Washington Nationals Infielder Looking To Showcase Versatility in Spring
During the offseason, one of the positions that the Washington Nationals set out to upgrade was first base.
The team received middling production from Joey Gallo and Joey Meneses, which led to the team giving a chance to Juan Yepez.
He made the most of his opportunity, producing at a nice clip. In 249 plate appearances, he recorded a slash line of .283/.335/.429 with six home runs, 15 doubles and 26 RBI.
While he more than handled his own against right-handed pitching, he was even better against southpaws. In 88 plate appearances, he recorded a .304/.356/.456 slash line as he could, at the least, be an excellent platoon partner for a right-handed hitter.
However, finding playing time in 2025 for Yepez is going to be difficult with the additions made at first base.
The Nationals acquired Nathaniel Lowe to become their everyday first baseman and signed veteran Josh Bell, who is going to handle a bulk of the at-bats as the designated hitter.
Where does that leave Yepez heading into the 2025 campaign? Preparing for a utility role.
While this is new territory with Washington, he has played more than first base at the MLB level with the St. Louis Cardinals. He has logged innings at third base, right field and left field.
Whatever it will take to help the team succeed, he is willing to do.
“I take it as: I’m here to follow orders. Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do,” he said, via Mark Zuckerman of MASN. “If you want me to put water in the cooler, I’ll do it. I’m just going to be ready to do whatever I can to help this team win.”
At the end of the 2024 campaign, the team told Yepez what would be expected of him the following year, so he has been hard at work all winter.
He lost some weight preparing to move away from first base full-time, focusing on improving his athleticism. That would put him in a position to handle whatever was asked of him, as the Nationals have been putting him through drills at third base and left field in camp.
“We’ve got to see if he can play multiple positions,” manager Davey Martinez said. “We’re looking for that guy who can do a bunch of different things. … And he deserves a chance to make this team. He played really well for us last year in a limited role. If he can do all these little things — we’ll try him out in left field, we’ll put him at third base, play first base as well — we’ll see how he does.”
While an everyday job likely isn’t available for Yepez out of the gate, he is improving his odds of making the Opening Day roster by improving his versatility.
Being able to play both the infield and outfield will only help make his case stronger for a spot on the team’s bench.
Yepez certainly has the bat to play in the Major Leagues, but if he wants to stick, improving his defense is a smart way to go about it.
