The Nationals non-tendered Finnegan on Friday.
Finnegan will enter free agency after spending the last five years with the Nationals. He registered a 3.68 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 60:24 K:BB over 63.2 innings in 2024, and Finnegan's 38 saves were a career high and third-most in the majors behind Ryan Helsley and Emmanuel Clase. Coming off his first All-Star appearance, the 33-year-old Finnegan should draw plenty of interest from teams looking to add a closer to its bullpen.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Logs pair of saves Saturday
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Finnegan notched a save in each game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Pirates, allowing one run on three hits and a walk in Game 1 and pitching a perfect frame with two strikeouts in Game 2.
Finnegan struggled a bit in the matinee, allowing four of the first five batters he faced to reach base to allow a run to cross the plate and load the bases with one out. He was able to escape the jam, however, by getting Bryan De La Cruz to ground into a game-ending double play. Finnegan tossed 23 pitches in that outing, but that didn't stop Nationals manager Dave Martinez from going to him again with the team up by two runs in the ninth inning of the nightcap. This time Finnegan got the job done with ease, retiring the side in order on 19 pitches. With the pair of saves, Finnegan is up to 36 on the season, third most in the majors.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Secures another save
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Finnegan earned a save against the Yankees on Wednesday, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out one batter in one inning.
Finnegan was called upon in the ninth inning to protect a three-run lead. He started the frame in shaky fashion, allowing a single and a walk to the first two batters he faced to bring the tying run to the plate with no outs. However, Finnegan bounced back to retire the next three batters without allowing a run to score. The save was his third in the past four days and his 34th of the season, third most in the majors.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Shaky in four-out save
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Finnegan earned the save in Tuesday's 4-2 victory over the Yankees, allowing a run on three hits and no walks over 1.1 innings with no strikeouts.
The Washington closer entered the eighth with two outs and a runner on third and escaped cleanly thanks to a Giancarlo Stanton groundout. However, the ninth started ominously for Finnegan, as he yielded a leadoff double to Jazz Chisholm but managed to finish the game, laboring through 24 pitches in the inning. Despite struggling with a 7.30 ERA across 12.1 innings since the All-Star break, Finnegan remains cemented as the Nationals closer while the team is out of playoff position and eyeing 2025.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Logs four-out save
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Finnegan picked up the save Sunday against Atlanta, allowing one hit and no walks with two strikeouts across 1.1 scoreless innings.
Sunday's save pushed Finnegan's season total to 32, which ranks third in all of baseball. It was just his sixth time throwing more than one inning in 2024 but the third time he's done so in August. While Finnegan sports a 3.51 ERA through 51.1 innings this season, he's been shaky lately, allowing nine runs in his last nine outings (8.2 innings).
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Collects 31st save
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Finnegan pitched a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his 31st save of the season Sunday against the Phillies, allowing one hit with zero strikeouts.
Finnegan allowed a leadoff single to Edmundo Sosa, but he quickly put an end to the scare, inducing a double play and a groundout to secure his 31st save of the season, good for third in MLB. The 32-year-old has been shaky since the All-Star break, logging an unsightly 8.38 ERA, 2.07 WHIP and 6:5 K:BB in 9.2 innings. Despite the rough patch, Finnegan has converted all six save chances during that span and is now 31-for-35 in save opportunities this season.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Hits 30-save mark
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Finnegan picked up the save Sunday's 4-3 win over Milwaukee, allowing one hit and no walks across a scoreless ninth inning.
Finnegan became the third closer to reach 30 saves, joining Emmanuel Clase and Ryan Helsley atop the MLB leaderboard. Despite yielding a leadoff single to Rhys Hoskins, Finnegan kept the Brewers from putting a runner in scoring position, getting Blake Perkins to fly out and Brice Turang to ground into a game-ending double play. In 46.1 innings, Finnegan has generated a 3.30 ERA with a 45:14 K:BB.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Matches career high with 28th save
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Finnegan struck out one in a perfect ninth inning to record his 28th save of the season in Sunday's 5-2 win over the Reds.
Despite turning to Finnegan for save chances Friday and Saturday against Cincinnati, Washington manager Dave Martinez went back to the well again for the third game of the series. The right-hander nailed down the sweep for the Nationals on only five pitches, all strikes. Finnegan's 28 saves matched the career high he set in 2023, and his heavy workload this season hasn't been affecting his performance -- over 10 appearances in July he's posted a 2.89 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 7:2 K:BB in 9.1 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Late addition to All-Star Game
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Finnegan was named to the National League All-Star team Monday.
Finnegan wasn't initially named an All-Star, but he'll be available to make his first appearance in the Midsummer Classic after being added as a replacement on the roster for Ryan Helsley. The 32-year-old has the third-most saves in baseball (25) and has recorded a 2.45 ERA across 40.1 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Secures 24th save
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Finnegan picked up the save in Friday's 5-2 win against the Brewers, pitching a clean inning with two strikeouts.
The Nationals closer promptly retired all three batters he faced for his 24th save, good for second in the National League behind Ryan Helsley. This straightforward save was a welcome sight for Finnegan after he yielded three runs across his two previous outings. The Washington righty sports a 2.52 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 42:12 K:BB over 39.1 innings while going 24-for-28 in save chances.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Blows save Friday
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Finnegan blew a save against the Cardinals on Friday, allowing two hits and one run in the ninth inning.
Finnegan was summoned to protect a 5-4 lead in the ninth inning but surrendered a solo home run to Willson Contreras. The closer had thrown five straight scoreless appearances but left a 2-2 fastball down the middle for his fourth blown save of the season. On the year, he has secured 23 saves with a 2.17 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 39:12 K:BB over 37.1 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Notches 23rd save
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Finnegan earned a save against the Mets on Wednesday with a perfect inning of work.
Finnegan protected a two-run, ninth-inning lead by retiring the side in order on 11 pitches. The right-hander has converted 10 of his past 11 save chances and has allowed just four runs over 17.1 innings during that span. Finnegan has been one of MLB's best closers this season, ranking third in the league with 23 saves while posting a 1.98 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 39:12 K:BB over 36.1 frames.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Perfect in non-save outing
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Finnegan struck out one over a perfect inning in Tuesday's extra-inning loss to the Mets.
Finnegan entered in the top of the ninth in a 2-2 game and fired a perfect frame. The 32-year-old has delivered four consecutive scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk over that stretch. Finnegan owns the third-most saves in baseball with 22.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Nails down 21st save
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Finnegan struck out two in a perfect ninth inning Wednesday to record his 21st save of the season in a 3-1 win over Arizona.
The right-hander breezed through the Diamondbacks' 5-6-7 hitters on 14 pitches (11 strikes) en route to his eighth straight successful conversion. Finnegan has put together the best first half of his career with a 1.72 ERA, 0.83 WHIP and 33:10 K:BB through 31.1 innings, but if the Nats fall out of the wild-card picture, he figures to become one of the team's biggest trade chips given that he has just one more year of arbitration eligibility in 2025 before reaching free agency.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Notches 20th save
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Finnegan picked up his 20th save of the season Sunday against Miami, allowing one hit and zero walks while striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.
Finnegan preserved a 3-1 Nationals lead to notch his 20th save of the season, third in the league behind only Ryan Helsley and Emmanuel Clase. The 32-year-old Finnegan has been outstanding, compiling a 1.78 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP across 30.1 innings, converting 20 of 22 save chances.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Grabs second win
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Finnegan (2-3) earned the win in Tuesday's 10-inning victory over the Tigers, striking out three over 1.1 scoreless innings.
Finnegan struck out Colt Keith for the final out in the ninth, stranding the winning run on second base, before the Nats took a 5-4 lead in the top of the 10th. The right-hander would then set Detroit down in order in the bottom half, stranding the free runner to close out his second win this season. The 32-year-old Finnegan has been superb this year, allowing just two earned runs in his last 25.2 innings. Overall, he sports a 1.65 ERA with a 0.84 WHIP and 29:10 K:BB while converting 18 of 20 save chances across 27.1 innings.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Notches 16th save
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Finnegan picked up the save Sunday against Cleveland, allowing one hit and zero walks while striking out zero in a scoreless ninth inning.
Finnegan's strong season continued Sunday, and his 16 saves are tied for fourth in the major leagues. The 32-year-old has been remarkably consistent, allowing just one earned run since March 31 and converting 14 of 15 save opportunities during that span.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Secures save No. 14
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Finnegan struck out one batter in a perfect ninth inning against the Mariners on Saturday to earn his 14th save of the season.
Finnegan dotted the inside corner to strike out Cal Raleigh before getting both Mitch Garver and Julio Rodriguez to ground out. With that, Finnegan is now up to 14 saves, two behind Emmanuel Clase and Ryan Helsley for the MLB lead. His last save prior to Saturday was May 14, as he went a while without being used and squandered a save chance, but Finnegan has only strengthened his grasp on the closer job in Washington with his performance this season. In turn he's also given the organization leverage in trade talks that will inevitably take place this summer.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Picks up 12th save
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Finnegan struck out one batter during a perfect ninth inning to pick up the save Tuesday against Baltimore.
Finnegan has been one of the most reliable closers in the big leagues this season, and he now leads the majors after picking up his 12th save Tuesday. The 32-year-old right-hander owns a 1.76 ERA and 0.85 WHIP, and he's struck out 15 batters across 15.1 innings on the year.
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Nationals' Kyle Finnegan: Slams door for 11th save
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Finnegan walked one batter during one scoreless inning to pick up the save Sunday against the Blue Jays.
Finnegan has not allowed an earned run over his last 13 appearances and converted his 10th straight save opportunity for the surprising Nationals, who moved to .500 on the season with the win. Finnegan now carries a 1.88 ERA and 0.91 WHIP with his 11 total saves, matching Clay Holmes and Ryan Helsley for the major-league lead in that department.
