Just a minor note of interest as both the Phillies or the Mets could have used the upgrade to Jackie Bradley Jr, but instead it looks like he's going to sign with the Brewers. He's not much of a hitter anymore but still a solid fielder and the combo would have been an improvement for either team. Not enough to make it worth the cash outlay though given they probably could use more help elsewhere (Phillies - rotation, Mets another pen arm). They aren't likely to do either of those but that's still on the table and more likely than this ever was.
MLB.com had 4 questions for the Nats this year in their ongoing series. They were (and I'll answer them best I can)
1) Is Stephen Strasburg healthy?
Not sure but all indiciations are yes so why not believe it until you are shown otherwise?
2) Can they extend Soto?
CAN they? Yes. WILL they? Not this year. Ask again later.
3) Who fills in after the stars?
Someone is going to step up. Schwarber. Bell. A rejuvinated Zimm. A breakthrough Robles. A surprise Castro. There is too much decent talent to go 0 for 5 after Soto and Turner (Gomes is what he is - he's not going to carry anything in the best of circumstances). Will it be more than one for an entire year? I doubt it. But Soto, Turner, Whoever is this year's 2019 Howie, and the rest will be good enough most of the time.
4) What happens if they fall short this year?
Ooooh. Depends on what they see of their precious few pitching prospects. I think if they like what they see of Cavalli and Rutledge (and hopefully someone else) they let Scherzer walk, sign Turner (shockingly keeping a hitter I know), and keep doing their fill-in and compete thing while they try to hold onto Soto. If they DON'T like what they see, I think they sell for parts, to try to build around Soto with prospects and keep him here. The big questions is if they keep Turner or not and I think that depends on what the market will bear for him. A good haul might send him packing but it's a rarity these days. Also Nats don't sign batters long term using money on pitching. It's a tough call but I see him gone in this scenario.
(of course what will happen is one guy will look great, the other will be mediocre, they'll have one surprise step up and like Garcia will be decent enough in AAA and really we don't get the nice "Do A or B" easy choice you like to have)
5 comments:
Watching the ST game right now, Cavalli looked strong in his inning and Rutledge has the stuff, but control isn't there today at least. I'm liking what I'm seeing in those two. Rutledge has that deceptive delivery where he hides the ball for a long time but could lead to injury (see Giolito, Lucas) so I worry that his arm falls off and/or the Nats mess with his mechanics and he struggles (again, see Giolito, Lucas)
Can they sign Soto? Absolutely
Will they sign Soto? Of course not. They'll offer him the absolute minimum they think they can offer while saving face with the fans, piss everyone off in the process, then he'll go and sign for a record deal with a team that doesn't shop for bats in the "damaged but might be salvageable or might give you salmonella canned goods aisle
CP - I looked around and you can find glowing comments about Fedde, Voth, Cole in Spring too. It's not meaningless (it's better than if they look like trash) but it's not far from that. I wouldn't even call ST AA worthy. It's just a different animal that I would take very little from
Robot - the reason I think they sign Soto is because (1) he truly is SPECIAL at the plate. Bryce is on a HoF track but goes between great and good. Soto hasn't gone below very good yet and (2) they like to save their big contracts for pitching but who is that going to be for? There isn't anyone in the wings waiting on that.
Turner is a question in my mind but Soto - if this year is anything like the last 3 - is just such a nobrainer they can't let him walk and he shouldn't leave unless HE wants to.
I mean, they've had Zimmerman for 15 going on 17 (16?) years.
Maybe they could want at least 1 bat that's a constant for a similar timeframe. And they could do a lot worse than have Soto become the face of the franchise for the next decade plus.
Obviously it's not my money, but they're going to spend a few hundred mil on payroll anyway, give a chunk to the guy who may be best hitter in baseball and then go with the spare part approach around him.
Zimm was the "hometown" guy, though, having gone to UVA and grown up in southeast VA. I think him being here this long is more a function of his desire to be here than the Lerners wanting him. If Soto gets paid what he SHOULD get paid, I don't think it will be in a Nats uniform. If he loves Davey and Rizzo and DC, then maybe he takes a lower offer from the Lerners, but I just don't see it happening. I look forward to watching Soto hit bombs into McCovey Cove as the future face of the SF Giants
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