When the Nationals traded Foster Griffin to the Guardians, I thought the return was underwhelming. Paul Toboni went for a quantity heavy package that was short on big name prospects. However, the deal has aged well mostly due to the emergence of Will Dion, who was excellent after joining the Nats.
Multi-inning relievers are becoming increasingly common across
Major League Baseball. We saw how important they can be this postseason. The Brewers leaned heavily on their bullpen, and it resulted in a championship. Aaron Ashby and DL Hall were tasked with throwing multiple innings throughout the playoffs.
It is not the flashiest profile in the world, but the multi-inning reliever is becoming very important. That is exactly the role Will Dion filled for the Nats down the stretch. He made 15 appearances for the Nats, and threw 30 innings. There weretimes when Dion was only asked to get one out, but other outings he gave the Nats as many as 4.1 innings.
In a Nationals bullpen that desperately needed help, Dion pitched to a 3.00 ERA for the Nats. He also struck out 30 batters in 30 innings. Those strikeout numbers are impressive given his lack of velocity. Dion’s fastball only averaged 91.1 MPH this season. However, batters only hit.198 against the pitch and Dion got 31 of his 55 strikeouts on the heater.
Dion has no ordinary 91 MPH fastball though. He releases the ball from an extreme over the top delivery and generates a ton of carry on his fastball. Dion averages 20 inches of induced vertical break on his fastball, which is one of the best marks in the league. That IVB means hitters misjudge his fastball and often swing underneath it.
It is impossible for a fastball to actually rise, but Dion’s heater resists gravity much more than most heaters, which gives hitters the illusion that it is rising. This unique fastball is Dion’s calling card, and it sets up the rest of his arsenal.
Speaking of the rest of his arsenal, the Nats actually made a tweak that really unlocked Dion. Before coming to DC, Dion’s changeup was on the periphery of his arsenal. He would throw it, but only around 15% of the time. When he joined the Nats, he started throwing the changeup way more. In August, he threwit a crazy 37.6% of the time. That came down to 24.4% in September, but that is still more usage than before.
Dion’s changeup pairs very well with his rising fastball. It is a true bugs bunny changeup that looks like the fastball before dying while it comes to the plate. At 78 MPH, the changeup is 13 MPH slower than his fastball. That velocity difference really kept hitters off balance. Batters hit just .119 with a 33% whiff rate against that changeup.
It was a pitch he mostly used against right handed hitters, but by the end of the season, he was throwing more left on left changeups. Those two pitches are the centerpieces of his arsenal, but Dion also throws his curve 20% of the time. His curveball is mainly used to steal strikes early in the count. It does not get many whiffs, but he can land it in the zone often.
Dion’s lack of velocity puts a cap on his ceiling, but he has shown to be a capable multi-inning relief arm. He and Brad Lord will be asked to do the dirty work in the bullpen next season. It is not a flashy role, but it is one that teams need now more than ever.
If Dion can replicate the success he had down the stretch, that Foster Griffin trade should age fairly well. Dion has proven to be useful, and I think Josh Hartle has the ability to fill a similar role at some point. For half a season of Foster Griffin, that is not too bad. Paul Toboni did not shoot for the stars in this trade, but it looks like he has found at least one piece that will be a functional bullpen arm for years to come.
