Zimmerman Undecided On Future, But Nats Would Welcome Him Back
The Nationals took the time to honor franchise icon Ryan Zimmerman yesterday, in what could have been the final appearance of the veteran corner infielder’s storied big league career (video link). After the game, Zimmerman told reporters that he’s not yet decided whether he’ll retire or come back for what would be a 17th season at the Major League level (link via MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman).
Zimmerman, who turned 37 in late September, said he feels confident he could continue playing and felt he handled the role he was given this year well, but there are larger questions at stake. “Now it’s a decision of: Do I want to keep doing that or do I want to be around my family a little bit more?” Zimmerman wondered aloud. It’s a question that’s had onlookers wondering for some time now, as explored by MLBTR’s TC Zencka over the weekend.
One thing that became abundantly clear based on yesterday’s slate of interviews is that Zimmerman would be welcomed back to the roster next season with open arms. General manager Mike Rizzo made sure to plainly express as much, taking the extra step to emphasize that Zimmerman has a guaranteed Major League deal waiting for him if he wants to return.
“Ryan Zimmerman has a place on this roster as a player as long as Mike Rizzo is the GM,” said Rizzo. “So whenever he wants to take a major league contract, just call me up and we’ll give him one.”
While the 2021 season wasn’t as strong a year as Zimmerman had during his peak, the veteran slugger still tormented left-handed opponents and generally showed well above-average power. In 116 plate appearances against southpaws, Zimmerman turned in a .291/.319/.582 batting line with seven home runs and 11 doubles. His overall production was down against righties (.207/.261/.386), but Zimmerman still tagged same-handed opponents for seven homers and five doubles with a strong .179 isolated power mark (slugging percentage minus batting average).
On the surface, Zimmerman still carries appeal as a platoon option at first base or, assuming it is indeed implemented in the National League in 2022, at designated hitter. That’d be a fairly limited role, of course, but the organization surely values Zimmerman’s contributions well beyond his mere on-field production. After spending nearly two decades in the Majors — all of them coming as a member of the Nationals — Zimmerman’s leadership, his ability to connect with young players and his connection with the fan base are all factors that weigh into the team’s decision to effectively present him with a standing offer.
Looking to the 2022 season, that leadership and ability to mentor younger players could be valued even more heavily. After spending years as one of the older and more veteran-laden teams in the game, the Nationals embarked on what will likely be an accelerated rebuilding effort at this year’s trade deadline. Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, Daniel Hudson, Brad Hand, Yan Gomes, Josh Harrison and Jon Lester were all traded for younger, more controllable players. The likes of Keibert Ruiz, Josiah Gray, Riley Adams and Lane Thomas have all already debuted on the big league roster, and next year’s club figures to be a good bit younger than in recent seasons as a result.
To be clear, Rizzo already pushed back on the idea of prolonging this summer’s sale into a lengthy, years-long rebuild. That doesn’t seem to be in the cards, and the Nats have plenty of available payroll space with only three guaranteed contracts on the books next season (Stephen Strasburg, Patrick Corbin and Will Harris). It’s likely they’ll bring in some veteran talent whether Zimmerman is re-signed or not, but the front office clearly sees value in the continuity “Mr. National” would bring as the team transitions to a new core that can hopefully be built around superstar outfielder Juan Soto.
NL East Notes: Harper, Phillies, Davis, Mets, Nationals
For players eager to win now, they usually want their teams to add veteran players to help put the club over the top. Bryce Harper may be an exception, as when speaking to The Athletic’s Matt Gelb and other reporters following the Phillies‘ season-ending loss to the Marlins, Harper stressed that “we can’t just keep going out and buying and buying and buying. We need homegrown talent. When you look at teams that have homegrown talent, those are the teams that have success….We need guys to come up from the minor leagues and have success and be successful. Not have to go up and down.”
Aaron Nola and Rhys Hoskins stand out as recent success stories from Philadelphia’s player pipeline, but apart from that duo, the Phillies have struggled to find consistent contributions from within the organizations. Highly-touted youngsters like Alec Bohm, Scott Kingery, Mickey Moniak, and Adam Haseley have yet to make much of an impact at the big league level, and Gelb notes that the Phils have been lacking a streamlined approach throughout the organization — there appears to be “a disconnect between what was taught below and preached in the majors.” The Phillies are already making changes in the player development department and are on the lookout for a new hitting coach, though it remains to be seen if the team can figure out this “disconnect” while still addressing their 2022 needs and being competitive next season.
