Washington Nationals Deadline Deal With Cleveland Guardians Was True Win-Win
The Washington Nationals capitalized on an offseason signing at the trade deadline, sending him to the Cleveland Guardians. Months later, both teams are happy.
Now that the season is over, people are going back over what happened this year to lead to how things turned out. One trade in particular stands out for the Nationals as it had an ideal outcome.
Quinn Everts of FanSided took a look back at Washington's deadline deal with the Guardians revolving around outfielder Lane Thomas and decided that both teams came out the better for it. In a re-grade, he gave Cleveland an 'A' and the Nationals a 'B.'
It didn't always look like it was going to be a deal that the Guardians were happy that they did.
Thomas' start in Cleveland was nothing to write home about. During the regular season, the slugger posted just a .209/.267/.390 slashing line post-trade. That's a far cry from the .253/.331/.407 line he had in Washington this season.
The mood around the deal switched around quickly after an ALDS game five grand slam sent the Guardians into the next round, where they eventually fell to the New York Yankees.
While it wasn't a perfect ending, their playoff run may have been cut even shorter had it not been for Thomas.
That moment should at least give the slugger a reason to keep his head held high this offseason before running it back next year. He is still under team control until the 2026 free agency class.
Cleveland will hope that Thomas can turn things around at the start of next year and he can return to being the reliable bat he has been for the past few years.
If they can ride out his cold streak while still getting a postseason series-clinching grand slam, it should be considered a win.
The Nationals had no real postseason hopes at the time of the trade and really had no more use for the 29-year-old given the youth movement in the outfield.
Washington walked out of the deal with three prospects in left-handed pitcher Alex Clemmey, shortstop Rafael Ramirez Jr. and infielder Jose Tena.
Clemmey is currently the Nationals' sixth-best prospect. Ramirez is back at No. 20, but still holds some value. Tena finished the season out on the MLB roster and probably earned a spot on the bench next year with a .274/.305/.363 slashing line after the trade.
This was a solid return for a guy that had been pushed out of his main role by younger players that needed playing time.
