Offseason Update: Oct. 31, 2019
A little less than a year and a half ago, this guy ate up High-A like a HS football team at a Sizzler. Ten months earlier, the Nationals starting CF finished his 116-game, 28-HBP tour through Woodbridge. Five years before that, the should-be Gold Glover, Silver Slugger third baseman passed though in two games in April and seven in August.
A total of seven of the 25 players on the 2019 World Series roster were drafted and/or developed by Washington, with Stephen Strasburg (who debuted at AA in ’09 and thus skipped Woodbridge), Ryan Zimmerman (who spent four games at Low-A Savannah in ’05 and missed the exit off I-95 and ended up in Harrisburg; they let him stay anyway), Michael Taylor (who spent two full seasons at the Pfitzhole), and Wander Suero (who toiled for eight full seasons, and part of a ninth in the minors) rounding out the list.
Ten more came via trades — most notably, starting SS Trea Turner and RF Adam Eaton; infamously, LHRP Sean Doolittle — which means that “our guys” were sent packing for Oakland other organizations.
Last night was the culmination of what we’ve been following here since 2009. It will be extremely difficult to repeat (thanks in no small part to those trades). But for the next few days, it’s time to celebrate.
The last time I made it down to the “Pfitzhole,” Soto hit two titanic blasts and I started telling everyone who sits around me at Nats Park that he was going to be the Nats’ next big star (most had never heard of him).
Two weeks later I was there to see him hit his first MLB home run in his first start in hit first AB. Almost immediately, people were saying “that swing just saved them the Nats $500 million”(hard to believe we ever thought Harper could be worth even half that).
While it has been irritating to see great young arms like Luzardo and Giolito traded, winning a WS title makes it all worthwhile. Rizzo and Martinez are now absolved for all past sins–for a season or two anyway. 🙂
Karl. Pitching secured that single by Eaton to extend the lead. Small things add up.
Michael A Taylor made that fabulous game ending catch in LA.
Deadline deal steal was a healthy Danny Hudson. Beneath the radar bullpen HUM, BABY asRoger Craig always said.
Unbelievable! Yes, this is what it’s all about. And yes, it does feel particularly good to see those guys we saw as kids now the ones getting their payoff, even ones like Zim who have had to wait a LONG time. Rendon as a minor-leaguer got hurt at the start of his first full season, and combined with his college injuries, we wondered whether we might have ended up with damaged goods. I remember how lost Taylor looked at Potomac. On the flip side, Robles looked at ease with his stardom early on, although goodness, he was so wild on the base paths.
And yes, Doolittle was the glue in the bullpen for much of the year and solid in the postseason, while Eaton really shined in the World Series. Yes, those were tough trades. Yes, some haven’t worked. But finally enough of them did. And flags fly FOREVER.
Anyway, congrats to everyone in the organization, right down through all the levels of the farm, and to the virtual friends here with whom we’ve shared the journey over several years.
As a Montrealer, today is bittersweet. I adopted the Nats as my team to follow after they moved, and i couldn’t be happier that they won. On the flip side, there’s a little sadness too since I never got to experience that here and maybe never will (although there’s been some real progress on a potential return, but that’s another topic for another day).
Congrats again the Nats – what a wild ride. And thanks Luke and all you posters for allowing me to tag along by following your info. and comments – you guys are great.
Nick I gave a shout out to ole expo fans the other day.
I wonder if Trader Jack popped a cigar in his mouth like Hannibal Smith in A team lighted it up saying to Rizzo : I love it when a plan comes together !!!
Luke are you going to retire to dog raising ??
I am going to the proverbial farm like the skipper in The Natural. Time to cultivate my garden as the guy says to the boy at the end of Voltaire’s Candide.
Happy trails everybody
Nick Kendrick GS vs Dodgers was Revenge on Rick Monday 1981.
Slaying the Cardinal Way was like poking at the ghost of Whitey Herzog Cardiac Cards.
Too bad the Nats couldn’t play the Yanx to play out what would have been the WS in owners Lock out 1994.
Congrats Matt Herges getting Arizona pitching coach gig. Ole expo
Jeff, I was too young to experience Blue Monday, but i sure remember the ’94 team and what could have been.
Just thinking about it makes me realize just how similar they were to the new champs – same great outfield (Walker, Grissom, Alou vs. Robles, Eaton, Soto), great top 4 starters (Pedro, Hill, Fassero, Reuter vs. Corbin, Stras, Sherz, Sanchez) and 1-2 closers (Wetteland, Rojas vs. Doolitle, Hudson) and of course, great managers (Alou vs Martinez).
However, I hope that’s where the similarities end cuz i pray that the Nats can keep this team together, unlike what the Expos did.
But that’s to worry about another day – today is for celebration and recognition of how great this team is and just as importantly, how great this management staff is.
Nick. MLB network lists the 94 Expos in their 50 greatest teams of all time….for what its worth….expos had called up Floyd and white in 1993 from Harrisburg who still won a boat load of games with reserve roster…
I agree with everyone here. The best news for us is that no starting pitching prospects were traded this year, a first.
We have a bounty of pitchers knocking at the door next year to cheer for.
these past few months are a very special gift for this baseball fan, second only to getting a team in 2005.
also special is following players as they develop through the system and this site makes that much easier. thank you Luke and posters.
it pains me as well when a favorite is traded away but it happens. I will speculate that Rizzo wanted to do all he could to deliver this to Ted and now that it’s accomplished he may be less likely to raid the farm.
I’ll sit back and revel it for a while the look forward to new players to follow and new seasons to bring joy.
happy days Nats fans!
What a happy, special, emotionally thrilling day for this poster who first began following baseball and the Montreal Expos in 1972. Apart from the unforgettable fun of this run of recent weeks, and the unfamiliar feeling of being a champion, I confess that it ripples down to how I look at the farm system, wins and losses, and “player development.”
Longtime Expos fans like myself who came around to the Nationals appreciate being able to love a team that is assembled by Rizzo rather than Jim Fanning or borderline retardates like Omar Minaya. No GM is perfect, and there are ways in which the front office can improve. But after enduring the trades for Mark Langston and Bartolo Colon, which I found even more traumatic than free agent losses (all except the daggers to the heart of Vlad and Pedro, at least), it’s refreshing to have a GM who doesn’t suffer weaknesses well, owners who pay for necessary pieces but don’t overpay, and a front office that allows for stars to break through, sells before value is lost (usually) and gets undervalued rather than shiny object players.
Juan Soto is a player whose persona will impact the team and well beyond. He will make Victor Robles a better player. Robles is himself a charismatic and exciting, fun three way player who has to appreciate Soto’s ability to grind his defense into a superior level this year. Their baseball IQ and joy for the game are a big reason why this Series win will ripple into international dividends for the Nationals. I hope the windfall is both investment in scouting and Latin player development. But the 2019 Nationals were so fun to watch and root for, and they are two reasons why.
Two other reasons, of course, are Strasburg and Scherzer. It’s unthinkable to have envisioned mentioning them in that order, but Strasburg simply broke through his own ceiling while Scherzer’s body may be redefining his. But the grit of Scherzer and the dead eye assassin’s touch of the Series MVP were winning and engendered confidence. I admit that I gave up on the Nationals offense after game 5. But I did not give up on Strasburg.
And Daniel Hudson. What would the season have come to if he had not emerged down the stretch when Doolittle faded? I do hope he returns.
Count me among those who say, “Pay Rendon what you must.” The younger stars like Soto, and others like Strasburg, need to see the example of a core that stays together in the interest of multiple World Series runs. The Astros have players locked up who should be locked up. And Rendon proved this year that he is an MVP-caliber player who will live up to the stats and fit into the team around him and bring it every day. He is worth his 30 million for all of the reasons that Bryce Harper was not.
As for Howie Kendrick, one cannot overstate the intangible value he has demonstrated as his career advances to the identity of this team. I would absolutely pay him and outbid anyone to keep him aboard. He does not want to be a DH. The can surely find him enough at bats, even if Carter Kieboom makes it to the next level.
Kieboom’s future may have everything to do with Trea Turner’s finger, and whatever must be done in the off-season to remedy it. He won’t come up to sit on the bench, and Fresno is nothing more than a service time solution at this point. In my mind, there is room for Rendon, Kendrick and Kieboom in the same starting lineup.
Ryan Zimmerman is the odd man out, but as a World Series champion, that’s OK. He’s had his run with the Nats, and the lineup can be better served otherwise.
Rizzo always makes the off season interesting, and there are many graduated and Rule-5 eligibles who will keep things interesting.
I would be quite regretful if the Nationals lost or traded Yadiel Hernandez, who brings not only a lefty bat but the maturity of his life experience and tenacity. He may be no more than an extra and backup OF who learns 1B while Adam Eaton is here, but I’d welcome him more than Matt Adams off the Nats bench if he can get enough at bats. Michael Taylor is hard to envision making another 25 man, but his defense is special. Andrew Stevenson has quietly arrived and is himself an odd man out. They’re all odd men out – but a couple will make it.
The same could be said of the graduating “5th starter class.” Fedde, Ross, Voth. For the first time in forever, there is no derby to find a fifth and sixth starter a la Hellickson. I am partial to Voth as a person who will rise. The Strasburg outcome dictates quite a bit.
Since we know Rizzo NOT to be a person who sits still, it appears the Nationals are going to resolve the fates of Rendon, Strasburg, and perhaps others they WANT to invest in to keep (Kendrick? Hudson?) before scanning the other possibilities. Whatever the trade market holds, the Nats have better chips now than at this time last year, and those chips have all the more luster with their exposure during the playoffs and even late season run.
What comes back in return? And who among the youngest arms will rise in the bullpen? And, with Reetz down, is there an organizational solution at catcher in 20? Is there another young Wilson Ramos waiting to be plucked from someone else’s garden?
Thank you to my fellow Nats fans for bringing your enthusiasm to this site and other places in which we can commune from far flung points. Thank you to Luke for this site and for his insights and observations, which are never enough. Thank you to Paul Menhart, who may have been the most important graduate of the far system this year. And thank you to the Lerners, who are champions and fulfilled an imperative of World Series or bust, with neither bluster nor compromise. Above all, thank you to the nationals for joys that will live long.
Savoring the day….
Great to be a Nats fan, and it all begins with the farm system.
While premature, already thinking about how the roster may change next season. Will be interesting to see what role the Nats have in mind for Kieboom (which naturally depends on where Rendon ends up).
Speaking of Two Bags in his Pfitz days . . .
https://www.insidenova.com/sports/prince_william/throwback-thursday-now-world-series-champ-anthony-rendon-began-pro/video_ddba23f6-fbf2-11e9-afbe-f7c59e71ae23.html
I’m greedy and want more of these.
Give Rendon 4/$180 with 3 $15M player options.
Give Stras 2 more years at the backend of his deal to waive the opt-outs.
Give Soto 20/$360, or whatever.
And hell, go take a crack at Cole too. He might want to know he’d never have to face Juan Soto again.
A hilarious suggestion that the Nats should sign Cole.
Less than 1 hour after game 7 ended, he said he was no longer a member of the Astros organization while wearing a Boras hat.
We just got rid of someone like that last year.
Well, the competitor in him knew 1.) Houston wasn’t going to bring him back. 2.) His manager had him warming up to come in to game 7. I can see him seething in the bullpen thinking about what he could have done versus the ‘Stros bullpen. I would hazard he felt he was left “twisting in the wind” helplessly thinking he probably could have won the day for the Astros.
I can see why Cole might feel “left out” can’t you?