More from around the NL East…
- J.D. Davis will undergo surgery Tuesday to fix a torn ligament in his left hand. The Mets infielder played in only 73 games this season due to four separate trips to the injured list related to his hand injury, and Davis told The New York Daily News’ Deesha Thosar and other reporters that he expects to have a normal offseason after his surgery, so he should be ready for Spring Training. As to whether or not he’ll be at the Mets’ camp is another question, as after a year of trade rumors, Davis said his “gut feeling” is that he “could be out of here” and headed to another team. “It’s kind of 50/50, kind of a flip of the coin,” Davis said. “I know there’s going to be plenty of changes up and down from the front office all the way down to here….But there’s a possibility that I could come back. I love New York. I love the fans.”
- As Davis mentioned, the Mets will be undergoing many changes, including a possible overhaul of the coaching staff that could include manager Luis Rojas. Of all the coaches, The New York Post’s Mike Puma (Twitter link) believes pitching coach Jeremy Hefner is the likeliest to remain in Queens. 2021 is the last guaranteed year of Hefner’s original two-year contract, but the Mets hold a club option on Hefner’s services for next season.
- The Nationals definitively won’t be making a change at pitching coach, as manager Davey Martinez told reporters (including MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman) on Saturday that Jim Hickey for a second season on Washington’s staff. Other changes could be forthcoming to the coaching corps, however, and president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo told Zuckerman and company today that the Nationals are “certainly going to make some changes in the player development and scouting ranks.” The idea is that “ten or 12 years with the same staff shows the cohesion, and then when you make some nice tweaks to get a new set of eyes and some new ideas is never a bad thing,” Rizzo said.
Nationals To Promote Joan Adon
October 3: The Nationals have announced the recall of Adon, with Luis Garcia going on the IL with a strained oblique muscle as the corresponding move.
October 2: The Nationals will promote right-hander Joan Adon prior to tomorrow’s game, manager Davey Martinez told reporters (including Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post) tonight. Adon will make his MLB debut starting Washington’s final game of the season. The 23-year-old Adon is already on the Nats’ 40-man roster, added last November in advance of the Rule 5 draft.
While it might not be a long outing for Adon, he’ll at least get a cup of coffee in The Show to cap off his fourth professional season. An amateur signing out of the Dominican Republic back in 2016, Adon hadn’t even pitched at high-A ball prior to 2021, but advanced up the ladder with over 105 combined innings at the high-A (87 IP), Double-A (14 IP), and Triple-A (four IP). Adon has a 26.9% strikeout rate and 8.81% walk rate during his 2021 season, and those decent numbers have translated only to a cumulative 4.97 ERA.
MLB Pipeline rates Adon as the 22nd-best prospect in Washington’s farm system, citing his 60-grade fastball with mid-90s velocity. Though Adon has worked only as a starting pitcher in 2021, Pipeline’s scouting report feels his future as a starter or as a reliever will depend on whether or not Adon can get consistent success with at least one other secondary pitch.
Are The Nationals On The Verge Of Losing Another Franchise Icon?
The Washington Nationals have undergone a whiplash-y few years. Coming off years as a playoff-impotent, Bryce Harper-led contender, the Nationals turned in one of the most improbable World Series runs ever in 2019, led by none other than Harper’s replacement in then-20-year-old wunderkind Juan Soto.
Soto was actually the Robin on that title team to Anthony Rendon‘s Batman. Rendon went 6-for-8 with a walk, three doubles, and three home runs in the 7th inning or later of elimination games during that postseason – a run that featured a record five come-from-behind wins in elimination games. Rendon’s heroics did not save him from Harper’s fate, however, as the homegrown star third basemen departed the capital to join the Angels as a free agent that very winter.
So it was just as the Nats shook off their persona as a playoff also-ran that they tumbled from contention and turned in back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since 2010-11. Rather than build off the success of their title run, manager Dave Martinez and company instead oversaw a thin roster struggling to stay healthy and keep pace, even in a disappointing NL East.
Their futility led to the departure of more franchise icons via the deadline trade of face-of-the-franchise Max Scherzer and MVP-candidate Trea Turner to the Dodgers. For the District viewership, count the loss of World Series closer Daniel Hudson, longtime stopper Sean Doolittle, and fan favorite Michael A. Taylor – not to mention the retirement of Game Seven hero Howie Kendrick – among the losses since 2019.
What’s left in Washington is a team so anonymous to the fanbase that more than 20 percent of the active roster was acquired at this year’s deadline. Soto’s supposed running mate, Victor Robles, played so poorly that he was demoted to Rochester and has yet to return. GM Mike Rizzo hopes that the acquisitions of righty Josiah Gray and catcher Keibert Ruiz (acquired from L.A. in the Scherzer/Turner deal) will jump start the next Nationals’ contender, but there are few sure things besides Soto, who now stands as the lone superstar on a once star-studded franchise.
And yet with all those good-byes ushering in a new era of Nats’ baseball, franchise icon Ryan Zimmerman remains. Their first-ever draft pick, Zimmerman was the third baseman before Rendon arrived, and he remains a part-time first baseman long after his departure. Playing time has been carefully curated for the 37-year-old, so much so that one has to wonder if Zimmerman will play his final game at Nats Park on Sunday.
Zimmerman is not a Hall of Famer, but he’s nonetheless put up one heck of a career in Washington. The North Carolina native went to school in Virginia, and he has appeared in every season in Nats history except for 2020 when he opted out. Zimmerman is the all-time team leader in most offensive categories, and even counting Expos history, Zimmerman is the franchise leader in games played, at bats, plate appearances, hits, runs scored, total bases, doubles, RBIs, and home runs (plus strikeouts and double plays grounded into). Yadier Molina of the Cardinals is the only player in the game who has been with his club longer than Zimmerman has been with the Nationals.
In terms of the numbers, Mr. National put up 40.0 rWAR over his 16 seasons while being 16 percentage points better than average by measure of wRC+. He played 1,797 games, slashed .277/.341/.475 with 1,845 career hits and 284 career home runs. Though he’s almost certainly held in higher regard locally than his accomplishments warrant, a history of injuries has also made him somewhat underrated on the national level.
The two-time All-Star has been productive as a part-time player this year, posting 1.1 rWAR in 267 plate appearances with a .243/.281/.470 triple slash, 14 home runs and 45 RBIs. He’s been particularly productive in his role starting games against southpaws, slashing .297/.324/.565 in those games. Though 2017 was the last time he had more than 500 plate appearances in a season, he’s preserved a role as a part-time player.
Zimmerman has enough bat to stay in this game for another year or two, but it would be somewhat surprising to see him return for yet another go-round in Washington. He’s long been adamant about playing nowhere but DC. If the Nats were heading towards a season of surefire contention in 2022, Zimmerman might be more inclined to keep his cleats on, but Rizzo has a lot of work to do to get the roster ready for another run. As of now, however, Zimmerman has yet to announce his intentions for next season.
If Zimmerman does indeed retire, it will be another blow to a DMV fanbase that has suffered its fair share of heartbreak. One of the most consistent franchises in the game during the 2010s, they’ll enter 2022 with more uncertainty than usual. Rizzo, Martinez, and Soto remain as the through-line tracing back to the organization’s heyday, with Stephen Strasburg looming as the other potential face-of-the-franchise, were he able to conquer his health demons and stay on the bump – but that’s more pipe-dream than expectation at this point.
As the ties to the 2019 World Series title come undone, Nats’ fans can enjoy Zimmerman for at least two more games this weekend. That said, a franchise that long provided stability has to build something new moving forward. Zimmerman’s presence is important not only to the fanbase, but as a symbol of the organization’s loyalty and continuity – which is becoming harder and harder to find. Without Zimmerman, the team will truly belong to Soto, and with three years of team control remaining, the franchise has exactly that long to convince him to take on the legacy left behind by Zimmerman as Mr. National.
Nationals Activate Gerardo Parra, Place Josh Rogers On 10-Day Injured List
The Nationals have placed starter Josh Rogers on the 10-day injured list with a hamstring strain. The move allows local legend Gerardo Parra to return to the active roster from the injured list. Parra will bring baby shark back to Nats Park for the final two games of the season.
The 34-year-old Parra received more run than one might have expected this season, stepping to the plate 105 times and slashing .232/.288/.347 with a pair of home runs. Parra continues to be a positive clubhouse influence and fan favorite. Just two years removed from their title run, Parra is one of surprising few links left to that title team.
As for Rogers, the southpaw was a scrap heap pickup from the Orioles who gave the Nats some valuable innings down the stretch. The 27-year-old has some fan fav flair of his own, bringing a bouncy energy to the mound in six starts totaling 35 2/3 innings. Rogers did enough to likely earn himself a look next year for the pitching-needy Nationals.
Rogers finishes the year with a 3.28 ERA/5.83 FIP, the latter number due to a disinclination to miss bats. Rogers has just a 14.6 percent strikeout rate and 8.6 percent swinging strike rate, well below the 22.6 percent and 10.9 percent mark averaged by starters throughout the game. Regardless, with only Patrick Corbin, Josiah Gray, and Stephen Strasburg (if healthy) guaranteed rotation spots next season, Rogers should have a continued opportunity to prove he can continue to keep runs off the board in Washington.
