Jake Odorizzi On Twins Tenure
Right-hander Jake Odorizzi may have made the final start of his Twins tenure on Monday. Odorizzi turned in a solid performance against the high-powered Yankees, allowing two runs on five hits (with five strikeouts and no walks) in five innings, but that wasn’t enough to stave off elimination for the Twins. Minnesota fell 5-1 to finish off a three-game ALDS sweep for the Yankees, bringing an early end to an impressive bounce-back season for the Twins.
Now that Minnesota’s offseason has begun, chief baseball officer Derek Falvey and general manager Thad Levine must decide whether to aggressively pursue a new deal for Odorizzi. The soon-to-be 30-year-old’s on the brink of free agency, where he’ll be among the top non-Gerrit Cole starters available, though he does seem open to re-signing with the Twins.
Speaking in regards to his time with the Twins and his future Wednesday, Odorizzi told Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com and other reporters: “That’s out of my hands. I really enjoyed my two years here. If I’m back, great. I’ve really taken a liking to here. But if not, I wish nothing but the best. This is a great group of people from top to bottom. It’s tough to end the year, but at least I got to go out with great fans and a great atmosphere.”
Odorizzi, whom the Twins acquired from the Rays entering the 2018 season, is coming off a career year at an opportune moment. The first-time All-Star pitched to a 3.51 ERA/3.36 FIP with 10.08 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 across 159 innings, averaging a personal-best 92.9 mph on his fastball along the way.
Thanks to his strong production this season, Odorizzi will go into free agency as a qualifying offer candidate. Receiving a QO wouldn’t do Odorizzi any favors as he prepares to go to the market, as it would require a team to cough up a draft pick(s) while likely giving him a substantial payday over a couple years. However, it’s possible the Twins will simply let Odorizzi walk instead of risking having to pay an $18MM-plus salary for 2019 should he accept a QO. That said, waving goodbye to Odorizzi would be a tough development for the Twins, who are also at risk of seeing Kyle Gibson and Michael Pineda bolt via free agency. Additionally, they’ll have a decision to make on Martin Perez, who has a $7.5MM club option or a $500K buyout for next year.
Along with No. 1 starter Jose Berrios, each of Odorizzi, Gibson, Pineda and Martin were key components of a Minnesota rotation that saw all of them amass at least 26 starts during a 101-victory, AL Central-winning 2019. The lone member of the quintet who rivaled Berrios in effectiveness was Odorizzi, who may be in another uniform the next time he takes the ball.
Evaluating The $200MM Contracts: Pitchers
Houston’s currently fighting for its life against Tampa Bay in the ALDS, but regardless of whether the Astros advance, they could be a few weeks away from losing one of their most valuable players to free agency. Right-handed ace and potential AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole is on the cusp of reaching the open market, where his forthcoming contract figures to easily outdo the majority of his competitors’ next deals. In fact, the lone soon-to-be free agent who’s likely to wind up in Cole’s stratosphere is Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon. Both players are lining up for contracts in the $200MM range, which seems like an especially risky number for a pitcher. But how have those investments on pitchers worked out thus far? Let’s take a look at the few $200MM-plus guarantees given out to hurlers, keeping in mind that past successes or failures obviously do not determine whether Cole will thrive or fall flat once he receives his mega-contract…
David Price, LHP, Red Sox (seven years, $217MM)
- Still the owner of the richest deal ever for a pitcher, Price hasn’t continued as an ace since he signed with the Red Sox entering the 2016 season. At that point, Price was a world-class run stopper who’d already logged five seasons with at least 200 innings. The Boston version has hit the 200 mark just once, though, and has put up a 3.84 ERA/3.74 FIP with 9.32 K/9 and 2.39 BB/9 across 588 frames. On paper, that production’s absolutely fine, but the Red Sox probably expected more when they splurged on Price almost a half-decade ago. Of course, thanks in part to Price, the Red Sox won the World Series a year ago. Flags fly forever.
Clayton Kershaw, LHP, Dodgers (seven years, $215MM)
- Admittedly, it’s debatable whether we should count this deal. After all, Kershaw essentially opted out of it last offseason (when he had two years and $65MM left on the pact) in favor of a three-year, $93MM contract to stick with the Dodgers. No matter, Kershaw has been nothing short of outstanding since signing. Therefore, even if the eight-time All-Star and three-time NL Cy Young winner would have stayed with his previous contract, the Dodgers certainly wouldn’t have buyer’s remorse.
Max Scherzer, RHP, Nationals (seven years, $210MM)
- Speaking of not regretting a $200MM-plus investment on a pitcher … we arrive at the Nationals, who are surely thrilled with the free-agent gamble they took on the ex-Tiger Scherzer going into 2016. Scherzer, who has been an All-Star every year and won a pair of NL Cy Youngs since then, remains among the game’s most imposing hurlers to this day. The 35-year-old’s fresh off yet another tremendous (albeit injury-limited) regular season and has been a key figure in what could be a stunning first-round playoff upset of the juggernaut Dodgers.
Zack Greinke, RHP, Astros (six years, $206.5MM)
- Arizona poured its financial resources into Greinke entering 2016, though the headline-stealing addition didn’t quite pay off the way the club hoped. But that’s not a knock on Greinke, who excelled as a D-back. The team’s payroll just couldn’t support his ongoing presence, so it dealt Greinke to the Astros at this summer’s trade deadline. The 35-year-old, however, has enjoyed the latest terrific season of his career between the two organizations. Greinke’s $200MM-plus payday may not have been the most responsible move for an Arizona franchise that’s not a huge spender, but his production has been worthy of it.
If the above group shows us anything, it’s that no pitcher in the $200MM club has flopped (some have been great). That doesn’t mean Cole will follow in their footsteps if he scores a similar contract, but it’s hard to bet against a dominant, flamethrowing workhorse who still has another season in his 20s to come.
Statcast Standouts: Pending FA Hitters
There are multiple ways to evaluate the performance of hitters in Major League Baseball. You can go by the traditional back-of-the-baseball-card statistics, FanGraphs metrics or even the newfangled Statcast numbers we’ve seen pop up over the past couple years. For the purpose of this piece, we’ll go Statcast style to take a look at the hitters who are scheduled to be available in the upcoming offseason’s free-agent class. Here are the standouts at each position when it comes to expected weighted on-base average and average exit velocity on line drives and fly balls (data courtesy of Baseball Savant)…
Catchers:
Expected weighted on-base average
- Yasmani Grandal .362 (real wOBA: .365)
- Jason Castro .362 (.331)
- Alex Avila .352 (.327)
- Travis d’Arnaud .328 (.318)
- Stephen Vogt .326 (.336)
Average exit velocity on line drives/fly balls
- Chris Iannetta 97.2 mph
- Alex Avila 96.6
- Jason Castro 96.5
- Welington Castillo 96.2
- Travis d’Arnaud 93.6
First basemen:
Expected weighted on-base average
- Howie Kendrick .418 (.405)
- David Freese .378 (.420)
- Justin Smoak .367 (.327)
- Kendrys Morales .366 (.265)
- Jose Abreu .361 (.349)
Average exit velocity on line drives/fly balls
- Lucas Duda 96.4 mph
- Jose Abreu 96.1
- Mitch Moreland 95.8
- Matt Adams 95.6 (will become free agent if Nationals choose $1MM buyout over $4MM option)
- Howie Kendrick 94.4
Second basemen:
Expected weighted on-base average
- Howie Kendrick .418 (.405)
- Brian Dozier .329 (.333)
- Brock Holt .315 (.336)
- Jason Kipnis .312 (.305)
- Ben Zobrist .310 (.305)
Average exit velocity on line drives/fly balls
- Howie Kendrick 94.4 mph
- Jonathan Schoop 93.5
- Eduardo Nunez/Chris Owings 93.1
- Brian Dozier 92.9
- Logan Forsythe 92.8
Shortstops:
Expected weighted on-base average
- Jordy Mercer .320 (.318)
- Adeiny Hechavarria .296 (.316)
- Didi Gregorius .291 (.302)
- Jose Iglesias .287 (.309)
Average exit velocity on line drives/fly balls
- Adeiny Hechavarria 92.8 mph
- Jordy Mercer 92.2
- Didi Gregorius 91.8
- Jose Iglesias 87.5
Third basemen:
Expected weighted on-base average
- Anthony Rendon .413 (.418)
- Josh Donaldson .386 (.382)
- Mike Moustakas .345 (.353)
- Pablo Sandoval .337 (.341)
- Logan Forsythe .320 (.301)
Average exit velocity on line drives/fly balls
- Josh Donaldson 98.1
- Jung Ho Kang 97.1
- Pablo Sandoval 95.2
- Mike Moustakas 93.8
- Anthony Rendon 93.5
Outfielders:
Expected weighted on-base average
- Marcell Ozuna .379 (.340)
- Nicholas Castellanos .362 (.360)
- Hunter Pence .358 (.382)
- Matt Joyce .355 (.375)
- Avisail Garcia .344 (.338)
Average exit velocity on line drives/fly balls
- Marcell Ozuna 96.3 mph
- Hunter Pence 95.4
- Avisail Garcia 95.2
- Kole Calhoun 95.0 (Angels can buy Calhoun out for $1MM or exercise a $14MM option)
- Yasiel Puig 94.2
CC Sabathia Hopes To Return For ALCS
The Yankees sent the Twins to yet another postseason exit Monday, earning a 5-1 victory to complete a three-game sweep in the American League Division Series. New York will face either Houston or Tampa Bay in the ALCS, and it’s possible the Yankees will welcome back injured left-hander CC Sabathia in time for the matchup.
