First Base Picture Becoming More Clear After Nationals Reassign Top Prospect
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Trimmings to major league camp will continue to come fast and furious for the Washington Nationals as they creep closer to Opening Day on March 26.
Friday saw multiple players get optioned down to Triple-A Rochester or reassigned to minor league camp, as Mitchell Parker and Andrew Alvarez headlined that announcement while top prospect Seaver King was also sent back to the farm after a solid showing throughout spring training.
Now, another top 30 prospect has been reassigned to the minors. The Nationals announced Yohandy Morales was sent back to minor league camp. As a non-roster invitee, he was seen as a dark horse to potentially push for a role at first base. But following some struggles this spring, that never materialized. And now, things are starting to become more clear when it comes to how Washington could set things up at that position.
Nationals Seem to Have Clear Idea of How First Base Will Look
Entering the offseason, Andres Chaparro was the lone true first baseman on the 40-man roster. There were some rumblings that Luis Garcia Jr. might move over to the cold corner from second base after he was getting some work at first late last year. But it was unclear if that was actually going to happen or not.
Well, not only has Garcia continued to get reps at first, but it seems like the new regime is ready for him to become a regular at that position and split time between there and the keystone. That would leave both Garcia and Chaparro as the two first basemen on the major league roster.
That comes in light of moves Washington has made throughout spring training. Both Warming Bernabel and Matt Mervis -- two offseason signings expected to compete for the job -- were reassigned to minor league camp. Now, Morales has joined them.
Whether or not Garcia is the starter at first base on Opening Day is the next piece of the puzzle the Nationals have to figure out. It seems like that's the direction they want to go, with Chaparro being the backup. But more assessments will be made before a decision needs to be made.
What's Next for Yohandy Morales?
Last year, it was a bit surprising to see Morales not get called up to the majors for his debut. Washington had clear issues at first base and he was in the midst of putting together a season at Triple-A where he slashed .249/.330/.401 with 11 home runs, 21 doubles, two triples and 49 RBIs across 95 games. He still struggled with swing decisions, as he was rung up 131 times. But not seeing the 29th-ranked prospect get a shot was eyebrow raising.
While making the Opening Day roster was always going to be a longshot for Morales, going 1-for-17 with a walk and seven strikeouts across his 11 games this spring did not help his cause. And depending on what happens with Bernabel and Mervis, the poor display he had might have knocked him down the pecking order when it comes to potential call-ups.
At the age of 24, there is still time for Morales to figure things out and put himself in the running for a potential role at first base during his career. But 2026 is going to be a big year for him when it comes to proving he can have success in the majors.
Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai