John Lannan confirmed as fifth starter for Washington Nationals in 2012 regular season - MLB Update
John Lannan manages to find a spot in Washington Nationals opening day rotation. As manager Davey Johnson has announced, it is going to be a big challenge for Lannan to actually come up with something for which he has been retained.
As the declaration preceded two excellent games he had, decision can easily be taken as an immediate reaction as opposed to a result of an objective review of his performance over the years.
Reports suggest that his trade has been held back owing to a hamstring injury by Chien-Ming Wang, an otherwise confirmed contender for the spot. If he was not injured, Lannan will have to miss the spot, considering better prospects many believe Wang had
to offer for Nationals this season.
It is more the circumstances than his good performance that have got him in rotation. Since Wang boasts a better career win-loss record of 59-29 than a below par 38-51 by Lannan, as soon as he recovers, he will be taken right ahead of him.
Speculations that surfaced earlier about Lannan’s trade now have been put to rest by his inclusion.
Before we look upon Lannan as a prospect for Nationals this season, one should go back to his past. First of all the fact that he is an old-hand and has spent many years with the Nationals and over these years, hardly anything substantial came off from him
as to show what he can offer.
Sinkers and couple of incredible pitches he made the other day got manager Johnson into believing him as an only reliable option ahead of season.
While Lannan does not possess the kind of fastballs the other four Nationals do, only thing he will ensure during the season is that he goes there and contains batters as much as possible.
“I know what I am,” said Lannan. “I’ve had success. That’s what I need to focus on, is what’s made me successful, and just get better. I haven’t really focused on anything that’s been outside.”
As his strength lies in making subtle changes around the strike-zone, he will look to streamline himself on this front.
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