Sabathia, whom the Yankees left off their ALDS roster because of nagging shoulder woes, told Brendan Kuty of NJ.com and other reporters he’s hoping to return for the next round.
“I feel pretty good. It’s just up to them. So, we’ll wait and see how I bounce back. I’ll throw the bullpen and, like I said, go from there,” said Sabathia, who will throw a bullpen session Wednesday.
While Sabathia’s a potential Hall of Fame starter who spent almost all of 2019 in the Yankees’ rotation, he’d been lining up to finish his year (and his career) as a reliever. Sabathia made it known entering the season that it would be his last, though it’s been an injury-plagued struggle for the franchise icon. He just might have a chance to contribute to a possible World Series run on his way out, however.
One of Sabathia’s teammates and fellow lefties, reliever Zack Britton, suffered his own injury scare Monday. Britton entered the game in the bottom of the seventh to preserve a 3-0 lead, but he departed in the eighth with a right ankle problem after throwing 1 1/3 innings of one-run ball. (that run came by way of an Eddie Rosario solo shot) Fortunately for Britton and the Yankees, it appears they averted disaster. General manager Brian Cashman said afterward that Britton will be fine for the ALCS (via James Wagner of the New York Times).
Dallas Keuchel Discusses Free Agency
Although he reached free agency last offseason as one of the most accomplished starters on the open market, former AL Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel went without a team for a shockingly long time. Keuchel, who looked like a shoo-in to sign a lucrative multiyear deal at the outset of the winter, ended up settling for the Braves’ one-year, $13MM offer shortly after the amateur draft in early June.
The fact that Keuchel’s previous team, the Astros, attached a qualifying offer to him before he became a free agent was an obvious cause for the difficulty he encountered on the market. The longer Keuchel sat without a deal, the closer the draft came. The closer the draft came, the more content teams were to wait Keuchel out and attempt to sign the Scott Boras client without having to give up compensation in the form of a pick(s).
With the qualifying offer system still intact heading into this winter, there could be some soon-to-be free agents who meet a similar fate to what Keuchel and fellow post-draft signing Craig Kimbrel faced earlier in 2019. Keuchel won’t be one of them, as a player can’t receive a QO twice, though he explained to Jesse Rogers of ESPN that he remains frustrated with the setup that’s in place.
“This is whole draft-pick compensation thing went from a throw-in for a team losing a player, to is he really a free agent now?” Keuchel said.“How can you be free if there is a draft pick attached to you? And why do they value draft picks so much when the percentage of picks who make the league, and are better than you, is what, like .01 percent? There are so many things wrong.”
Like many of his fellow players, Keuchel’s irked by the last two offseasons, both of which were notoriously sluggish from a free agency standpoint. “It’s not just us being the bad guys,” Keuchel said of the players.
Keuchel’s among those displeased with the way free agency has been trending, though that doesn’t mean he didn’t receive multiyear offers during his trip to the market. On the contrary, the Angels were among those who were willing to commit more than one year to Keuchel, per Rogers. However, Keuchel believed those teams “undervalued” him, writes Rogers. It also seems signing with a playoff-caliber club was a priority for Keuchel, who, despite his relatively underwhelming results in free agency, believes he’s now “in the best possible for scenario for myself” as a member of a World Series-contending Braves team.
