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Nationals Outlook '23
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I miss Howie Kendrick
4:54
I want to hear your personal opinion - is the rebuild with its pieces now (Ruiz/Abrams/García, Crews/Wood/House, Gore/Cavalli/Gray) going to work? Or are those players not enough
Anthony Franco
4:55
Going to need pitching help from the outside but I think the position player core is good enough to form a contender
R to the Izzo
4:55
Is there any way you see the Nats going on another improbable run like 2019?
Gail
4:55
The national media seems to be much more pessimistic with the Nats, why can't the Nats be the Reds of 2024? They have a young nucleus and even the addition of one veteran starter would go a long way with little financial commitment passed Corbin's awful deal and the Strasburg debacle.
Anthony Franco
4:57
Got a few questions like this asking if the Nats can take a Reds-like jump. It's really hard to project that. Cincinnati had an atypical number of prospects who basically all hit the ground running at the MLB level (Steer, Encarnacion-Strand, McLain, Abbott, De La Cruz to a lesser extent)
4:59
They needed that plus a breakout season from TJ Friedl to hang around, and they're probably going to finish a hair above .500 and still miss the playoffs
5:00
Cincinnati hit like the 90th percentile outcome for a team in this spot -- which is to their credit, not taking anything away from them -- and they're a fringe playoff contender. It's just really hard to make that kind of jump in one offseason. Even Baltimore, which probably has more young talent than anyone, took two years
HappyFunBall
5:00
I'm not worried about 1B. With all the prospect depth at 3B/OF there's likely to be someone who they can put there if the right free agent isn't available. And Joey Meneses can hold down the sport for another year or two anyway.  What I'm worried about is 2B. Luis Garcia's going backwards, and Darren Baker isn't looking like a difference maker in the minors.
Anthony Franco
5:02
Yeah I'm not really in on García at this point either. I'd give him one more year just to see if it all clicks but the approach isn't meaningfully improved from where it was as a rookie and the glove doesn't provide much leeway
Baby Shark
5:02
Who's gonna be the best pitcher out of Gore Cavalli and Gray
Anthony Franco
5:02
I'd take Gore
Joshua
5:03
Although they're extremely rare (and I would vehemently argue an underutilized market at improving teams), could you see any prospect for prospect type trades that make sense for the Nats? Maybe an "excess" OFer Daylen Lile/Robert Hassell/or Elijah Green trade to a pitching rich organization like the Marlins or Guardians?
Anthony Franco
5:04
I'd love to see teams do more of this but it almost never happens (as you mentioned) and I think the players you cited are all at fairly low ebbs of their prospect value that'd limit the quality of arm they get back in return
Drew
5:04
Are Nats fans putting too much faith in James Wood? He's striking out at an alarming clip at AA and has to overcome the disadvantage of any player his size.
Anthony Franco
5:06
It's a higher-variance profile than most top prospects because of the size (which leads to more swing-and-miss because it's a bigger strike zone and tougher to control such long arms)
But he's a freak athlete with huge power, good plate discipline and a track record of improving as he spends time at a minor league level
5:07
I think he's probably likelier than Crews or House to wash out because the strikeouts could get to a point where they're untenable, but there's a reason he's still a top 10 prospect despite the swing-and-miss
Sao
5:08
Do the Nats ever consider moving Keibert Ruiz to 1B/DH? Hasn't hit enough as a C to support that, but he's OPSing 100 points higher on days he DHs than days he doesn't, and his performance behind the plate has been less than amazing
Anthony Franco
5:09
I don't think we're anywhere close to that. Even if his offense improves without the strain of catching, it's probably not good enough to hold up at first base or DH
If he ends up off catcher entirely, he's in the Francisco Mejía range of being on the roster bubble
Chris D
5:10
Thanks for doing the chat! Here's a hypothetical to give me a sense of what the young players on the roster have shown in regard to their possible fit on the roster going forward like Alu, Young, Kieboom, Garcia, Millas, Smith, Robles, etc. What would you forecast the starting lineup to be opening day for the Nats? You can only pick players that are currently on the team or in the minors -- No trades or free agent signings.
Anthony Franco
5:10
Obviously I don't think the premise of this question is true, but I'll go with it
5:12
C- Ruiz
1B- Meneses
2B - García
3B - Kieboom (really have to do something there)
SS - Abrams
LF - Garrett
CF - Young
RF - Thomas
DH - Adams
Nats Fan
5:12
In terms of being realistic about what the Nats are going to do this offseason, one thing that still seems likely to me is that the Nats are going to sign at least two or three guys, maybe even four or five, who would at least be able to compete to be bullpen options, since there's probably only seven guys around right now who they'd want to give big-league bullpen innings to if healthy, and they'll probably need a lot more than that. Who are some of the most below-the-radar free agent candidates who would fit the bill as potentially effective spring training invites or short-term deals?
Anthony Franco
5:13
This isn't really Nats-specific. The low-cost bullpen fliers I like would basically apply to any team
5:14
But I like Jakob Junis as a multi-inning guy (could get two years though), Wandy Peralta, Ryne Stanek, Ryan Brasier if he stays at one year
Guest
5:15
Should the Nats have taken Langford over Crews?
Anthony Franco
5:15
I'd have taken Crews but that's a better question for someone who covers the draft more closely than I do
Pitching Coach
5:16
There would be a lot of teams willing to trot out Gore, Cavalli, Gray, Rutledge, Irvin for the next several years.  Do you see them all sticking at SP?
Anthony Franco
5:17
Irvin's a depth guy for me. I think Rutledge probably ends up in the bullpen based on the strike-throwing
I like the first three as starters
Aidan
5:17
Do you have the pirates or nats as better teams for next year
Anthony Franco
5:18
Hmm that's close. I think I'd take Pittsburgh. Feel a little better about the bullpen there
Mike Rizzo
5:18
Going into the offseason, I am thinking 1B/3B, OF, and SP are needs.  Anything else or any suspects to fill the slots?
Anthony Franco
5:20
Mentioned some possibilities in the outlook post but I agree with the overall assessment. Third base and a starter would be the priorities for me
Alec
5:20
What has to happen for the Nationals to finish 3rd or higher next year?
Anthony Franco
5:22
I don't see a realistic path to finishing ahead of Atlanta or Philly. So they'd need another down year from the Mets (very possible), a couple pitching injuries from Miami (unlikely but not crazy) and then a legitimate breakout from two of Ruiz, Abrams, Gore, Cavalli, Gray and probably one of their top prospects to play well in the second half
I don't think any of those things are crazy in isolation. Stacking them all together is tough
Guest
5:23
Did Meneses have more hypothetical trade value a year ago following his insane half season, or today with a more established but less impressive track record?
Anthony Franco
5:23
That's an interesting one. I don't think he ever had much appeal but I'd guess his value is lower now than it was last offseason
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