Washington Nationals: Grading the offensive players
By Blake Finney
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Shortstop – Trea Turner
The ever-present in the Washington Nationals lineup this season has been Trea Turner. He’s started at shortstop in all 77 of the team’s games and could be an All-Star this year.
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This year hasn’t quite been at the same level as his rookie year where he hit .342 in 2016. But he owns a solid .261 batting average and has seemingly improved his approach at the plate.
The young shortstop has drawn 38 walks this year, eight more than he did last year and has played in 20 fewer games. And when you have speed like Turner, you need to get on base at every opportunity.
He’s been in a thrilling battle with teammate Michael Taylor for the Nats and major league stolen base lead. Taylor currently holds the edge with 23 compared to Turner’s 21. But Turner has the secure playing time, and more raw speed to likely finish the season ahead.
He’s also been able to play some remarkable shortstop during 2018 too. He’s making a bid to trademark the jump-throw given how much he’s done it this season. Sadly they don’t StatCast that data yet, so we can’t provide you with stats for that.
What we can provide is that he’s fourth among qualifiers in the National League for Defensive Rating, according to FanGraphs. That position could improve too, as the three above him, have played significantly fewer innings.
Although he’s currently fifth in the All-Star voting for shortstops, he may make the team as a reserve. He fully deserves it as a multi-dimensional talent and could be a franchise cornerstone for years to come. His middling batting average keeps him from the real top marks. A-
SS. Washington Nationals. TREA TURNER. A-.
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It’s time for the Washington Nationals to collectively raise their performance this season. It all starts with a key series against division rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend.