As the Nationals try to claw their way back into contention in the NL East, Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post writes that the team’s lackluster draft results in recent years have been a notable factor in their current struggles. From 2011-15, Anthony Rendon is the lone, established impact player the team managed to draft and develop into a star, and there have only been 18 Nationals draftees to reach the Majors (with any team) in that span — tied for second-fewest in MLB. Looking at those 2011-15 drafts, only four players selected by Washington have more than one career WAR, and those results include the since-traded Lucas Giolito and Nick Pivetta. The Nats have had better success on the international market (Victor Robles, Juan Soto), but Svrluga notes that an organization built on scouting needs to get back to finding more impactful talent in the draft if it hopes to continue its run as a near-regular NL East contender. It’s a well-researched piece that any Nationals fan will want to take in in its entirety.
More from the division…
- This weekend’s Jay Bruce trade is the first of what figure to be multiple deals made by the Phillies between now and July 31, general manager Matt Klentak implied following the completion of the swap (link via Todd Zolecki of MLB.com). Philadelphia’s outfield depth has compromised early in the year, but Bruce will give them some coverage at either corner spot and can be a backup option for Rhys Hoskins (or a replacement in the event of an injury). “He’s excited to come to a contending team and understands that for the next year and a half there may be times when he’s playing regularly and there may be times when he’s playing off the bench,” said Klentak of Bruce. The Phillies, per Zolecki, are paying only $2.75MM of what remains on Bruce’s contract between now and the end of the 2020 season.
- The Mets won’t activate Robinson Cano from the injured list until “at least” Tuesday, tweets Mike Puma of the New York Post. Out since May 23 due to a strained quadriceps, Cano was eligible to be activated for either Saturday or Sunday’s contest but was not reinstated. He’s struggled in his return to New York City, hitting .241/.287/.371 with three homers and 13 doubles while logging a career-worst 19.9 percent strikeout rate as a member of the Mets.
- Newsday’s Tim Healey tweets that Mets fist baseman/outfielder Dominic Smith is headed for an MRI after hyperextending his right thumb on a swing in Saturday night’s game. Smith doesn’t feel it’s a major issue — he ripped a home run even after incurring the injury — but will still be checked out to ensure that there’s no serious damage. The 23-year-old has been red hot for the Mets in a limited role this year, hitting .365/.467/.571 with three homers and four doubles in just 75 plate appearances through 48 games.
One constant in sports: local sports scribes with garbage takes. It’s hard for a team to draft these “stars” without a first round pick: two of those years they had to forfeit the draft pick because of a free agent signed (Scherzer and Soriano). Two of those years they drafted well (Giolito and Rendon). Fedde is the *problem* pick but 20 other teams also missed the boat on Chapman.
These takes should be fired into the sun or maybe he should do more research. The odds of finding a star player outside the first few picks become exceptionally difficult (cf Fangraphs).
That being said, if they had those 2 picks and hit on regulars/stars, how much would they move up the rankings? A team has to do well in the lower rounds no matter their draft position.
Look at the Phillies, they’ve whiffed on a decade’s worth of first round picks other than Nola.
“Look at the Phillies, they’ve whiffed on a decade’s worth of first round picks other than Nola.”
This is true although I’d say the jury is still out on Crawford, Moniak and Haseley. Bohm looks like a hit imo.
With regards to the draft however, it only takes one good one to turn around a team’s fortunes. Look at the draft you mentioned regarding Nola (2014). This Phillies grabbed Nola in the 1st and Hoskins in the 5th and literally missed on every other selection. Those are now two of the best players on the team however so the draft was ultimately considered a success. I almost feel as though the first round is sometimes the hardest to select concrete talent.
Another constant in sports: fans that can’t except the rationality of an argument made against their team. You havent explained away the Nationals being tied for second worst in draft selection. The bar for that wasnt developing stars but players reaching the majors.
I’m not a Nats fan. I am, however, a fan of rational arguments. A team without two first round draft picks in the stated (and arbitrary) years is already handcuffed. Not just for having a high quality pick, but having a larger draft pool to then spend over slot later in the draft. If you want to compare to other teams, compare to teams with at least remotely similar draft pools and picks. End communication.
Fist baseman? Yeah, that’s about right.
I am amazed that the Mariners did not get more money paid by the Phillies for Bruce’s salary.He is worth much more than $1.375M per year.I would have thought that they would have had to pay down at least $8-10 M.