Nationals Promote Jhon Romero, Designate Jakson Reetz
SEPTEMBER 25: The Nationals announced that Reetz has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Rochester.
SEPTEMBER 23, 2:05PM: The Nationals have officially announced the selection of Romero’s contract. Hernandez has been placed on the paternity list, while catcher Jakson Reetz has been designated for assignment. Reetz made his MLB debut earlier this season, appearing in two games for Washington.
11:19AM: The Nationals are set to call up right-handed pitching prospect Jhon Romero, according to multiple reports from Colombian reporters (hat tip to The Athletic’s Maria Torres). Washington will create a 40-man roster spot for Romero with some forthcoming moves, and Torres reports that outfielder Yadiel Hernandez is heading for the paternity list.
Romero isn’t listed as a top-30 Nationals prospect by either Baseball America or MLB Pipeline, but the 26-year-old has posted some terrific numbers in 2021. In 47 2/3 innings with Double-A Harrisburg and 7 1/3 innings with Triple-A Rochester, Romero has a combined 2.62 ERA, 30.5% strikeout rate and 4.87% walk rate. This breakout performance has earned Romero his first taste of Major League action in his sixth pro season.
Originally an international signing for the Cubs back in 2015, Romero was dealt to Washington as the return for Brandon Kintzler at the July 2018 trade deadline. Romero had some interesting numbers over his time in Chicago’s organization, though his 2019 season with the Nationals’ A-ball affiliate was marred by injury, limiting him to only 13 2/3 innings.
Romero has pitched exclusively out of the bullpen during his career, and this late-season call-up will give the Nats a look at a pitcher who might end up factoring into their plans for 2022. The Nationals’ relief corps has been a weak link on the team for years, and while the front office will certainly look to bring in some more new faces during the offseason, internal options like Romero will get the opportunity to fill those bullpen holes from within.
Nationals’ AGM Sam Mondry-Cohen To Depart Organization
Nationals assistant general manager of baseball research and development Sam Mondry-Cohen has informed the club he will not return once his contract expires at the end of the season, reports Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. While Mondry-Cohen does not currently have a new job lined up, he’s planning to pursue opportunities with other clubs this offseason, Dougherty relays.
Mondry-Cohen has been in the organization since 2009, earning a bump to AGM by 2019. Over the past few seasons, he’s been considered the leader of the Nats’ analytics department. (MLBTR’s TC Zencka covered Mondry-Cohen’s role in the organization shortly before the team captured their first World Series title two years ago).
Dougherty notes that the Nationals are expected to look to bolster their analytics group in the wake of departures by Mondry-Cohen and Scott Van Lenten, a former Washington staffer hired as Rockies’ research and development leader earlier this month. Kris Kline, Ted Towne, Mike DeBartolo, Johnny DiPuglia and Mark Scialabba — most of whom work in scouting and player development — remain as assistant general managers under baseball operations head Mike Rizzo.
Injury Notes: Syndergaard, Cueto, Strasburg
Noah Syndergaard is close to returning and might jump straight to the big leagues without another rehab assignment, according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. The fireballer has had no shortage of obstacles to deal with this season. He underwent Tommy John surgery in March of 2020 and started his first rehab stint in May of this year. Unfortunately, that assignment was stopped when Syndergaard experienced some elbow inflammation and he didn’t get back on the mound until late August. Due to the small amount of time remaining in the season, the plan then was for him to return as a reliever, rather than the lengthier process of getting stretched out to start. But that second rehab assignment was shut down when he tested positive for COVID-19.
Despite the fact that there are only two weeks left in the MLB season now and the Mets seem to be fading out of the playoff picture, Syndergaard’s form in the remaining games is potentially very important for both he and the team. The 29-year-old is about to enter free agency and is a candidate for a qualifying offer. The quality and quantity of his appearances in the next two weeks could impact the club’s decision about whether or not to hand him that qualifying offer, as well as Syndergaard’s decision about whether or not to accept it.
More injury notes from around the league…
- Johnny Cueto is nearing a rehab assignment, per Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com. The 35-year-old has been out since September 1st with an elbow strain but is scheduled to throw a bullpen tomorrow. It’s unclear what the rehab plan for Cueto is, but there’s not a lot of time left in the season for him to be stretched out as a starter. The Giants have largely been able to weather the storm without him, clinging to a narrow lead in the NL West in spite of having the occasional bullpen game. The club has of late been using a four-man rotation of Kevin Gausman, Logan Webb, Alex Wood and Anthony DeSclafani. Cueto has been solid when healthy this season, throwing 112 1/3 innings with an ERA of 4.09.
- The plan for Stephen Strasburg is for him to begin throwing in November and be ready for spring training, Nationals manager Dave Martinez tells Todd Dybas of Inside the Clubhouse. Despite the Nationals stripping things down at this year’s deadline, it seems the club may be attempting a quick return to contention, as evidenced by their holding onto Juan Soto and targeting MLB-ready returns in their trades. A big wild card in that plan will be Strasburg’s health. The 33-year-old is a dominant pitcher when at his best, as evidenced by his excellent 2019 season, wherein he threw 209 innings with an ERA of 3.32 and then added 36 1/3 postseason innings with an ERA of 1.98, helping the club win the World Series and garnering himself World Series MVP honors. It was on the heels of that incredible performance that the Nationals and Strasburg agreed to a seven-year, $245MM contract. However, since then, the righty has only been able to throw 26 2/3 innings due to various injuries, most recently going under the knife for neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome.
Alex Avila To Retire After 2021 Season
Nationals catcher Alex Avila will retire at the end of the season, The Athletic’s Maria Torres reports (Twitter link). While Avila plans to remain involved with the sport and “doesn’t intend to stay out of the game for long,” the veteran backstop will be hanging up his glove after 13 Major League seasons.
Breaking into pro ball as a fifth-round pick for the Tigers in the 2008 draft, Avila is best remembered for his eight seasons in Detroit, highlighted by a Silver Slugger performance in 2011. Avila hit .295/.389/.506 with 19 homers over 551 plate appearances in that breakout year, earning an All-Star nod and a 12th-place finish in AL MVP voting.
While Avila never again quite reached those heights, he has often provided good offensive production from the catcher position throughout his career, offering on-base skills and a bit of power (while also struggling to avoid strikeouts). Over his 3626 career PA, Avila has a .233/.348/.393 slash line and 105 home runs, good for an above-average 101 OPS+ and 104 wRC+.
Defensively, Avila has been one of baseball’s best at preventing stolen bases, throwing out 30.13% (213 of 707) of baserunners trying to steal. He has also been a solid pitch-framer for much of his career, and he been widely praised as a game manager and handler of pitchers.
This reputation has helped Avila catch on with six different teams (the Tigers, White Sox, Cubs, Diamondbacks, Twins, and Nationals) over the course of his career, mostly recently his one-year free agent deal with Washington. Avila has made only 99 PA over 29 games, as calf injuries kept him on the injured list for almost two months, and he also missed time at the start of the year on the COVID-19 list. Injuries have been a significant part of Avila’s career, including multiple concussions and leg problems.
Only 34 years old, Avila now moves onto the next phase of his baseball career, and could very well continue his family’s history of off-the-field success. His father Al Avila is the Tigers’ general manager, and his grandfather Ralph was a longtime Dodgers scout who was a key figure in the development of the Dominican baseball pipeline.
We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Avila on a fine career, and wish him the best in his next endeavors.
Quick Hits: Reds, Nationals, A’s
The Reds and pitching guru Kyle Boddy are ending their relationship after two seasons, per a press release from Boddy himself. Boddy and Driveline Baseball, his player development organization, surged into the public sphere not long ago as major disruptors in pitching innovation and date-driven development. The Reds’ hiring of Boddy as their minor league pitching coordinator suggested buy-in on Cincinnati’s side, as did their promotion of Boddy to Director of Pitching. That makes this split somewhat surprising, but the relationship clearly did not progress as planned.
What this means for the future of Reds’ development is unclear. Changing philosophies organization-wide can be a slow and clunky process, but it’s certainly possible that the Reds don’t plan to make wholesale changes. Still, moving on from such a public and outside-the-box hire suggests that the Reds will be moving in a different direction in terms of their minor league development strategy. Elsewhere around the game…
- The Nationals are planning on avoiding a full-scale rebuild, according to comments made by GM Mike Rizzo, provided by Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (via Twitter). Perhaps most interestingly, Rizzo says that the players on the squad now will make the foundation of their next championship club. Juan Soto fits the bill, for obvious reasons, but it’s unclear who else might be a part of that supposed core. Keibert Ruiz, Luis Garcia, and Carter Kieboom are the most obvious candidates given their age and prospect status, but none of the three is yet clearly established as an above-average regular. Time will tell if Rizzo is right about this current crop of Nats.
- The Athletics continue to take steps towards relocating from Oakland to Las Vegas. Per Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle, the A’s will winnow a list of potential sites down to a few finalists sometime in November. Although Vegas’ involvement might have seemed like a bargaining ploy to start, there’s clearly a real possibility of a move. This saga is far from done, however, as the city of Oakland remains in negotiations with the A’s about the prospect of building a new stadium.