Washington Nationals Sign Logan Schafer To Minor League Deal
By Ricky Keeler
The Nats have signed former Brewer Logan Schafer to a minor league deal, the third outfielder they have signed this winter.
Even though the Washington Nationals have yet to sign a Major League free agent this winter, they continued to add to their list of spring training invitees today. According to Baseball America’s minor league free agent signings tracker, the organization signed outfielder Logan Schafer to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.
Schafer has been with the Milwaukee Brewers for his entire career. Milwaukee selected him in the third round of the 2008 MLB Draft. The 29-year-old made his Major League debut in 2011, but has not lived up to the expectations of his high draft selection.
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He has a career slash line of .212/.286/.319 with five home runs, 52 RBI’s, and ten stolen bases in five seasons. Back in 2013, Schafer played in 134 games (career-high), but hit a mere .211 with four home runs and 33 RBI’s. This past season, he hit .221 in 69 games with one home run and six RBI’s
Schafer has played all three positions in the outfield during his career, but he has played center field more often. All 25 of his starts this past season came at the center field spot and he made two errors. But, while he hasn’t made many errors, he did have -6 defensive runs saved. Back in 2013, he had 12 defensive runs saved (according to Fangraphs).
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Schafer joins Reed Johnson and Chris Heisey on the list of outfielders that the Washington Nationals have signed to minor league deals with spring training invites this winter. The Nats do need depth at center field if they are going to stick with Michael Taylor as the everday starter. However, as a pinch-hitter this season, Schafer was 2-for-17 (.116) with a RBI. By those numbers, he’s not exactly a player that could provide that spark off the bench.
It is possible that the left-handed hitting outfielder can benefit from a change of scenery, but as of right now, he could likely start the season at triple-A Syracuse unless he puts up excellent numbers this spring.
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Schafer does have good triple-A numbers in his career as he has a slash line of .281/.338/.431 in four seasons with 20 home runs, 98 RBI’s, and 28 stolen bases. This past season, at Colorado Spring (Milwaukee’s triple-A affiliate), he hit .258 with one home run and 17 RBI’s. However, he was a .306 hitter at home in a hitter’s friendly ballpark while hitting .213 on the road.