Nationals Rumors: Patrick Corbin drawing interest from Nats

With the team’s need in the starting rotation, there are going to be lots of Washington Nationals rumors about several starters, including Patrick Corbin.

After Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg, the Washington Nationals rotation is in complete flux. So the latest Nationals rumors indicating the team could be in for Patrick Corbin are hardly a surprise.

In Jon Morosi’s latest notes on MLB.com, he notes how Corbin is drawing interest from the Nationals as well as the New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, and others. With the lack of true top-end talent, the battle for Corbin and former Houston Astros starter Dallas Keuchel will be fierce.

But let’s focus on Corbin here. The former Arizona Diamondback has just wrapped up his best season as a pro with an 11-7 record to go with a 3.15 ERA and 246 strikeouts in 200 innings. Good timing for a career year given it was his contract year.

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Back in 2012 and 2013, Corbin displayed plenty of his potential by getting his first All-Star nod in the latter year. However, Tommy John surgery that caused him to miss 2014 was a huge setback, and in,itially he struggled in the years after the surgery.

After a nice 2015 season, between 2016 and 2017, Corbin had a 19-26 record with a 4.53 ERA, 4.42 FIP and lofty 3.3 BB/9 compared to just 8.1 K/9. But now, with the strides he made last season, these concerns seem a thing of the past and the Nationals would be wise to be aggressive in their pursuit of the left-hander.

Corbin would likely slot in perfectly as the team’s number three starter, slotting in behind Scherzer and Strasburg, but ahead of Tanner Roark, Joe Ross, Erick Fedde, and Jefry Rodriguez in the pecking order. A rotation in that mold would make the nation’s capital host to one of the National League’s best top three starting pitching combos.

In our recent FanSided Mock Offseason Simulation, Corbin went to the Phillies for five years and $150 million, averaging at $30 million per season. If the price ends up going that high for Corbin, it’s a pretty safe bet the Nats won’t match that given they would then have three pitchers on the roster set to earn over $30 million in 2019.

If the price were to lurk somewhere in the $20 million to $25 million range, then we know Mike Rizzo won’t be shy about pursuing the lefty. The Nats GM is a firm believer in never having enough pitching at the major league level, and wants to get his rotation back to an elite standard. Corbin fits the bill perfectly.

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Patrick Corbin would be a perfect fit for the Washington Nationals this offseason. Keep an eye out here at District on Deck for any other Nationals rumors in the coming weeks with the hot stove heating up.

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