That's right folks. Multiple sources are now reporting that the Washington Nationals have inexplicably signed Oliver Perez to a minor league deal.
As if the national sports media already didn't have enough reason to rag on the Nats, the front office has decided (apparently upon recommendation of pitching coordinator Spin Williams) that it'd be a great idea to sign the former Mets pitcher. The same former Mets pitcher that refused to go to minor league camp and posted an 8.38 ERA in 9.2 innings in New York camp this spring. The same former Mets pitcher that went 0-5 with a 6.80 ERA in 2010. The same former Mets pitcher that appeared in 4 games against the Nats last year and allowed the 2010 Nats (not your offensive powerhouse) to post a .39o OBP. The same former Mets pitcher that is still owed $12 million from the New York club for this season, and they let him go anyways.
We understand it's a minor league deal so there is minimal money involved. I mean, come on, he's already guaranteed $12 million this year. He could work for free for the Nats. This move is confusing to us, though. One thing is turning into a pattern: Adam Kilgore has already said that this would be Scott Boras' eleventh client currently on the Nationals payroll. Boras and Rizzo must really be getting close.
Don't despair, there will be plenty more on this in the days and weeks to come. There are so many jokes here, we don't even know where to start.
When I heard the Mets released him I had a feeling that we might sign him on. Who knows? A diamond in the rough? Or just another head case?
ReplyDeleteThe bargain basement is by definition hit-or-miss, but since the stakes are low, it's possible to gain much more than it's possible to lose. If Perez is ineffective as expected, the loss will be even less than with Chien-Ming Wang. If on the off chance he's good, that's an amazing steal.
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