The Cincinnati Reds have announced that they acquired veteran right-handed reliever Tanner Roark from the Washington Nationals. ESPN reports the Reds have agreed to send reliever Tanner Rainey to Washington. The Nats were rumored to be getting ready to move on without him. Washington is looking to upgrade their staff with a pair of additional rotation pieces.

Roark will help bolster a Cincinnati bullpen that the club has been looking to improve for the past few years. Tanner Roark has thrown 180 frames in each of the last three seasons. The Reds are expected to still be looking for starters.

Roark has delivered some eye-popping ERA's over several seasons. The 2017 season was a low point for his professional career. The 32-year-old Roark led the National League in losses last season, going 9-15 with a 4.34 ERA. Roark made $6,475,000 last year, and he is eligible for arbitration. Roark was also part of Team USA Baseball in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

Nationals began to lose faith in Tanner Roark

Yahoo Sports reports that Roark will now be a veteran among a young Reds rotation. Cincinnati President of Baseball Operations, Dick Williams has made it clear that his club is still not done making deals. Washington has not had much faith in their reliever.

In 2017, during the NL Division Series, the Nationals did not turn to him at all.

He later ended up telling the media that he was bothered by not being given the opportunity to start in that series. In 2017, Tanner Roark struggled to keep the Nationals season alive.

Roark spoke out following the trade, saying "life's too short to hold grudges," but did acknowledge that the Nationals organization treated him well.

Tanner Roark did say he did get frustrated at times, but that made him stronger mentally, which helped him. Reports that originally surfaced on Monday, suggested that the Nationals began listening to offers for Roark. It was believed that they would only move on without Roark if they could land a starter who could replace him.

Tanner Roark deal gives Washington more money to work with

This deal gives the Nationals more money to work with as they continue to work at building a deep bullpen for the upcoming season. While Roark was once a power hurler, his performance has slumped, signaling that the Reds should expect to be getting a durable rotation player, putting up numbers similar to what he did in 2014 and 2016.

With Roark leaving Washington, the Nationals are receiving Tanner Rainey, an intriguing player. He managed to display a strong fastball that ranged from 98.3 - 100 mph. While in the AAA-level Rainey recorded 52 innings with a 2.60 ERA. It appears that Rainey will probably stay at the Triple-A level with Washington unless a need arises during spring training.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED