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Washington Nationals: Looking ahead to the team’s 2019/20 free agents

By Blake Finney

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 18: Ryan Zimmerman #11 of the Washington Nationals celebrates his first-inning, three-run home run against the New York Mets with teammates in the dugout at Citi Field on April 18, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 18: Ryan Zimmerman #11 of the Washington Nationals celebrates his first-inning, three-run home run against the New York Mets with teammates in the dugout at Citi Field on April 18, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /
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Washington Nationals Brian Dozier
(Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images) /

Brian Dozier

Last week, the Washington Nationals agreed to a one-year, $9 million deal with second baseman Brian Dozier. That could well lead him to be a free agent once again next offseason, though he’ll be hoping to do so on the back of a bounce-back season.

In 2018, Dozier was only able to slash .215/.305/.391 with 21 home runs, which was a far cry to his previous seasons. He’s a great bet to rebound with the Nationals in 2019 as it seemed as though the down year may have been partially due to a bone bruise in his knee last year.

In the three previous seasons when he picked up MVP votes in each year, he slashed .258/.335/.496 with over 100 homers and also picked up a gold glove. If he can get anywhere close to that level of performance for the Nationals, he’ll be a huge pickup for the team next season.

However, the reason the Nats signed Dozier is the fact that it was just a one-year deal instead of a multi-year deal. This is because of young prospect Carter Kieboom looming in the upper minors, and he could even be ready as soon as this summer.

That means Dozier’s future with the Nats is directly tied to Kieboom, as he is generally viewed as the stopgap until the youngster is ready. Therefore, if everything continues on the current schedule, it’s likely that Dozier will be plying his trade elsewhere in 2020.

Prediction: Brian Dozier will be a free agent again

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