Washington Nationals Rumors: Playing Fact or Fiction with the Latest Talk
The Washington Nationals are at a crossroads this offseason.
The moves that general manager Mike Rizzo and company make this winter will set the course of the franchise for the foreseeable future.
In 2014, Washington rode a late-season surge to the best record in the National League. The roster that made that possible is, for the most part, set to return in 2015. It's beyond next year that things get dicey.
This offseason will feature a ticking clock attached to the contracts of Ian Desmond, Jordan Zimmermann and Doug Fister. These three contracts are set to expire in a year's time. The Nationals will also have to make decisions regarding the bullpen, some key infield slots and their bench.
Come Opening Day, Washington will have a roster talented enough to make a run at its third division title in four years, but Nationals fans have seen that movie before.
After NLDS flameouts in 2012 and 2014, the changes made to Washington's roster this winter will be done to ensure deep postseason runs in the years ahead.
Here, we'll try to make heads or tails of the latest noise surrounding the Nationals' offseason.
The Nationals Can't Keep Jordan Zimmermann, Ian Desmond and Doug Fister
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Starting pitcher Jordan Zimmermann and shortstop Ian Desmond are homegrown bedrocks of the Nationals franchise. Washington brought in Doug Fister in a trade before the start of last season, and all he did was earn the fourth-best ERA in the NL.
These are arguably three of the five most valuable players on the Nationals roster, and all of them are due to hit free agency after the 2015 season.
Washington could let the upcoming season play out and try to get deals done after that, but that would most likely lead to one or more of the trio being poached by other teams in the open market.
That's why GM Mike Rizzo will try to iron out extensions for all three this winter, according to a report from The Washington Post's Adam Kilgore.
The Nationals already have a starting point with Desmond after he reportedly turned down a seven-year, $107 million deal last offseason.
Washington held talks with Fister, though undisclosed, following his arrival last spring.
Zimmermann has looked like the National with his foot closest to the exit door in recent weeks, with rumors surfacing about the Chicago Cubs as a trade partner. But that talk has since quieted down.
If Washington gets too deep into the offseason without making progress on a deal with one of its stars, then a trade becomes more likely. It would be a crime to let one of these three go in free agency next year without getting anything in return.
But, according to Kilgore's report, Rizzo has called extensions for these three "one of our priorities."
So for now, expect to see new deals for Zimmerman, Desmond and Fister in the coming months.
Verdict: Fiction
Ryan Zimmerman Is Done at Third Base
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Ryan Zimmerman only played 61 games last season due to injury, and when he was healthy, his defense at third was shaky at best.
But his bat is far too valuable for Washington to simply leave him on the bench.
The 30-year-old hit .280 in his limited appearances in 2014, and he's never dipped below a .260 average in his career.
Manager Matt Williams revealed last season that Zimmerman has "an arthritic shoulder."
It's impossible to make throws from third to first base on a daily basis with that condition. But the Nationals declined to pick up everyday first baseman Adam LaRoche's $15 million option, making it exceedingly likely for Zimmerman to take over full-time at first base in 2015.
What's more, third base is already occupied in D.C. by the fifth-leading vote-getter in the NL MVP race, Anthony Rendon.
Zimmerman only had seven at-bats as a first baseman last season, spending most of his time spot-starting in the outfield, but in his handful of appearances at first, Williams called the veteran "a natural over there."
Verdict: Fact
Asdrubal Cabrera Will Fill Washington's Need at Second Base
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In Washington's early exit from the 2014 postseason, the issue wasn't defense.
The Nationals held the eventual world champions, the San Francisco Giants, to just 2.25 runs per game. That's well below San Fran's average of 4.17 in this year's playoffs.
Washington needs hitting, and the Nats aren't going to get it from Asdrubal Cabrera.
The former Cleveland Indian came over in a deadline trade last season and provided defensive stability at second. But his batting average has been on the steady decline since 2010.
He's now a free agent, and the Nationals are likely to pass on Cabrera in favor of more consistent hitting.
There exists the possibility of moving Anthony Rendon back to second base, the position in which he started the 2014 season, but he is better suited as an everyday third baseman. The more realistic scenario is that Washington goes elsewhere in free agency or the trade market.
According to a preview of the winter meetings from The Washington Post's James Wagner, free agents who are likely to draw interest from the Nationals include 31-year-old Stephen Drew and 30-year-old Jed Lowrie. Wagner also reports that Daniel Murphy of the New York Mets and Howie Kendrick of the Los Angeles Angels could be trade targets.
Verdict: Fiction
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There Will Be Major Turnover on the Nationals Bench
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The Nationals saw up-and-down production from their bench last season.
Kevin Frandsen hit a solid .259 in 105 games during his first year in Washington. Nate McLouth, on the other hand, spent most of the season suffering from a nagging shoulder injury, limiting him to a .173 average in 79 games.
But both Frandsen and McLouth, along with the rest of Washington's role players, look set to return in 2015.
The Nationals recently locked up Frandsen on a one-year deal, and McLouth should be fully recovered from his season-ending shoulder surgery come 2015 and has another year left on his current contract.
Jose Lobaton was arguably the most valuable bench player last season, serving as the backup catcher for an oft-injured Wilson Ramos, who played in just 88 games in 2014. The reserve backstop is under contract until 2017 and doesn't look to be moving any time soon.
Former starter Danny Espinosa rounds out Washington's corps of veteran bench players, and though the Nats might ask him to stick to the right side of the plate, he'll be needed for occasional starts in the infield.
Washington's less established players—like Steven Souza Jr. and Tyler Moore—will be competing for playing time in backup roles, but the Nationals won't go outside the franchise to bolster their bench.
Verdict: Fiction
Drew Storen Is Washington's Closer of the Future
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Rafael Soriano spent the better part of two years as Washington's closer, but he was removed from that role with less than a month left in the 2014 regular season.
The Nationals completed the transition away from Soriano at the end of October when they declined to pick up his option and cast him off into free agency.
Drew Storen was the man who took over the closer role from Soriano, and he showed enough promise to keep to job for the playoffs.
The playoffs are where things tend to go south for the 27-year-old.
In Storen's two postseasons, 2012 and 2014, he has put up ERAs of 9.00 and 6.75, respectively. He earned one save in two opportunities during the 2012 playoffs and failed to make good on his only save opportunity in 2014.
But Storen's regular-season production is encouraging enough to suggest that the postseason struggles will meet their end in time. He didn't flinch after earning the closer role in early September, registering 10 saves between then and the close of the season.
In 2011, Storen's one previous stint as Washington's closer, he finished in a tie for the fourth-most saves in the NL with 43 on the year.
Storen combined with Tyler Clippard, Craig Stammen and the rest of the bullpen for a solid 3.00 ERA in 2014. And GM Mike Rizzo also hailed the closer as "a very capable ninth-inning pitcher," according to The Washington Post's James Wagner.
The Nationals will focus their efforts on the rest of the roster, leaving the last out in Storen's capable hands for at least the start of 2015.
Verdict: Fact
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