Cincinnati Reds acquire Tanner Roark from the Nationals

The Cincinnati Reds finally made a move at the Winter Meetings and acquired a starting pitcher. The Reds snagged Tanner Roark from the Washington Nationals.

Cincinnati Reds fans have been pouring over their social media accounts and constantly hitting the refresh button in anticipation of their team making some kind of move during the Winter Meetings. Finally, it happened. The Reds acquired Tanner Roark from the Washington Nationals in exchange for right-handed reliever Tanner Rainey.

Roark is in the final year of arbitration eligibility and projected to make in the neighborhood of $10 million in 2019. Roark went 9-15 with the Nets last season with a 4.34 ERA and 146 strikeouts. For his career, Roark has a winning record of 64-54 with an ERA of 3.59. If Roark can replicate his career numbers for the Reds next season, this will be an extremely good pick up.

Roark has been with the Washington Nationals since his promotion to the big leagues in 2013. He’s pitched over 180 innings the past three seasons and his walks decreased dramatically since 2016. While not a flashy pick up, Roark gives the Reds exactly what they need. He’s a solid, durable, veteran presence with the capability of being a No. 3 or 4 starter.

The 32-year-old will definitely join Luis Castillo and Anthony DeSclafani in the Reds staring rotation, but according to Cincinnati Reds President of Baseball Operations Dick Williams, via Cincinnati.com, the team’s not done yet.

"“We’ve been laying in the weeds for a couple of years and focused on rebuilding, and now it’s time to add to the team. We’re in that mode now. And we fully expect to make more deals. This is the first of more to come.”"

That has to be welcome news to Reds fans, who’ve been getting a bit anxious as the Winter Meetings have gone on with little more than rumors flying around about possible moves. Fans were ready to see some action, and while the move to acquire Roark is not earth shattering, it should not be scoffed at either.

Here’s an interesting tidbit for everyone out there who likes the new metrics, especially WAR. Here is the WAR from the Reds top 5 starters in 2018. Luis Castillo (1.6), Matt Harvey (0.7), Anthony DeSclafani (0.4), Sal Romano (-0.7), and Tyler Mahle (0.1). That comes to a grand total of 2.1. Roark alone had a WAR of 3.4 last season.

Of course, when making a trade you have to send someone to the opposing team. The Reds chose their No. 23 overall prospect, relief pitcher Tanner Rainey. Rainey appeared in 8 games last season and had an ERA of 24.43. That’s not a misprint.

This is a great start for the Cincinnati Reds and it doesn’t sound like Dick Williams, Nick Krall, and the rest of the Reds’ brass are through. Will we see a blockbuster trade within the next few days? Maybe so. For now, Reds fans can rest easy knowing we won’t leave the Winter Meetings empty-handed.