Could the Nationals look to the trade market to upgrade third base?

The Washington Nationals are in a truly prime position to significantly upgrade their club this winter. Whether it be a big splash for the lineup in free agency with guys like Christian Walker, Alex Bregman, or Anthony Santander, or a new veteran starting pitcher, the club will have no shortage of avenues to be able to make the team better than what we've seen since 2019. One position the club clearly wants to rectify is third base, and with a pair of veteran third baseman recently being put on the trade block, could either of them be a fit for the Nats? Let's take a look.

Following yet another postseason collapse from the Philadelphia Phillies this past October, the club is reportedly looking to "shake up their team" according to Jeff Passan. While the club will surely be players in free agency, could they possibly deal one of their younger players to the Washington Nationals? It's unlikely, but not impossible.

The recent update is that the Philadelphia Phillies have reportedly put 28-year-old corner infielder Alec Bohm on the trading block, and could view him as an expendable piece in their pursuit to upgrade their roster with guys that have more of a track record of showing up in October. The organization also reportedly feels that Bohm needs to grow up a little bit, and needs to work on becoming a more mature ballplayer. While all of that is just whispers from sources around the team, the likelihood that the Nats would deal any prospects of significance to a division rival seems highly unlikely.

Bohm, to his credit, significantly improved his defense at the hot corner this past season, and also turned in a very solid slash line of .280/.332/.448 for a .779 OPS to go along with 15 homers, 97 RBIs, and a career-high 44 doubles. While he lacks the raw power that the Nationals are sorely lacking, the fact that he has continued to improve and was just named an All-Star for the first time in 2024 would suggest that perhaps there's some untapped potential with his hitting, and he could continue to develop into an even better player.

The other name on the trade block is St. Louis Cardinals third baseman, Nolan Arenado. While he is seemingly on the decline in his career, this could work to the Nationals' advantage in that he may not cost as much to bring in, and the club would likely be able to hold on to most of their top prospects. Since 2022, when he had a 3rd place finish for NL MVP, Arenado has been slowly declining, and it resulted in him not being named an All-Star for the first time since 2014 (besides Covid-19 shortened season), and only accounting for 2.5 WAR. In the past 4 seasons, he has seen his home run total drop from 34 to 30 to 26 and all the way down to 16 in 2024. Of course, he still provides his signature elite defense that is likely the first thing you think of when you hear his name, but the steady decline at the plate is certainly cause for concern.

One potentially positive thing about Arenado is that he is under contract for 3 more seasons, and in terms of his fit for the Washington Nationals, could serve as the veteran presence that they have been looking for. He could be this new generation's version of Jayson Werth or Adam LaRoche, and hopefully give the club a couple years before retiring and likely heading for Cooperstown. However, where the contract is a positive in that he would be here for decent amount of time, you also have the double-edged sword to account for the fact that the Nationals would be on the hook for the remaining 3 years and $74M left on his deal. That would sure be a pretty large gamble for a guy staring down the barrel of father time, and might just be too much of a financial investment, despite what he could bring to the clubhouse. It's also important to note that Arenado has a full no-trade clause in his deal, and could easily block a trade to the Nationals if it ever got to that point, just like Eric Hosmer did at the deadline before the Juan Soto deal became official.

Personally, if I had my choice between Bohm, Arenado, or signing Alex Bregman to upgrade third base, I would choose Bregman, simply for the fact that he combines everything good about both Arenado and Bohm into one signing, and we would still be able to hold on to our significant prospect capital to be able to use in other scenarios. All in all, I don't think that the Nationals are likely to trade for either Bohm or Arenado, but I wouldn't be shocked if we heard the Nats connected to them at some point during this offseason.

Would you want the Nationals to bring in Alec Bohm or Nolan Arenado? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.