Paul Toboni made a very important move in his first season running baseball for the Nationals. The Nats cruised MacKenzie Gore for the Rangers to receive a package of five prospects with the title selected last year 12 Gavin Fien. Washington also replaced a top reliever Jose A. Ferrer to the Mariners for a rookie catcher Harry Ford at the beginning of the season.
The team remains in the midst of a rebuild, as Toboni admitted without using that name. “I think we have to be honest with ourselves,” he told reporters after Gore’s deal (link posted by Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com). “The truth is – and I don’t think this is a mystery to the fans, the media or anyone – we lost 96 games last year. To turn this around in one year and make the playoffs … I wouldn’t say it’s impossible, but it’s a challenge. What we want to do is make sure we build this really strong foundation, so that when we start pushing the chips, we can win for a long time.”
That leads to speculation about some of their veteran players. Shortstop CJ Abrams rumors have surfaced throughout the season. Spencer Nusbaum, Andrew Golden and Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post wrote that the Nationals traded Abrams and the center fielder. Jacob Young in the winter.
In Abrams’ case, that may just be a matter of semantics. It’s no secret that the Nationals are hearing from teams about this talented player, who has reportedly received interest from the Royals (among other clubs, of course). Whether they initiate phone calls or ponder interestingly is not much of a difference. The asking price remains high, as a report by The Washington Post indicates that the Nats may need a stronger return to move Abrams than what they got from Gore.
That is largely driven by the club’s controlling window. Gore was subject to two arbitration eligibility periods; Abrams has three years left in free agency. The forward is also a bit cheaper, as he signed for $4.2MM compared to Gore’s salary of $5.6MM. The extra control year is a big factor, as the Nationals expect to compete in 2028 even if they don’t try to compete this year.
[Related: The Best Fits For A CJ Abrams Trade]
Each of the past two seasons, Abrams has been the dominant hitter at the All-Star Break before exiting in the second half. He was slightly better than average overall, hitting .252/.315/.433 in over 1200 plate appearances over the last two years. Abrams has 39 homers and 62 stolen bases with slightly below-average strikeout and walk marks in that span. He is an above-average regular with an All-Star level ceiling that he has yet to reach.
Abrams returns some of the value with the glove. He is one of the weakest shortstops in MLB and only leads Elly De La Cruz with 39 errors over the past two seasons. It was mostly of the bowling variety, however Statcast didn’t look good on his range either. Abrams will play better in second base or center field. He became the full-time shortstop on a Washington team that had perhaps the worst infield defense in the majors.
Despite the odds, Abrams should be very interested in the commercial market. He’s 25 years old and an athlete who fits somewhere in the middle of the diamond. He’s the sixth overall pick and a top prospect with spots where he’s an impressive table runner at one of the program’s top two spots. The Nats should be willing to pull hard to part with him once he’s been manageable for three seasons. In addition to Kansas City, teams like the Giants, Red Sox, Mariners and Padres (the club that drafted him and sent him to Washington Juan Soto deal) is speculative. Those teams can advance to second base, and many of them are involved in another left-handed hitting trade chip, Brendan Donovan.
The youngster has not received much attention as a potential trade this winter. He’s overshadowed by big names like Gore and Abrams and won’t be able to make a big profit. However, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes that the Nationals have received interest from teams looking to improve in the middle position. Those clubs will be in Young’s years of affordable control and elite gloves.
The 26-year-old is still in his prime before arbitration and is at least four years away from free agency. He stole 33 bases and probably should have won the Glove in 2024, as he led MLB outfielders with 20 Outs Above Average that season. Defensive Runs Saved was not as strong but put him 12 runs above the division. Young posted similarly impressive defensive metrics last year, including +13 DRS and 14 OAA despite losing nearly 350 innings of playing time compared to last season. He missed several weeks between May and June after tearing the AC joint in his left shoulder while running off the wall at Camden Yards in pursuit. Ramon Laureano fly the ball.
As good as Young is defensively, he won’t give up much at the plate. He is coming off a .231/.296/.287 season and has a career .247/.310/.316 batting average in just over 1000 at-bats. The new one has a lot of contact but puts a lot down and has very little power. The right-handed hitter has been a little better against southpaws in his career, but is a below-average hitter against either-handed pitchers.
There are some similarities between the top free agents Harrison Baderbut the latter is coming off a peak career year. Teams that don’t want to meet Bader’s asking price can view Less as a logical fallback. The center field market remains small, both in free agency and trade. The Diamondbacks, Guardians, Royals, Phillies, Angels, Tigers, White Sox and Orioles are among the teams that could use the right fielder/fourth baseman. Washington has no need to force a trade for Young, but they can work with him and play Dylan Crews in the middle between the corner of the outer field tandem of James Wood again Daylen Lee.
