As we sit and wait for Carter Kieboom to pan out, we worry the Washington Nationals organization may have gotten this one wrong. The former first round pick, the third baseman of the future, the top prospect which has almost been labeled a bust. However, on the other side of the coin, the Nationals could have gone a different direction with a former player, didn’t, and are being proved to have gotten that one correct.
In 2018 he was a Top-30 prospect for the Nationals. In 2019 he hit .315 with 18 home runs and 31 doubles in Triple-A. He was a corner outfielder who also played first base. As a minor league free agent, the Nationals let him walk instead of putting him on the 40-man roster. After two brief stints in the Major Leagues with the Seattle Mariners, Jose Marmolejos was designated for assignment, sending him to an uncertain future.
Jose Marmolejos decisión proved to the right one for the Washington Nationals.
Marmolejos was a better fit for a rebuilding franchise instead of one with hopes of competing for the division title. After catching on with the Mariners in the offseason, he made the team out of spring training and competed for playing time at multiple positions. Marmolejos showed pop in the bat and flirted with an OPS near .900 late in the season before an end of the year slump ruined his numbers.
Finishing the year 1-28 put a damper on Marmolejos’ rookie season and he entered spring training in 2021 without a guaranteed job. After 79 at-bats the Mariners decided they has seen enough, and ousted the slugging 28 year old. A paltry .139 average has left Marmolejos unemployed for the time being. Marmolejos will clear waivers and be outright released. Seattle knows what they have in this player and has no ambition to send him to the minors.
While he’ll catch on somewhere else and provide minor league depth, the Nationals choosing to move on from Marmolejos was the right decision.