Washington Nationals Reportedly Among Teams Interested in Slugging First Baseman
The Washington Nationals have taken great strides in their player development over the last couple of seasons and could be on the brink of their rebuild being complete and their window for playoff contention once again sliding open.
As with any rebuild, a key free agency acquisition is generally the move that kicks the culmination of the rebuild into overdrive, and with reports dropping late last night, the Nationals may have their eyes on just who they want that acquisition to be.
In a report from Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Washington is among "at least six teams," that "plan to aggressively pursue" free agent first baseman Christian Walker this offseason.
Walker was described by Nightengale as the "hottest name among free agent players not named Juan Soto," as the three-time Gold Glove Award winner is believed to come at less than half the price of Pete Alonso while providing better production on both sides of the ball.
Walker spent the past eight seasons of his career with the Arizona Diamondbacks, batting .251/.331/.464 in that time with 146 home runs, 442 RBI, and a 114 OPS+ across 3,239 plate appearances in 819 games.
The veteran has really turned it up a notch at the plate over the last three years, batting .250/.332/.481 with 95 home runs, 281 RBI, and a 123 OPS+ across 1,880 plate appearances in 447 games.
A few of the other teams in the mix for Walker include the New York Yankees, the Diamondbacks, and the New York Mets.
Adding a veteran like Christian Walker to the mix would be a fantastic addition to Washington's young roster as he would provide leadership in the clubhouse along with stellar defense.
