade deadline only reshaping its bullpen by sending Kelley off to Oakland and Brandon Kintzler to the Chicago Cubs. If healthy and able to get outs, Holland could be a steal. Nonetheless no matter what Holland does, the Nats success this season will only laminate the decision to sign the 32-year old.
