Washington Nationals: 5 predictions on Dave Martinez's style

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With the Washington Nationals giving Dave Martinez his first chance to manage, here are five things we might see him do. The results could lead to winning.

Over the next several months, the Washington Nationals, along with you, will get to know new manager Dave Martinez and how he ticks.

When brought on board, the understanding is Martinez is a firm believer in baseball’s growing analytics along with a reputation for player friendliness. He replaces Dusty Baker, who is a mater of player relations, but drove some crazy managing by his gut and not what numbers dictated.

Baker won consecutive National Least East crowns, but you know what happened from there.

Martinez will approach situations differently but, with no hard managerial experience of his own, what should we expect to see? He learned from one of the top skippers of the game in Joe Maddon, but can you see Bryce Harper wearing a onesie with his favorite teddy bear boarding a team flight? (Bet you would get good money selling that pic.)

As we start this critical year for Washington, what will we see from Martinez in the dugout? Given a roster capable of winning 100 games along with a weak division, his skills should not get a hard test until October. He has plenty of time to make mistakes and learn.

But, he faces a tough test from the start as the Nats carry the biggest expectations in franchise history. With the All-Star Game hosted in DC this July, more attention than usual will focus on Washington and their rookie manager.

Martinez assembled a top-notch coaching staff around him that are young and hungry. Now, the time has come to show what they can do

Here are five things you may see Martinez do his first year in Washington.

BAT THE PITCHER 8TH

A student of sabremetrics, Martinez will try batting the pitcher in the eighth-hole allowing for a double-leadoff hitter.

Maddon does this with the Chicago Cubs and other data-driven skippers experiment with the idea. When you consider the amount of speed in the Nats lineup, using a regular hitter last makes sense. For instance, Michael Taylor could hit ninth and have more chances to steal bases without Max Scherzer hitting behind him.

With starters rarely pitching past the sixth inning, by the fourth time through the lineup you have an American League-style offense anyway without the pitcher.

If Martinez can find a solid option to slot behind the pitcher, this might turn into a regular thing. The problem comes with how the rest of the lineup is constructed. If he leaves Anthony Rendon batting sixth, scoring him gets harder with the pitcher only two spots lower.

Still, Washington will try it. Who knows, you might like it.

Expect this to happen in April. If it works, it may turn into a regular thing. The key is finding the right hitter to bat last and not throwing another automatic out behind the pitcher.

Last year, the Matt Wieters/pitcher combo failed, especially in the fall. Another reason Martinez will gamble early this season.

GET TOSSED, WHY DON’T YOU?

Sometimes a manager must light a fire under his team.

This does not mean tossing chairs in the office or throwing clubhouse post-game meals everywhere. With cameras and microphones everywhere, tantrums turn into viral videos on SportsCenter for weeks on end.

Yet, sometimes teams play too casual. Last year, Washington had stretches where their focus was a million miles away from the ballpark. Injuries, fatigue and a division settled in May were factors but, especially in September, urgency was missing.

Outside of hiring Hunter Strickland to throw batting practice, the best way to excite a team is having a manager get ejected. Sometimes, it is important to wake both players and fans. Baker, for all his laid-back demeanor, hardly ever excited his troops.

No, turning into the ghost of Earl Weaver will not work. But, Bobby Cox found the clubhouse his fair share in Atlanta and mentor Maddon at Wrigley is not a shrinking violet. Although old-fashioned chest bumping is not worth a suspension, kicking the dirt or hiding home plate to defend a player is a good thing.

Players need to know a manager has their back. Over the course of 162 games, a good manager understands dead spots and bored guys must stay at a minimum. Joe West understands.

JUGGLING TREA TURNER

Trea Turner has the potential of becoming an all-time leadoff hitter. But, he has yet to learn the art of patience at the plate. Until he does, Adam Eaton gets the honor. He is good at it but does not have Turner’s base stealing prowess nor his power.

So, where will Martinez hit Turner? Although logic tells you second, you risk taking away Turner’s speed with Harper, Daniel Murphy and Ryan Zimmerman hitting behind.

Until Turner stops pressuring himself to force action, second is not his ideal spot. Perhaps Rendon will try second and Turner gets an audition at sixth where his speed is not hindered.

Eaton’s injury forced Turner to lead off last year. At some point, Turner will find the spot again. Until he learns plate discipline and choses his swings carefully, expect Martinez to find a spot that helps everybody.

Fans were unhappy during Baker’s tenure the lineup remained fixed unless a player needed a day off. With Martinez’s data approach, those days are over. Now, fans will not like precision matching. Some folks, you cannot please.

In Turner’s case, you could see him hit first, second, sixth or ninth. The nine-spot can work in lineups where you have two solid leadoff options. It comes down to how fast he matures as a hitter. An injury-free season will help.

NAMING A CAPTAIN

The Nats do not have an official captain.

There are clubhouse leaders and player leadership was a strong point during the Baker years. But, the time has come to give official responsibility to a named player.

Whether it is Scherzer, Zimmerman, Harper or Murphy, Martinez would be bold and smart to elevate a player into an internal accountable position. Yes, in this era of participation trophies, a team captain seems old fashioned. Do you think anyone on the New York Yankees questioned Lou Gehrig or Thurman Munson?

(Reggie Jackson, put your hand down.)

Sometimes, the attitude of a player knowing he can put a team on his back and carry them to greatness works. Clubhouses always have leaders, but Martinez can provide a spark and accountability buy outing one. Traditions need to start somewhere.

This is a bold move but, after four straight playoff whiffs, shaking up the order might work.

Watch to see how Martinez and his coaches get along with their team this spring. From his years with Madon in Tampa and Chicago, he knows you can overachieve when everyone is on the right page. The Cubs built swagger under Maddon and won a championship.

The mission in Washington is no different.

A SIXTH MAN

As long as the bullpen remains a strength, Martinez will not tax his starting pitchers unless he needs to. Although Scherzer wants 110-120 pitches a night, those grunting fastballs are needed in October.

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The changes will be subtle. An inning here or there. A starter pinch-hit for in the sixth with a comfortable lead. Yes, sometimes a maximum effort will happen. But, 115 grinding pitch nights against the Philadelphia Phillies will not.

Although Baker handled his starters better in Washington than other stops in his career, the Nats starters still carried a heavy workload. Last year, the bullpen left him no choice until July. This year is different.

If we get into mid-August with the division salted away, expect Martinez to use a six-man rotation. This allows the aces to give full effort while allowing extra rest and cutting out a needless late-season start or two.

It is obvious to anyone watching playoff baseball the last few seasons that bullpens are overused. Arms used to 15-20 pitches in anger are tired and mistakes happen. Yes, playoff baseball is a bullpen battle. The sport evolves.

But, if Martinez has fresher starters, they can spare the pen an inning or two a night. Over the course of a pressure-packed month, it adds up.

Next: Wieters ready to rebound

The thought of A.J. Cole and Edwin Jackson highlighting Labor Day weekend will not give you the warm and fuzzies. An extra inning from Scherzer or Strasburg against a tired bullpen might get a championship. That is why Martinez is here.

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Washington Nationals: 5 predictions on Dave Martinez’s style