Levale

Speigner

Now this just doesn’t make much sense. Speigner, a Rule 5 pick, had a 3.77 ERA while spending the first month and a half of the season as a reliever, and the Nationals had to know he wasn’t ready to start in the majors. We don’t think they’re missing much with him likely on his way back to Minnesota now, but they didn’t handle him well at all.

Speigner, who has a 14.81 ERA in his three previous starts this season, will start Saturday’s game against the Padres. This is a great game to have all your Padres players active.

Speigner could be knocked out of the rotation next week by one of the Nationals’ returning starters.

We imagine the Nationals have finally had enough of this. Speigner has given up 18 runs in 10 1/3 innings over three starts since joining the rotation. The Nationals should turn to another minor leaguer until Shawn Hill is ready to come back.

If the Nationals had won tonight, they would have pulled even with the Reds for the 15th best record in the NL. However, Speigner showed again why he has little business being in a major league rotation. He struck out none and walked three, giving him 15 base on balls in 21 1/3 innings this season.

Now we know why the Nats were so quick to designate Speigner for assignment last week. This allows them to keep the Rule 5 pick, and since he cleared waivers, he can be sent to Triple-A. He’ll probably pitch out of the rotation there.

“It’s not like we have a line of options,” Acta said. “We have a lot of guys hurt here and in Triple-A. So the kid will go out there again.” Speigner has a 14.44 ERA and hasn’t pitched more than four innings in any of his previous four starts.

He switches places with Levale Speigner. Both will be facing the Twins.

It’s the fifth time in six starts that he’s gone no longer than four innings. The Nationals still intend to send Speigner back to the bullpen the first chance they get.

Speigner over Johan Santana? It can be a funny game. Speigner was a member of the Twins organization before being picked in the Rule 5 draft in December. The only run he gave up tonight came on Justin Morneau’s homer in the second. The Nationals received all three of their runs on Ryan Zimmerman’s third-inning blast. It wasn’t Speigner’s first career win, as he did pick up one as a reliever earlier this season.