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Washington Nationals: Three Players The Front Office Needs To Extend

By Max Rayman |
WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 03: Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals walks to the dugout after striking out against the Boston Red Sox at Nationals Park on October 03, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 03: Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals walks to the dugout after striking out against the Boston Red Sox at Nationals Park on October 03, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
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In the middle of a rebuild, Washington is attempting to find long-term pieces to join their new core. Fortunately, they already have a solid foundation and just need to bolster individual positions and add depth.

At least 1-2 years away from truly contending, now is the time for the Nationals to sign these three players to contract extensions.

Juan Soto

This one is a given, but Juan Soto needs to be given a blank check in order for him to play his entire career in D.C. The 23-year-old is the best hitter in baseball not named Mike Trout and was just named a finalist for NL MVP. He was also named a finalist for the Silver Slugger in the outfield and for the All-MLB team.

After a slow start, Soto finished the season hitting .313, with 29 homers, 95 RBIs, and an OPS of .999. He led MLB in OBP (.465), walks (145), and intentional walks (23), and also posted the sixth-lowest strikeout percentage (14.2%) (minimum 650 ABs).

A Scott Boras client, his agent is known for having his players reach free agency so they can maximize their   Yesterday during Boras’s press conference, he announced that Soto wants to know the Nats are committed to winning before agreeing to talk about an extension.

For a player of Soto’s caliber, letting him walk is a fireable offense. Filling out the rest of the offense with a solid supporting cast should be the objective in order to have Soto buy into the future.

Josh Bell #19 of the Washington Nationals hits a home run in the eighth inning against the Miami Marlins at Nationals Park on July 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
Josh Bell #19 of the Washington Nationals hits a home run in the eighth inning against the Miami Marlins at Nationals Park on July 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

Josh Bell

Outside of Juan Soto, Josh Bell was the National’s most productive hitter last season. He hit .261, with 27 homers, 88 RBIs, and an OPS of .823. Defensively, Bell made major strides posting -1 DRS and a -2.2 UZR. To put it in perspective, he had -6 DRS and a -7.5 UZR in 2019.

Two months ago we discussed extending Josh Bell and our stance hasn’t changed. At the time we wrote,

After starting the season on the COVID list, Bell took over a month to rediscover his footing and swing. Through his first 53 at-bats, he was hitting .113, with two homers, five RBIs, and an OPS of .464. He struck out 17 times and only drew five walks, but once the calendar flipped to May, Bell finally found his footing posting a .795 OPS that month. June saw the Nationals go 19-9 and Bell was a major reason why. While all eyes were on Kyle Schwarber and his home run onslaught, Bell was silently grinding away. He finished the month slashing .282/.363/.521, while adding nine homers, 15 RBIs, and posting an OPS of .884.

Bell has a year left of arbitration and won’t command a massive payday. Extending Bell allows the Nationals to keep one of their most consistent bats. The team struggled driving in runs and losing Bell a year from now would only make that issue worse.

WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 17: Keibert Ruiz #20 of the Washington Nationals bats against the Colorado Rockies at Nationals Park on September 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 17: Keibert Ruiz #20 of the Washington Nationals bats against the Colorado Rockies at Nationals Park on September 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /

Keibert Ruiz

Despite only having 96 MLB at-bats, Washington needs to take a page out of the Atlanta Braves book and lock up the former top prospect now. At the start of the 2019 season, Atlanta worked out contract extensions for Ronald Acuna Jr. (eight years, $100 million) and Ozzie Albies (seven years, $35 million) forgoing arbitration. With their stars under contract on team-friendly deals long-term, the front office was able to spend money accordingly to fill out their roster needs.

Ruiz was the main prize for the Nationals in the Max Scherzer/Trea Turner blockbuster and is the catcher of the future. He stumbled in his first taste of the big leagues for the Nationals, but eventually found his footing. During the month of September, he slashed .292/.353/.431, while adding two homers, 13 RBIs, and an OPS of .781.

Defensively, Ruiz is projected to be above average. Back in 2020 MLB Pipeline stated,

“He’s agile, possesses soft hands and frames the ball well, but his receiving can get lackadaisical. He can flash solid arm strength but his accuracy wavers at times…”

Buying out Ruiz’s arbitration years now is a win for both sides. It allows Ruiz to get paid earlier than if he had waited to reach arbitration, while the Nats lock up a cornerstone player for the foreseeable future.

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