Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reports that Scott Boras is trying to pitch yet another one of his clients to the Washington Nationals, this time in the form of Jake Arrieta.
The Nationals are known for having a plethora of Boras clients as they already have six players on the active roster that are represented by him including Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg who represent $385 million in commitments. Gio Gonzalez, Anthony Rendon, Bryce Harper, and Matt Wieters round out the list.
The Nationals are already projected to have the highest payroll in the club’s history as Baseball-Reference currently projects the team to have a $169 million payroll next season.
Arrieta would certainly add to that total. However, the rotation would also profile as one of the league’s best as Arrieta would round out a rotation that currently includes Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Tanner Roark, and Gio Gonzalez.
The 2015 Cy Young Award winner would certainly be a big addition. However, he has seen a decline since that year, but still posted a solid 14-10 record with a 3.53 ERA in 168 2/3 innings pitched last season.
It would have been hard to imagine him replicating that 2015 season though as he finished with a 22-6 record that year with a 1.77 ERA.
