Nats acquire Rainey from Reds in deal for Roark

LAS VEGAS -- Even though the Nationals are searching for starting pitching depth, they still traded away one of the stalwarts of their rotation Wednesday, sending right-hander Tanner Roark to the Reds in exchange for reliever Tanner Rainey. Roark had been with the organization since 2010 and with the Nationals for six seasons, including his stellar '16 when he finished 10th in the voting for the National League Cy Young Award.
But the 32-year-old Roark has been up and down on the mound ever since and was set to earn a substantial raise from the $6.475 million he made in 2018. While Roark's salary was expected to be reasonable next season, the Nationals believed they could get a free-agent starter to fill out the back end of their rotation for less.
So, when teams began calling after they signed Patrick Corbin to a six-year, $140 million contract last week, the Nats entered the Winter Meetings this week open to dealing Roark, and Wednesday's deal came together quickly.
• Roark for Rainey first Tanner-for-Tanner trade ever
Roark's departure leaves Washington's rotation depth thin beyond the trio of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Corbin, with only Joe Ross, who is coming off Tommy John surgery, and Erick Fedde as starting-pitching options ready for next season. So the Nats will almost certainly add another starter and potentially more than one.
Right-hander Aníbal Sánchez and left-hander Wade Miley are two free agents the Nats have discussed, according to MLB Network insider Ken Rosenthal.

In exchange for Roark, the Nats acquired Rainey, the Reds' 23rd-ranked prospect per MLB Pipeline, who posted a 2.65 ERA in 44 games as a reliever in Triple-A with 65 strikeouts in 51 innings. He made his Major League debut with Cincinnati last season, and although he only threw seven innings, his fastball averaged 97.7 mph. Rainey, who will turn 26 this month, also hit triple digits, making him one of just 36 pitchers in all of baseball to do so. Acquiring Rainey should help improve the Nats' bullpen and adds another reliever with options.

But to do so, they had to part with Roark, who had been one of the most durable and long-tenured members of the rotation. He admitted during a conference call with reporters that he was surprised to learn he was traded.
"But it's the name of the game," Roark said. "This is the way this business is. I'm a Cincinnati Red now, so pretty excited."

Roark was one of only six pitchers who have thrown at least 180 innings in each of the past three seasons. The Nationals loved and raved about his mentality and competitiveness. However, Roark also posted an ERA higher than 4.30 in three of the past four seasons and has struggled to stay consistent since his impressive 2016 season.
Roark and the Nats' relationship was also not perfect. The Nats bounced him around between the rotation and bullpen at times over the years, even though he preferred to be a starter. He did not pitch in any of the five games during the 2017 National League Division Series loss to the Cubs, and the Nats elected to start Gio González over Roark in Game 5.
"Life's too short to hold grudges," Roark said. "But that's what they wanted to do. If they can live with it, then they live with it. They treated me great, but there were times where I would be very frustrated, and I'd get [upset].
"But that made me stronger mentally and how to handle certain things like that. So it helped me."