Washington Nationals right-hander Kyle Finnegan struck out one over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Oakland A's. Finnegan entered the ninth inning to protect a two-run lead. He needed only nine pitches to retire the side and earn his fifth save of the season. The 32-year-old is 5-for-6 in save chances with a 4.26 ERA, 1.74 WHIP, and six strikeouts over 6 1/3 innings in 2024. Hunter Harvey was used in the eighth inning and has racked up five holds in 2024. Finnegan is Washington's primary closer, and his five saves are tied with St. Louis Cardinals reliever Ryan Helsley for the National League lead.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan threw a scoreless ninth inning to finish off the Philadelphia Phillies in a 3-2 win. Finnegan walked one and struck out one. The 32-year-old had a bad outing in Cincinnati on opening weekend but has recovered nicely, going two-for-two in save chances with no hits allowed since. It appears that the Nats are running with Finnegan as the full-time closer given their bullpen usage, making him a must-roster reliever in any league where saves count.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan tossed a clean ninth inning with two strikeouts to grab his second save of the year and safeguard Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. After getting tagged for back-to-back homers and blowing a save in Sunday's loss to the Cincinnati Reds, Finnegan put up a very encouraging display on Wednesday. Henry Davis reached on rookie Trey Lipscomb's throwing error, but it was an otherwise fine showing by the 32-year-old right-hander. While he remains the favorite for saves out of Washington's deep bullpen, Finnegan will want to improve on his unsightly 10.13 ERA sooner rather than later. Hunter Harvey has been more effective during the very early stages of the campaign, so he remains worth holding in all mixed fantasy leagues until this situation is fully settled.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan had a tough outing on Sunday, blowing a two-run lead and taking both the blown save and the loss in a 6-5 defeat against the Cincinnati Reds. Finnegan allowed three hits, including two homers, which did him in. After a solid performance on Saturday and Hunter Harvey giving up a pair of runs, it seemed like Finnegan was strengthening his hold on the closer role. But after Sunday, things have gotten murky again. Finnegan should still be considered the favorite for saves, but if he continues to be shaky the Nationals could switch things up quickly.

Washington Nationals right-hander Kyle Finnegan allowed one walk while striking out one over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Saturday's 7-6 win over the Cincinnati Reds. Finnegan entered the ninth inning to protect a one-run lead. He needed 16 pitches to retire the four batters he faced. It's worth noting that Hunter Harvey was called upon in the eighth inning and allowed two runs on two hits and a walk over an inning. Finnegan missed time in spring training due to a back issue but appeared to be fully healthy heading into the start of the season. Fantasy managers searching for saves can add Finnegan in all league formats, as he is the favorite to handle ninth-inning duties for the Nationals.

Washington Nationals right-handed reliever Kyle Finnegan (back) returned to the mound on Thursday in a Grapefruit League game after a nine-day layoff due to lower-back tightness. He took a comebacker off his right foot in the top of the seventh inning, but it ended up being harmless. "Physically I felt great," Finnegan said. "I would've argued to keep going, finish my inning. But 25 is a good place to land. I was excited to get back out there and come out of it feeling good. That was the most pitches I threw all spring. To feel good after that, after the layoff, is positive." The 32-year-old gave up one earned run on three hits with a strikeout in two-thirds of an inning against the Minnesota Twins. Finnegan has fantasy value as the primary closing option for the Nats to open the regular season, but Hunter Harvey is a candidate to surpass him on the depth chart if he struggles in the ninth inning.

Washington Nationals right-hander Kyle Finnegan (back), who hasn't pitched in a Grapefruit League game since March 12 due to a tight back, is healthy. He was originally going to pitch on Wednesday night, but he and the team decided to push him back to Thursday. When healthy, Finnegan should be the favorite for saves for the rebuilding Nats in 2024, although he could lose some save chances to Hunter Harvey. Finnegan, 32, had a career-high 28 saves in 67 appearances last year for Washington while also posting a career-high 3.76 ERA and 1.29 WHIP with 24 walks and 63 strikeouts in 69 1/3 relief innings. He saw the vast majority of save opps for the team but ran out of gas late. Finnegan throws gas but had a below-average strikeout rate (21.7%) and allowed too many home runs, which makes him a fantasy closer to avoid in 2024.

Washington Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan tried out a new sweeper for the first time in a Grapefruit League game on Wednesday. "Finnegan's always been toying around with trying to get a third pitch," manager Davey Martinez said. "Cause everything he throws is hard. So, he wanted to create some kind of deception, more or less." The new pitch has been registering 78-79 mph, and its spin rate, horizontal break, and pitch shape have all been in line with the numbers for a quality sweeper to complement his high-90s fastball, slider and splitter. Finnegan's sweepers registered 84 and 85 mph on Wednesday, and one of them induced a strikeout. The new pitch could help boost the 32-year-old's career-low 21.9% strikeout rate from a season ago as Washington's co-closer.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan earned his 28th save of the season to beat the Atlanta Braves 4-2 on Sunday. The right-handed hurler Finnegan struggled early in the final frame, giving up a homer and a double. He would settle down and retire the next two batters to end the contest. Finnegan ends the year with a 7-5 record and a 3.76 ERA in 69/1 innings pitched. The 33-year-old logged 28 saves in 36 attempts in 2023.

Washington Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan picked up his 27th save of the season on Sunday, closing out a 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves. Finnegan allowed a two-out homer to Sean Murphy, but managed to escape without further damage. The 32-year-old has been extremely shaky in September, allowing 10 runs (nine earned) over 8 IP. He has a blown save and two losses in his eight appearances this month. He will surely close out the season as the Nats closer, but they may look elsewhere next year and there will almost certainly be competition for his job in spring training.