Although he wasn’t the ace-caliber hurler we’ve seen in the past, Keuchel did help the Braves to an NL East title after his midseason arrival. The 31-year-old threw 112 2/3 innings of 3.75 ERA/4.72 FIP with 7.27 K/9 and 3.12 BB/9 and a 60.1 percent groundball rate in the regular season, and then added 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball in the team’s Game 1 loss to the Cardinals in the NLDS. With that series heading to a winner-take-all Game 5 on Wednesday (in which Mike Foltynewicz will take the mound for Atlanta), Keuchel might not make another start for the Braves. The club could try to re-sign Keuchel whenever its season ends, but it if that doesn’t happen, he’ll have to test the free-agent waters again. While it’s likely Keuchel’s next deal will outdo his current pact, he doesn’t seem thrilled about returning to the market.
“I still have to go back into the zoo [free agency] but I figured if this offseason doesn’t present more offers, more swiftly, like the NBA or the NFL, then the normal fan will see exactly what’s going on,” Keuchel said. “That’s what I want people to see.”
Royals GM Dayton Moore Discusses Managerial Search, Roster Needs
Royals GM Dayton Moore held a brief chat with Jon Heyman and Josh Lewin on the Big Time Baseball Podcast (audio link). We’ll touch on some of the highlights here.
With long-tenured manager Ned Yost having retired at the end of the Royals’ season, finding his successor is among the most important tasks on Moore’s plate. As of now, though, the Royals are still “vetting candidates” for the job and “have yet to go through a formal interview” with anyone, according to Moore. It seems in an ideal world, the club will promote Yost’s replacement from within. Moore talked up Royals assistants Mike Matheny, Dale Sveum, Pedro Grifol and Vance Wilson, declaring that they’re “strong candidates.”
Matheny, who possesses by far the most managerial experience of any of the Royals’ possibilities, was at the helm of a Cardinals club that went 591-474 with four playoff berths and an NL pennant from 2012-18. Moore, cognizant of the success St. Louis had in the standings during that run, contends Matheny’s “an amazing leader” who “won every single year” with the franchise. Although Matheny received plenty of criticism throughout time with the Redbirds, Moore’s impressed that he was able to successfully transition from a long career as a big league catcher to that of a manager – all while taking over for Hall of Famer Tony La Russa.
Since last November, a few months after his in-season firing with the Cardinals, Matheny has been serving as a special advisor in Kansas City. He’s “done excellent work” in that capacity, per Moore, who revealed Matheny “has options” and has been “sought out” by other clubs (though it’ s unclear if that implies teams are interested in Matheny as a manager).
Whether the Royals tap Matheny or someone else for the role, that individual will be facing the grueling task of trying to get immediate results in the standings for KC. The Royals are coming off their second straight 100-loss season, though Moore & Co. nonetheless “feel good about our core group of young position players.” He specifically named third baseman Hunter Dozier, right fielder Jorge Soler, shortstop Adalberto Mondesi (“one of the best talents in the game; just needs to get more consistent) and second baseman Nicky Lopez as potential building blocks who have age on their side. With the exception of Soler, whose contract is more complex than most, all of those players come with a few seasons of affordable control. As of now, it’s unknown whether the Royals will try to extend Soler, who’s coming off an age-27 season in which he mashed 48 home runs.
As effective as Soler was in 2019, second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield still may be the centerpiece of the Royals’ cast of position players. Merrifield will turn 31 during the offseason, but having signed a team-friendly extension last winter, the rebuilding Royals aren’t under pressure to deal him. Moore has always resisted doing so despite vast interest from other clubs. Now, “nobody is untouchable,” and the Royals need to be “open-minded” until they know which opportunities could present themselves. However, Moore continues to regard Merrifield as a “special talent” and a “special person,” which suggests the club’s more than content to move ahead with the well-rounded All-Star.
While the Royals do have some gems among their position players, they don’t look as well off on the pitching side. The Royals’ hurlers posted the majors’ fourth-worst ERA (5.20) this year, and Brad Keller – a 2017 Rule 5 acquisition – was their lone starter to put up average or better production across a full season. With those struggles in mind, Moore acknowledged that the Royals “gotta do a better job of developing pitching, acquiring pitching.”
Looking ahead to 2020, the Royals will likely be in for another lean year. “We’ve got a ways to go,” said Moore, who didn’t offer a timeline on a possible return to contention. As you’d expect, though, the longtime exec indicated he and the franchise are bent on orchestrating a turnaround.
Cole Vs. Rendon: Who Will Sign The Bigger Contract?
