Mike Rizzo: Nationals not hunting for starting pitching at Winter Meetings

NASHVILLE - A year ago at the Winter Meetings in San Diego, Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo dismissed the idea of signing Max Scherzer, the best free agent available. A little more than a month later, the Nationals inked the ace to a then-record $210 million contract for a right-hander.

Speaking Monday afternoon in a room at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, Rizzo echoed the same sentiments from last year.

"We're not coming here looking for a front-line starting pitcher," he said. "But when opportunities arise, you never, never know what we're going to do."

After losing right-handers Jordan Zimmermann and Doug Fister to free agency, the Nationals are expected to plug righties Joe Ross and Tanner Roark into the rotation to join Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and left-hander Gio Gonzalez to round out the starting five.

"We like the rotation that we have," Rizzo said. "We certainly like the five. We'd like seven or eight, and we have another wave coming soon thereafter. We like the depth we have in starting pitching."

The Nationals will also look for A.J. Cole to make significant strides in 2016. The 23-year-old right-hander got shelled for nine runs (four earned) in two innings in his major league debut against the Braves in the game which resulted in a crazy 13-12 comeback win for the Nats on April 28. It turned out to be Cole's lone major league start of 2015. He made two other long relief appearances with the Nats in May but pitched primarily at Triple-A Syracuse, going 5-6 with a 3.15 ERA in 19 starts.

Right-hander Lucas Giolito, considered the majors' top pitching prospect, will likely make his big league debut at some point midway into the 2016 season. The hard-throwing 21-year-old went 7-7 with a 3.15 ERA and a 131 strikeouts in 117 innings across 19 starts for Single-A Potomac and Double-A Harrisburg last year.

Depending on their progression, right-handers Reynaldo Lopez, 21, and Austin Voth, 23, could find their way onto the mound for the Nationals this summer. It seems a bit unlikely now, but then again, nobody expected Ross, 22, to make the jump in June from Harrisburg to Washington, where he impressed in 13 starts. Lopez was 6-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 19 starts at Potomac while Voth went 6-7 with a 2.92 ERA in 27 starts at Harrisburg last year.

The one way the Nationals could be in play for a big-name starting pitcher at the Winter Meetings is if they deal one of their own. The possibility exists for Strasburg to be shipped elsewhere, especially with just one year remaining on his contract. Rizzo reportedly discussed Strasburg in trade talks last winter but never got close. The chances of Strasburg being traded are likely slimmer this year with Zimmermann and Fister gone from the rotation.

Are you comfortable with Ross and Roark filling out the rotation next season?