Washington Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan managed to convert his 26th save of the season in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the White Sox. Finnegan entered the game to pitch the top of the ninth up by two. He allowed a leadoff double, got the first out on a groundout, allowed an RBI single, got the second out on a strikeout, allowed a walk, and ended the game on a lineout. The 32-year-old has been inconsistent at times but has now converted 26 of 34 save opportunities with a 3.66 ERA, making him a useful fantasy option in at least all roto leagues.

Washington Nationals right-hander Kyle Finnegan picked up the save Tuesday when his club defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4. He threw one inning, allowing one run on two hits and a walk while striking out one. It's his 25th save of the season and his 10th just in the month of August. Over 58 2/3 innings this season, the 31-year-old is having his best campaign, as he's pitched to a 2.91 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 24.1% strikeout rate. Finnegan has the closer role locked down, and fantasy managers can rely on him for saves the rest of the way.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan picked up a four-out save on Thursday when he allowed one run on three hits with two strikeouts over 1 1/3 innings in a 6-5 win over the New York Yankees. Nats reliever Jordan Weems ran into some trouble in the bottom of the eighth inning after allowing a solo home run to Giancarlo Stanton and a two-out double to Everson Pereira, which gave the Nationals a narrow 5-4 lead. Finnegan came in to replace Weems and recorded the final out of the inning by punching out Jake Bauers. The Nationals then tacked on an extra run in the top of the ninth and they would need it as Finnegan allowed three singles and a run in the bottom of the frame. He was able to work through the traffic and got Harrison Bader to fly out to end the contest and secure the win. It wasn't pretty but the 31-year-old reliever picked up his 23rd save and is now 8-for-8 in the month of August in save opportunities. Overall, he owns a 2.86 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 56:17 K/BB ratio over 56 2/3 innings (55 appearances). He is the preferred closing option in Washington, even with ... [More]

Washington Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan picked up a one-out save Sunday in dramatic fashion, holding onto a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Finnegan came in with the game at 4-1 and a runner on first with two outs in the ninth and immediately allowed a two-run homer that cut the lead to one. He then struck out J.T. Realmuto to end the game and allow his fantasy owners to breathe a sigh of relief. Although Finnegan has been great this year, he now has three shaky outings in a row, although he has managed to escape with the save in all three. Still, with the Nats looking much better and Finnegan secure in his role, he should be rostered in any leagues where saves matter.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan was handed the ball with a three-run lead in the ninth inning during Thursday's game against the Boston Red Sox. The right-hander worked his way into trouble by giving up two hits to open the frame. However, Finnegan was able to battle back and get out of the jam without any damage. In the process, Finnegan recorded his 19th save in 26 attempts this season. He holds a 2.55 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 52/16 K/BB across 53 innings.

Washington Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan shut the door on the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, picking up the save in a 6-3 win. Finnegan allowed two hits while striking out a pair in his inning of work. The 31-year-old has been at the top of his game recently, as the two hits he allowed today were the first he's given up in six appearances, and he hasn't allowed a run in 9 IP. Since Finnegan took over the closer role after Hunter Harvey went down with an elbow injury, he has looked extremely sharp and has cemented himself as the man for the job in Washington. He should be rostered in all leagues where saves matter.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan picked up his 15th save of the season in Monday's 5-3 win over the Brewers. Finnegan entered to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by two and turned in a 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout to end the game. The 31-year-old has settled down lately, converting his last four save opportunities. He has blown seven on the season but now owns a respectable 3.00 ERA in 45 innings pitched. His relatively low strikeout upside and the team he pitches for limit his fantasy value, but his current role makes Finnegan worth a roster spot in roto leagues at this time.

Washington Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan came into Thursday's game against the New York Mets with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning and got the final two outs without allowing a baserunner. The outing brought the 31-year-old's ERA to 3.12, and he has yet to allow a run since July 14. Finnegan's added a 1.22 WHIP, 23.2% strikeout rate, and 14 saves to his stat line, and he's a trade candidate heading into the trade deadline. If the club does move him, it's likely the right-hander will no longer be closing out games, so fantasy owners may want to find a backup plan just in case.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan picked up his 14th save of the season in Tuesday's 6-5 win over the Rockies. Finnegan came in to pitch the bottom of the ninth up by one. He got the first two outs on a strikeout and lineout, allowed a single, and ended the game with a groundout. Both Finnegan and Hunter Harvey (elbow) have split closing duties lately, but Harvey recently went on the injured list with a right elbow sprain, so it appears that Finnegan should see most save opportunities in the near term. Finnegan has only converted two-thirds of his save opportunities this season but does have a respectable 3.16 ERA. As such, he still carries some fantasy value in roto leagues.

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan earned his 12th save of the season in Monday's 7-5 win over the Cubs. Finnegan came into the game in the eighth inning up by two with two outs and runners on first and second. He got the third out on a lineout and stayed on to pitch the ninth. He allowed a leadoff single but closed things out with three consecutive strikeouts. While Finnegan has seen time in the closer's role this season, Hunter Harvey (elbow) had taken the lead lately. However, Harvey just went on the 15-day injured list with elbow and forearm soreness. Finnegan has now converted 12 of 19 save opportunities with a 3.32 ERA. The Nationals may not offer a ton of save opportunities, but it appears that Finnegan is worth picking up in deeper roto leagues at this time.