In a recent article made by Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report, who picked "1 Realistic Option to Plug Each MLB Team's Biggest Roster Hole" before Spring Training kicks off, the Washington Nationals were given a very legitimate possibility. Let's break down his selection for the Nationals and the player's fit on the club.
While there are still some big free agents available like Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, and Anthony Santander, it is highly unlikely that the Nationals will be involved in any of these sweepstakes. At this time, it appears as if General Manager Mike Rizzo does not have the green light to go after any options that will require major financial commitment by ownership, yet he has done a remarkable job of trying to piece together a better product than last season.
Despite already bringing in a slew of free agents like Michael Soroka, Trevor Williams, Josh Bell, Jorge Lopez, and Amed Rosario, who all should make the 26-man roster, and trading for Nathaniel Lowe to play first base, there are still a couple of major gaps that need to be filled. Since the departure of Anthony Rendon following the 2019 World Series victory, third base has been a revolving door of mediocrity, with guys like Nick Senzel and Carter Kieboom failing to take over the position for the long run.
Despite some solid play from Jeimer Candelario, who was signed on a 1-year deal and experienced a great run with the Nationals before being traded at the deadline to the Chicago Cubs for a package that included lefty DJ Herz, the club has swung and missed repeatedly trying to fill the position. Perhaps Reuter's proposed signing, Yoán Moncada, can follow a similar path to Candelario?
In case you are unfamiliar with Moncada, he is a former Top Prospect of the Boston Red Sox who was the headliner in the Chris Sale trade back in 2016. After a breakout season in 2019 where he hit 25 homers, 79 RBIs, and had a .315/.367/.548 slash line with a .915 OPS and 5.2 bWAR, he would regress over the next couple of years, with only one season (2021) with a bWAR above 1.0, which doesn't tell the entire story as he has had some pretty brutal injury luck.
As Reuter points out, "Moncada offers intriguing upside if he can stay healthy, and the Nationals are one of the only teams that might be willing to offer him a starting job at third base. The 29-year-old has played in only 208 games over the past three seasons." which goes to show just how much his career has been derailed by those injuries.
"Moncada offers intriguing upside if he can stay healthy, and the Nationals are one of the only teams that might be willing to offer him a starting job at third base. The 29-year-old has played in only 208 games over the past three seasons."Joel Reuter, Bleacher Report
Unless the Nationals really believe in Jose Tena, or think that Brady House can be ready for a call-up before the end of the season, taking a shot on someone like Moncada truly makes a lot of sense for the Nationals. Spotrac estimates he would only command an AAV of about $1.5 million given how much his value has decreased, and this would be pretty much in line with the amounts that Mike Rizzo & co. have dished out to other players.
While I can admit that the cheap 1-year deals have become pretty boring over the last couple of years given that if they are any good they will be shipped off at the deadline, but this is one I would not be upset with at all. If Moncada does not pan out, then at least we took a shot without major financial commitment in an attempt to upgrade the position.
Do you agree that the Nationals should sign Yoán Moncada? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.