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Washington Nationals: Handicapping the odds in each award race

By Drew Douglas

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 07: Bryce Harper #34 of the Washington Nationals holds up the 2015 MVP trophy during a ceremony before the start of the Nationals home opener against the Miami Marlins at Nationals Park on April 7, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 07: Bryce Harper #34 of the Washington Nationals holds up the 2015 MVP trophy during a ceremony before the start of the Nationals home opener against the Miami Marlins at Nationals Park on April 7, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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Silver Slugger

The Silver Slugger Award goes to the best offensive player at each position in each league. The Nats have had several players win this award, including Daniel Murphy and Wilson Ramos last season.

This season, the Nats have several candidates to win Silver Slugger Awards, with Daniel Murphy being the most likely. Murphy finished with the second-highest batting average in the National League for the second consecutive season, and put together an incredible season at the plate.

When all was said and done, Murphy had a slash line of .322/.384/.928 to go with his 23 homers and 93 RBI’s. He put together a great season, and doesn’t have much competition for the award, aside from DJ LeMahieu, Javier Baez, and Josh Harrison.

In addition to Murphy, the Nats also have Anthony Rendon, Bryce Harper, and Ryan Zimmerman in the running.

By now, you known about the phenomenal season Rendon put together, and he is in the running for the Silver Slugger Award, among others. He finished with a slash line of .301/.403/.937 to go with his 25 homers and 100 RBI’s.

Any time a player hits 25 homers and records 100 RBI’s is special, and Rendon deserves consideration for the award, even if just for that. Incredibly, he also hit 41 doubles. The player that Nats fans affectionately call, “Tony Two Bags” has quickly become of the best offensive third basemen and should garner some votes for Silver Slugger.

The Nats’ third candidate for Silver Slugger is Bryce Harper. His gruesome injury likely cost him the MVP Award, and may cost him a Silver Slugger as well. He was great when healthy, but missed over a month and did not qualify for the batting title.

Despite not qualifying for the batting title, Harper had another terrific season at the plate. He had a slash line of .319/.413/1.008 and hit 29 homers with 87 RBI’s. His 29 homers were second-best on the team, which goes to show how good he was when healthy.

The Nats’ final candidate is Ryan Zimmerman. He had an outstanding season as well, but has strong competition at first base, including Paul Goldschmidt, Joey Votto, and Anthony Rizzo. Despite the strong competition, Zimmerman should garner some votes and finish in the top three.

The Nats have several candidates to win the Silver Slugger Award, but Daniel Murphy is the most likely National to win, which would be his second in a row.

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