The Nationals signed Colin Poche to a Minor League deal, but he should make the team
While it is not the closer fans have been asking for, Mike Rizzo brought in some bullpen help in the form of left hander Colin Poche. The Nats signed Poche to a Minor League deal with a Spring Training invite. However, I believe that the 31 year old will make the team and become a mainstay in the Nationals bullpen.
Poche has been a reliable reliever in Tampa Bay over the last three seasons. In 174 appearances from 2022-2024, the southpaw posted a 3.27 ERA. However, the Rays decided to non-tender him after an up and down 2024 season. For the Nats, this is a good gamble to take.
In 2023, Poche was phenomenal, posting a 2.23 ERA in 66 appearances. He also posted strong underlying numbers, with a 2.65 xERA. However, after a 2024 season where his velocity dropped, his ERA went up to 3.86 and his underlying numbers showed some worrying signs, the Rays cut bait. Even if he is closer to what he was in 2024, that is a valuable lefty to add to the bullpen. If he can get back to 2023 form, it is a brilliant pickup for Rizzo.
Poche’s game is built on a “rising” fastball that gets about 20 inches of carry. While he sits in the low 90’s rather than the mid 90’s, his fastball has a lot of the same characteristics that made Sean Doolittle’s heater so great. Despite sitting 91-93 MPH, he throws his fastball around 65-70% of the time and gets solid results. Poche has a slider that he works off the fastball to put hitters away.
Despite getting a Minor League deal, it would be a surprise if Poche does not make the team. He and Jose A Ferrer should be the left handers in the bullpen. While Poche gives the Nats a reliable left handed middle reliever, they should still be in the market for a veteran closer.
Poche is an exciting buy low pickup, but the Nats still need one more high leverage arm to fill out the bullpen. If they do that, it would constitute a solid bullpen makeover that Colin Poche will be a part of.