Kyle Finnegan, Josh Bell and Michael Soroka are all prime trade candidates for the Washington Nationals. However, all three lost value last night in their 7-2 loss against the Padres. For a guy like Finnegan, blowing up near the trade deadline has become a trend.
Finnegan’s History of Implosions:
It seems like Kyle Finnegan really wants to be a Washington National for life because whenever the trade deadline comes around, he tanks his trade value. In each of the last two years, the Nationals closer
has imploded his trade value is at its highest.
Last year, Finnegan famously blew up in his last outing before the trade deadline. He gave up five runs on July 29th against the D-Backs. That took his ERA from 2.47 to 3.48 in one outing. With Finnegan due for a big salary in arbitration, the Nationals were unable to get the haul they desired for him and ended up hanging on to their closer.
Finnegan is repeating the trick this year. After a scoreless outing on July 10th against the Cardinals, Finnegan dropped his ERA to 2.36. He looked like an All-Star snub after making the team last year. However, his last two outings have been disastrous.
In Milwaukee, Finnegan was asked to protect a two run lead, but gave up three runs while only getting one out. Now his ERA was up to 3.12, not amazing for a closer but still solid. However, more damage was to come.
Last night he got absolutely lit up by the Padres. Once again, he only managed to get one out. However, he allowed a staggering five runs. Four of them came on one swing by Manny Machado.
What's not to love about Manny Machado? pic.twitter.com/8m7UNqTTs9
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) July 19, 2025
Finnegan’s ERA has now ballooned to 4.37 and he does not seem like much of a trade asset. Yes, teams use more than just ERA to evaluate trade targets, but having that number balloon like that surely does not help matters.
Does Finnegan just really like DC? Whenever it seems like he is destined to be traded, he tanks his value at insane speed. Finnegan will likely still be traded but the package is likely to be pretty underwhelming at this point.
Soroka Velocity Down:
Another pitcher with some trade value is Michael Soroka. While his ERA is over 5, a lot of the underlying numbers teams look at are strong for Soroka. He is getting a lot of strikeouts while not walking many guys. His xERA also sits at a strong 3.21.
Going five innings while allowing only one run should help his trade value. However, there was a big concern, his velocity. Soroka’s average fastball velocity was down 2.2 MPH last night.
That is an extremely alarming number for multiple reasons. One, it is an injury red flag because it shows his arm is not at full capacity. Soroka is a guy with a long injury history and has already been on the IL this season. Could he be hurt again?
Even if he is healthy, the velocity drop will scare off more analytically inclined suitors. It means his stuff is degraded. A big part of Soroka’s appeal as a trade chip was that there is untapped potential. If the velocity is down, that potential is not really there.
It is different from Finnegan because the ERA actually went down last night. However, Soroka also gave contenders more questions than answers last night.
Josh Bell’s Bone Headed Mistakes:
After a miserable start to the season, Josh Bell has actually been hitting well for a little while now. In his last 40 games, Bell actually has an .832 OPS. He has turned himself into a movable trade chip potentially.
Josh Bell (.832 OPS over his last 40 games) singles to right-center. That's only the second hit Dylan Cease has given up in 17 career innings vs. the Nationals. The only previous one: a single by ... Nick Senzel.
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) July 18, 2025
His underlying data has been above average this season. While he likely would not fetch a ton, Bell could get a warm body into the organization. However, he made some awful mistakes on the bases.
He got thrown out twice last night, once trying to tag up on Fernando Tatis Jr. and then he inexplicably tried to take second on a 3-2 pitch and then just stopped half way. This season, Bell has been one of the worst baserunners in all of MLB.
With his lack of speed that makes sense, but he is also just doing stupid stuff as well. It showed why he might not be tradable after all. Nobody wants a wildly inconsistent DH with a low baseball IQ. Josh Bell is a great human being, but boy did he make some puzzling decisions last night.
Frustrating Night:
Mike DeBartolo had to be screaming at his TV last night. He saw three of his trade chips just leaking value in real time. The deadline is less than two weeks away now, so this is the worst possible time for these guys to be slumping.
It has already been a miserable season. The team might lose 100 games and play painfully uninspiring baseball most nights. Our trade chips tanking their value just adds insult to injury.
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