Closer Brad Hand and the Washington Nationals are in agreement on a one-year, $10.5 million contract, sources familiar with the deal told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Sunday.
Hand had another solid season as the closer for the Cleveland Indians, leading the major leagues with 16 saves, but he was a victim of the team’s salary purge heading into 2021. Cleveland declined his $10 million option in exchange for a $1 million buyout.
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Hand, in his career, pitched much better as a reliever than a starter. In the rotation he posted a .273/.344/.442 opposition slash line. As a reliever, that dropped to .208/.287/.335, thanks in part to a much higher strikeout rate. We will see if he survives the Nationals bullpen curse.