Washington Nationals Again Connected To All-Star Slugger in Free Agency
It feels like a matter of when, not if, the Washington Nationals are going to make a splash this offseason.
General manager Mike Rizzo has said that he is ready to spend to upgrade the roster and get the organization one step closer to being out of their rebuild. Based on their salary cap situation, he will have the means to do so.
The Nationals currently do not have a player on their roster set to earn more than $5 million. Closer Kyle Finnegan was a surprising non-tender candidate and veterans Patrick Corbin, Trevor Williams and Joey Gallo are all free agents.
There is an impressive young core in place, but more talented is needed for Washington to climb back into the playoff picture in the National League. One thing that their lineup is lacking is a bonafide power hitter.
Last season the Nationals hit only 135 home runs, which was the second least in baseball. Only the Chicago White Sox hit fewer with 133.
Luckily for Washington, several power hitters are available in free agency. One of them is Anthony Santander of the Baltimore Orioles, who Andy McCullough of The Athletic has predicted will end in up in the nation’s capital.
“A team like the Nationals, which could use some certainty at the center of its lineup, might be willing to give out a lengthier deal to Santander as he enters his age-30 season. ... He has averaged 35 homers during the past three seasons and swatted a career-high 44 in 2024.”
While some concerns have been raised about how legitimate of a breakout campaign Santander had, and some underwhelming advanced stats, there is no denying the power that he would provide to the lineup.
Even if some of his home runs in 2024 were on the lucky side, even if he hit “only” 36, he would have still led Washington by a sizable amount. The team leader this past year was All-Star shortstop CJ Abrams, who hit 20.
A legitimate run producer, coming off a campaign in which he knocked in 102, he would upgrade the lineup in a big way. Inserting him between Abrams and James Wood would significantly raise the team’s floor and ceiling.
Another interesting thing to keep an eye on is that Santander has some experience playing first base. That is arguably their biggest need positional-wise, as their outfield looks set with Wood, Jacob Young and Dylan Crews locked in and more help nearing the Major Leagues in their pipeline with Robert Hassell III and Daylen Lile.
Committing to making Santander a full-time first baseman would have its risks. But, the Nationals would be most worried about his production at the plate, as they would be bringing him onboard for his bat, not his glove.
