Washington Nationals: Victor Robles emphatically announces his arrival

Coming into Wednesday, the talk was about Bryce Harper’s possible home curtain call for the Washington Nationals. But instead, Victor Robles stole the show.

In their final home game of the season, the Washington Nationals were wary it may be Bryce Harper‘s last. But it what some may view as a passing of the torch, Victor Robles announced his arrival in the big leagues.

This September has been the first true extended look that fans have had at Robles, and so far it’s tough to be disappointed. In the game, the youngster went 4 for 5 with 5 RBI and was just a triple shy of the cycle.

Since his recall, the young Dominican has been a dynamic threat and is now hitting .275 with a .851 OPS. He’s also slugging .529 this year, which is second on the team behind Anthony Rendon among those who have had at least fours ABs.

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Although he still looks very raw on defense in the outfield but is showcasing the speed and reactions to be a success there in the long-run. Hopefully, with a bit more experience patrolling the outfield at the big league level, he’ll be able to adjust accordingly

If it wasn’t abundantly clear anyway, Victor Robles will be the starting centerfielder for the Nationals to open the 2019 season, barring injury. If he can keep up this level of production, then Mike Rizzo could be justified keeping him instead of trading him away on numerous occasions.

Will he stay or will he go?

It was the biggest storyline entering the series finale against the Miami Marlins. Would this be the last time Bryce Harper would be in the home locker room at Nats Park? We’re still no nearer to knowing the answer.

In terms of the game, Harper finished 0 for 4 with two strikeouts and was robbed of a bow due to the rain. He was left on deck in the bottom of the seventh and would’ve been set to lead off the eighth had it taken place.

Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reported after the game that Davey Martinez would’ve subbed Harper for Andrew Stevenson in the ninth to give the crowd a chance to appreciate their homegrown star. An opportunity missed, and now we can only hope to get another chance to show our appreciation for Harper at some point in the future, be it for the Nats or a visiting team.

McGowin’s impressive first start in the majors

After a stellar season in the minor leagues, Kyle McGowin made his first big league start against the Marlins. He was cruising early on, showing plenty of promise, but his start was unfortunately cut short by injury.

McGowin’s final line was four scoreless innings of one-hit ball, with three walks and four strikeouts. He retired the first 11 batters in order before a Derek Dietrich two-out single to end the early perfect game bid.

It’s probably too late for him to try and win a rotation spot to start off the 2019 season, despite the great outing. But, he has at least left himself towards the front of the queue should the team lose a starter at any point during the year.

Harper or Rendon a higher priority?. dark. Next

After all the rain that has been had at Nats Park this month, it’s fitting the home schedule for the Washington Nationals ended in a shortened game. Now they head to Colorado to take on the Rockies to finish off the year.

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