Why Signing Talented Infielder Makes Perfect Sense for Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals are heading into free agency hoping to make some moves to help improve the franchise heading into 2025.

It has been a tough few seasons for the Nationals, as the team has had to endure a lot of losing seasons since winning the World Series in 2019. Washington has been committed to the rebuilding process, and it has started to pay off with a lot of talented young players on the roster.

However, while they have been rebuilding for a few years now, the time to make a jump out of that process appears to be coming up soon.

The Nationals have done a good job of not spending long-term on free agents of late, and they recently saw the contract of Patrick Corbin come to a close. This frees up a lot of money for a team that should be looking to be fairly aggressive in free agency this offseason.

Since Washington was a 71-win team the last two years, there are obviously a few areas that could use some improvement. In the starting rotation, a front-end starter to help lead a young and still developing staff would be good.

Also, in the bullpen, the Nationals are looking thin all of a sudden with the recent decision to let both Tanner Rainey and Kyle Finnegan become free agents.

However, the most pressing need could be to get some power into the lineup. Washington was one of the worst home run hitting teams last season, and that needs to be fixed.

One free agent who makes a lot of sense for the Nationals to help improve that is shortstop Willy Adames.

Adames is one of the top free agent hitters available, as he put together an excellent 2024 campaign. With the Milwaukee Brewers last season, the slugger totaled a .251 batting average, 32 home runs, and 112 RBIs. Those types of numbers would be a massive upgrade for Washington in the middle of the lineup.

While the shortstop fits well in terms of what the Nationals are looking for on offense, where he would play would be the topic of discussion.

Currently, Washington has an All-Star shortstop already in CJ Abrams. However, the young shortstop is one of the worst in the league on defense, and moving him to potentially either third base or the outfield could make sense. Also, Adames might be willing to play third base in the right situation. It’s just uncertain if Washington will be that situation.

While the positional fit isn’t perfect, Adames is the type of hitter that it would be worth trying to figure out and make it work defensively.