The Nats' newest #5 starter, Tom Gorzelanny. AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill
Love the Trade to get Tom Gorzelanny. The three guys we gave up were all marginal prospects in the grand scheme of things. Burgess was a Bowden toolsy draft pick who has moved slowly through the farm system and now is completely blocked for the next 7 years or so by Werth and Harper. I really liked AJ Morris when we drafted him (he was a 4th rounder but was fantastic in college, giving Mike Leake his only loss of the 2009 season) but he’s already lost his starter status and seems like a middle relief guy at best. Lastly Graham Hicks was probably the 2nd or 3rd best pitcher in Hagerstown this year and has some promise.
Gorzelanny’s numbers are not fantastic, but you wouldn’t expect them to be for a 5th starter from a team that lost 90 games last year. He had a 106 era+ for the season pitching out of a hitters park in Chicago. He probably has the inside track on the 5th starter spot here in DC by virtue of his acquisition. If the season started tomorrow you have to think the rotation would be going Livan, Lannan, Zimmermann, Marquis and Gorzelanny. Maya and Detwiler are starting in AAA save an injury, and Wang has a bit more time to rehab.
Meanwhile, AAA is looking jammed. We already had Atilano, Martin, Mock and Martis as returning rotation starters in AAA. Chico is down there as well, having passed through waivers to be reassigned. Maya and Detwiler are going to need places to pitch. Plus we have some older prospects from last year’s AA team (Roark and Tatusko) who really need to be pitching in AAA to see if they’re MLB candidates.
All in all, a competent pitcher to compete for a spot in the rotation and who may help out the rotation in the short term. And not for a lot of money (probably something close to Lannan’s $2.75M deal for 2011).