Do Washington Nationals Have Reason To Be Concerned About Young Infielder?
The 2024 MLB season can be regarded as a success in some ways for the Washington Nationals.
They are on pace to blow away preseason expectations, as they are projected to have one of the bigger win totals over what was expected coming into the season. Despite missing the playoffs for the fifth straight year, things are heading in the right direction.
There is a lot of young talent that has emerged on the roster. Some, such as outfielder James Wood, were highly touted prospects big things were expected from.
Others, such as center fielder Jacob Young and second baseman Luis Garcia Jr., were unheralded but now look to be parts of the team’s core moving forward.
Another high-upside part of that foundation is shortstop C.J. Abrams. The team’s lone All-Star representative this summer, he had an incredible first half, realizing the talent that made him a top prospect and key piece of the return package from the San Diego Padres in the Juan Soto blockbuster.
Through the first 3-4 months of the season, he was easily the team’s MVP. Not only was he productive with the bat, but he also showcased elite glovework in the field.
However, that production has been nowhere to be seen in the second half. In the opinion of Bradford Doolittle of ESPN, Abrams’ falloff has been the biggest failure for the team.
“Second-half CJ Abrams? Drawing conclusions by splitting half-seasons is a dubious practice, but nevertheless, Abrams' falloff has been perplexing. Early in the season, it looked like Abrams had arrived as a right-now star. He had a .831 OPS with 15 homers and 15 steals at the All-Star break. Since then, he's hit .182 with a .541 OPS. The Nationals would feel a lot better about this if Abrams were to finish strong,” Doolittle wrote in his stock watch for the league.
A swoon this extreme will raise some eyebrows. As the ESPN writer noted, breaking things down into half-seasons is a tough exercise. But, when the differences are this glaring, people will take notice.
The All-Star is going to record several career highs; doubles, home runs, RBI and walks an is close on several others.
That is certainly a plus. Second-half numbers like Abrams has produced would normally result in a player being sent down or putting up career-low production.
And, it goes to show just how elite his production was in the early going. One poor second-half performance shouldn’t change the franchise’s perception of him.
KENNETH TEAPE