Past Silver Slugger Winner Seen As Someone Washington Nationals Should Avoid
It will be interesting to see what direction the Washington Nationals take this winter.
They could spend to upgrade some clear areas of need on their roster, specifically in the bullpen and at first base, or they can continue to be patient in their rebuilding effort as more star prospects have reached the Majors and others are on the way.
It's not known which direction they are going to take since general manager Mike Rizzo stated they are still evaluating their options, but the expectation is that if the Nationals do decide to spend money this offseason, it will be to address their situation at first base.
Plenty of names have been thrown around since this is one of the better free agent classes with Pete Alonso, Christian Walker, Paul Goldschmidt and others slated to hit the open market. Those three are expected to command the largest contracts, especially Alonso and Walker based on their age and production, but if Washington doesn't want to pay that type of money, there are more options they can pursue.
When taking a look at the free agent first baseman this winter, JJ Phillips of District On Deck named someone the Nationals should avoid.
"The other primary guy to be avoided is Brandon Drury ... He was decent yet again in 2023, posting an OPS north of .800, but Drury just put up one of only two negative-two WAR seasons in the majors ... putting up a 34 wRC+ in 360 PA. The allure might be there; he's only one year removed from being worth 2.7 fWAR in 2023, but I just can't even recommend a minors deal in the Nationals organization for Drury, much less a majors one," he writes.
Washington took a chance on someone last year when they signed Joey Gallo.
Although he was initially supposed to play in the outfield, he was eventually moved to first base where he applied his Gold Glove defense and became an asset when he was on field.
But his availability and poor offensive production was the issue that now has the Nationals searching for a long-term option at that position.
Knowing who not to sign is just as important as putting together a list of players they would like to add.
Brandon Drury's production makes him fall under the category of the former, despite the journeyman winning a Silver Slugger Award just two seasons ago.
