Washington Nationals: Don’t expect a trade for Curtis Granderson

While Curtis Granderson would give the Washington Nationals more outfield depth, don’t expect the Mets to trade him to D.C.

The Washington Nationals got some good news on Sunday when they found out that Bryce Harper should be back before the postseason. Despite the Harper news and Michael Taylor being back in the outfield, another outfielder is banged up as Brian Goodwin is dealing with groin tightness

In August, it’s much tougher to make trades compared to the non-waiver trade deadline. One name that has been rumored as a possible fit for the Nats is Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson. However, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post tweeted Monday that the team isn’t showing interest at this time.

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The Mets have dealt away Jay Bruce and Neil Walker this month, so it would make sense for them to try to trade Granderson, who is a free agent at the end of the year. While he is only hitting .230 this season, he does have 18 home runs and has hit 20+ home runs in each of the last three years.

Now, the good news on the Harper injury as well as the great play from Howie Kendrick in left field probably has prevented the team from aggressively going out and getting another outfielder. If they did get another one, Granderson is a good clubhouse guy and could add to an already deep bench.

Granderson won’t hit for a high average, but he is always good for some power and has been a good clutch player in the postseason. During the Mets run to the 2015 World Series, the outfielder had three home runs in the Fall Classic and drove in 12 runs for the entire postseason (14 games).

Plus, having Granderson would give the Washington Nationals more depth in right field. The last two nights, they played Andrew Stevenson in right field even though he has played the bulk of his professional career in center. Goodwin has played some right field, but who knows how long he will be out with the groin.

If Granderson were on any other team, he would be a good fit for the Washington Nationals. However, it’s tough to see the Mets wanting to help a team out in the National League East pursue a championship. It applied with Addison Reed and it would surely be the same thing with Granderson.

Another issue would be the money that the Nats might have to take on in that kind of deal. True, they went over the luxury tax with the deals for Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson in July, but Granderson has a $15 million deal this year, so even the prorated dollars would cost a lot.

With all that being said, if Goodwin needs to go on the disabled list, the Nats are thin on 40-man roster options in the outfield. Rafael Bautista has been on a rehab assignment in the Gulf Coast League and the last healthy player on the 40-man is Jose Marmolejos, who is at Double-A Harrisburg.

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So, if the Washington Nationals can’t get Granderson, maybe adding a veteran outfielder should be on their list. It may not be Granderson, but he would be a good fit in a curly W uniform if it did happen.