A year ago at this time, the baseball world was gearing up to see outfielder Bryce Harper and infielder Manny Machado reach free agency. They represented a pair of rare 26-year-old franchise players who were on the cusp of hitting the open market, and there was little doubt they’d end up with a couple of the richest contracts in the history of the sport. While the two wound up sitting on the market for longer than some may have expected, they ultimately did score the largest deals ever awarded in free agency before the offseason concluded. Harper left the Nationals for the Phillies’ 13-year, $330MM offer, while Machado waved goodbye to the Dodgers after a short stay in LA and signed with the Padres for 10 years and $300MM.
It wasn’t surprising that Harper and Machado reeled in $300MM-plus guarantees last winter, whereas there’s little chance of a free agent approaching that figure this offseason. That’s not a knock on the absolute best players in the upcoming class, though, as Astros right-hander Gerrit Cole and Nationals third baseman/ex-Harper teammate Anthony Rendon do have cases to collect massive paydays. In fact, both players – a pair of Scott Boras clients – have strong arguments to reach or exceed $200MM in guarantees on their forthcoming contracts.
Cole, who turned 29 last month, could not only win the AL Cy Young after putting up a 2.50 ERA/2.64 FIP with a ridiculous 326 strikeouts in 212 regular-season 1/3 innings, but the ace workhorse may also aid his cause with an epic playoff run. Cole looked to be setting himself up for a postseason in his start this past Saturday. He ran roughshod over the Rays in 7 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out 15 hitters, issuing one walk and allowing four hits during a 3-1 victory.
Regardless of how the rest of the postseason goes for Cole, Boras will likely try to get his client a pact in the vicinity of the all-time record for a pitcher. That honor has belonged to Red Sox lefty David Price since December 2015, when he inked a seven-year, $217MM contract as a free agent. Nationals righty Max Scherzer, another Boras client, isn’t far behind on the seven-year, $210MM deal he scored via the open market the winter before Price landed his accord.
Indications are that Rendon, who’s also 29, has already turned down money in the Price/Scherzer neighborhood in advance of his much-anticipated foray into free agency. Rendon spurned a seven-year, $210MM-$215MM offer (with deferrals) from Washington, perhaps in hopes of signing a contract that’s closer to the seven-year, $234MM extension Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado received before this season. While Rendon, who finally earned his first All-Star nod this year, is neither as decorated nor as young as the four-time All-Star Arenado (28), there’s a legitimate case he’s the superior player.
Dating back to 2017, which is admittedly an arbitrary cutoff point, Rendon ranks fourth among position players in fWAR (19.9; Arenado’s ninth with 17.4), trailing only MVP winners Mike Trout, Mookie Betts and Christian Yelich. And Rendon seems likely to garner serious consideration for this year’s NL MVP honors, having slashed a career-best .319/.412/.598 with personal highs in home runs (34) and fWAR (7.0) across 646 regular-season plate appearances.
It may be a long shot, but we could see Cole and Rendon square off against one another if in the Fall Classic in the next few weeks. No matter how the season ends for their teams, though, which of the two stars do you expect to emerge from the winter with the bigger contract?
(Poll link for app users)
Who will sign the bigger contract?
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Gerrit Cole 64% (6,425)
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Anthony Rendon 36% (3,585)
Total votes: 10,010
Sorting The Starting Pitchers Of The 2019-20 Free Agent Class
Major League Baseball’s postseason is in full swing at the moment, and though watching multiple must-win games per day has been exhilarating, it unfortunately won’t go on for much longer. We’re just a few weeks away from the end of the season and the start of free agency, where several teams in need of upgrades will shop in hopes of either staying a playoff team in 2020 or perhaps becoming one.
As always, free agency will present starter-needy clubs the chance to address their rotations. In the case of the upcoming winter’s class of unsigned pitchers, it’s no secret Astros right-hander and AL Cy Young candidate Gerrit Cole is hands down the No. 1 option. He has a realistic chance at a $200MM contract once his marvelous year ends. Beyond Cole, there are several No. 2/3 type of starters with possibly some diamonds in the rough thereafter.
Here’s a look at the upcoming group based on 2019 velocity as well as missing bats, limiting walks, keeping the ball on the ground and minimizing hard contact. All of those skills will weigh on front offices’ minds as they debate whether to dole out contracts to any of the available hurlers (special thanks to FanGraphs for providing the data and for giving the user the ability to create customized leaderboards)…
Hardest Throwers (FanGraphs leaderboard)
League average = 92.7 mph
- Gerrit Cole: 97.2 mph
- Zack Wheeler: 96.7
- Andrew Cashner: 93.6*
- Edwin Jackson: 93.4*
- Kyle Gibson: 93.3
- Matt Harvey: 93.2
- Homer Bailey/Michael Wacha*: 93.0
- Jake Odorizzi: 92.9
- Michael Pineda: 92.6
- Ivan Nova: 92.4
*This excludes bullpen work from Cashner, Jackson and Wacha.
