Washington Nationals Should Consider Starting Talented Top Prospect at Third Base
The Washington Nationals have certainly been busy of late filling up their roster after a slow start to the winter.
Coming into the offseason, there were plenty of needs for the Nationals. In pretty much every facet of the team from starting pitching to the bullpen, and at the corners of their infield, Washington needed to make upgrades.
So far, the Nationals have addressed a lot of those needs. In the rotation, they added veteran Michael Soroka and brought back Trevor Williams. In their lineup, they added Josh Bell and Nathaniel Lowe to play first base and designated hitter.
However, the one position that hasn’t been addressed yet is third base.
Coming into the winter, there was some early speculation that going after a player like Alex Bregman would make sense for the team. However, with the one-year deals that they have been handing out to free agents, Washington isn’t ready to commit to players long-term while their young core is developing.
Since a move hasn’t been made yet and options are somewhat limited in free agency, the Nationals might look to fill third base with an in-house option.
Currently, Jose Tena might be the favorite to start at the position, but he doesn’t seem like a long-term option as a starter.
Since a move hasn’t been made to improve a position that currently is a need, it seems like the organization might be ready to give prospect Brady House a chance right out of the gate to start the season.
With Dylan Crews and James Wood both coming up last year, House appears like he could be next in line.
The 21-year-old split time between Double-A and Triple-A and performed well. In 129 games, he totaled a .241 batting average, 19 home runs, and 66 RBIs. Finding power has been something that the Nationals have been seeking and the young prospect certainly would be able to help in that area.
Considering he is still very young, he’s got the type of pop that a franchise would want playing the hot corner.
Since Washington hasn’t committed long-term to free agents, they are going to let their young players prove what they can do and develop. With a lot of at-bats in Triple-A last year, bringing up House and giving him a chance to start on Opening Day makes a lot of sense for the Nationals.
The young core of Washington certainly looks promising, and House could very well put himself right into the conversation of who the best young hitter on the Nationals will be.