Top Strikeout Arms (FanGraphs leaderboard)
League average = 22.3%
- Gerrit Cole: 39.9 K%, 13.82 K/9
- Rich Hill: 29.8 K%, 11.05 K/9
- Jake Odorizzi: 27.1 K%, 10.08 K/9
- Drew Smyly: 24.2 K%, 9.64 K/9*
- Madison Bumgarner: 24.1 K%, 8.8 K/9
- Zack Wheeler: 23.6 K%, 8.98 K/9
- Michael Pineda: 23.3 K%, 8.63 K/9
- Cole Hamels: 23.2 K%, 9.08 K/9
- Hyun-Jin Ryu: 22.5 K%, 8.03 K/9
- Kyle Gibson: 22.4 K%, 8.84 K/9
*This excludes Smyly’s bullpen work.
Fewest Walks (FanGraphs leaderboard)
League average = 7.7%
- Hyun-Jin Ryu: 3.3 BB%, 1.18 BB/9
- Michael Pineda: 4.7 BB%, 1.73 BB/9
- Madison Bumgarner: 5.1 BB%, 1.86 BB/9
- Ivan Nova: 5.8 BB%, 2.26 BB/9
- Gerrit Cole: 5.9 BB%, 2.03 BB/9
- Alex Wood: 5.9 BB%, 2.27 BB/9
- Rick Porcello: 5.9 BB%, 2.32 BB/9
- Zack Wheeler: 6.0 BB%, 2.3 BB/9
- Brett Anderson: 6.6 BB%, 2.51 BB/9
- Tanner Roark: 7.1 BB%, 2.78 BB/9
Best Groundball Rates (FanGraphs leaderboard)
League average = 42.7%
- Dallas Keuchel: 60.1%
- Brett Anderson: 54.5%
- Kyle Gibson: 51.4%
- Tyson Ross: 51.3%
- Hyun-Jin Ryu: 50.4%
- Andrew Cashner: 50.0%
- Wade Miley: 49.7%
- Rich Hill: 49.6%
- Adam Wainwright: 48.8%
- Felix Hernandez: 48.1%
Least Hard Contact (FanGraphs leaderboard)
League average = 38.4%
- Zack Wheeler: 31.4%
- Ivan Nova: 33.1%
- Gio Gonzalez: 33.5%
- Gerrit Cole: 33.9%
- Hyun-Jin Ryu/Rick Porcello: 34.2%
- Andrew Cashner: 35.6%
- Wade Miley: 36.1%
- Cole Hamels: 36.4%
- Dallas Keuchel: 36.8%
- Kyle Gibson: 36.9%
This is a new version of a Steve Adams post that ran Sept. 25, 2017.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: 10/7/19
Click here to read a transcript of tonight’s MLBTR chat with Connor Byrne.
Victor Robles Tweaks Hamstring
The Nationals hung on for a 4-2 win over the Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLDS on Friday, but they may have suffered a major loss in the process. Center fielder Victor Robles departed after laying down a sacrifice bunt in the top of the eighth inning. He’s dealing with a tweaked hamstring and is day-to-day at the moment, Jamal Collier of MLB.com tweets.
The severity of Robles’ injury isn’t clear yet, but the Nationals know all too well that a hamstring tweak can lead to a long absence. Reliever Roenis Elias received the same diagnosis a month ago and hasn’t pitched since. If Robles’ issue is similarly severe, he might not play again in 2019.
An elite prospect during his days in Washington’s farm system, Robles has emerged as a strong contributor during his first full MLB campaign, evidenced by his 2.5 fWAR in 617 plate appearances. Robles didn’t show off Juan Soto-esque dominance with the bat in the regular season, when he hit .255/.326/.419 with 17 home runs, though he did swipe 28 bases and perform brilliantly as a defender. He led all MLB outfielders in DRS (24) and finished eighth in UZR (7.0).
When Robles exited Friday, Washington replaced him with Michael A. Taylor – a lesser hitter than Robles who also brings speed and defense to the table. Taylor and Gerardo Parra joined Robles as the only members of the club who garnered starts in center in the regular season. Parra’s also on the Nats’ five-outfielder NLDS roster, and if the team wants to keep that setup intact in the event Robles misses time, it could call on Andrew Stevenson as a replacement.