With the departure of Bryce Harper this offseason the Washington Nationals Outfield will be without one of the most talented and recognizable players in baseball. While Harper is an MVP caliber talent, the Nationals because of quality drafting and player development are well positioned to survive without him. The outfield group that will be relied upon this season consists of Victor Robles, Juan Soto, Adam Eaton, Andrew Stevenson, and Michael A. Taylor. A quintet of outfielders that will help soften the blow of losing such a great player to the division rival Phillies. I will look to elaborate on each of these outfielders’ strengths and weaknesses, along with depicting what each can do to have a successful year to help the Nationals win this upcoming season.
Beginning with the youngest player, 20-year-old Juan Soto is the most exciting offensive player of this group. Soto last season put together one of the best offensive seasons by a teenager in MLB history. Posting a .292 batting average, 22 home runs, 70 RBI’s, and a .406 on-base percentage in 116 games. He took the league by storm and became in many ways the best and most consistent offensive player for the Nationals after his call up on May 20th last year. Soto as a young player showed a great eye and approach at the plate, from his .319 batting average with two outs in an inning, to his quality splits of a .279 average versus lefties and .297 average versus righties. A solid strikeout to walk ratio of 99 K’s to 79 BB’s which is impressive for a 19-year-old. Soto showed to be a very advanced hitter for his age, with plenty of upside as he continues to grow as a player. Now for the hard work. For Soto to become the complete star he has the potential to be must make improvements in his baserunning and defense. Soto defensively must continue to work on getting better reads on balls in the outfield, which will come with more reps. More experience will aid in his development, meaning better jumps on the ball and making routine plays look more routine. As far as the baserunning this comes with just being smarter and continuing to learn from his coaches. His play at times last year made for some poor decisions on the bases, trying to make things happen for the Nats. It will just be up to the Nats to continue to reel in his youthful energy and be a lot smarter in key situations. Ultimately for Soto to contribute to a successful season he must build off a strong rookie campaign and continue to make adjustments as a hitter as the league adjusts to him. While making further defensive and baserunning strides to become a more versatile asset to the Nats . Overall Soto is a very young player that fans should be ecstatic about in terms of his future at the big-league level.
The Nats outfield group still have two solid veterans they are confident can have quality seasons and provide leadership for the other young players. These vets are Adam Eaton and Michael A. Taylor both who will be counted on to provide production in this Nationals outfield. For the 30-year-old Eaton this season is more about will he hold up health wise for Nats. He has only played 112 games combined in two seasons with the Nats. While posting a .299 average, 7 home runs, 46 RBI’s and a .390 on base percentage. These numbers are quite good, but unfortunately because of his inability to stay healthy these numbers have not been impactful. Thus, for Eaton to help the Nats this year he just needs to stay healthy. He has shown in these small samples sizes he is a very productive offensive player, but he must be available to manager Davey Martinez. A healthy Eaton will be less of a liability defensively. Michael A. Taylor is possibly the most intriguing player of the duo. Taylor while possessing immense talent, at times lacks the consistency needed to stick in the Nationals lineup for long stretches. Taylor has shown power to all fields, speed in the outfield and on the bases, along with being the best defender in this group. Taylor though still has holes in his swing that prevent him from reaching his offensive potential. Taylor though is a very valuable asset and one the Nationals I believe should look to retain long term. Taylor is also in a battle for the starting centerfielder job this spring with highly touted prospect Victor Robles. This spring he is hitting .474 with, 1 home run, 4 RBI’s, and 1 stolen base in 19 at-bats. Thus, he is producing well making his case to be the opening day starter. Taylor, still just 27 years-old has shown inconsistency in his play despite quality opportunities as well. This can be seen by his great 2017 numbers of .271, 19 homers, 53 RBI’s, and 17 stolen bases in 118 games. Compared to his porous 2018 numbers of .227, 6 homers, 28 RBI’s, and 24 stolen bases in 134 games. The last two seasons show he is getting plenty of opportunities just needs to take advantage of them. The Nats have voiced their confidence in Taylor, which must be big for his confidence. Now it is up to Taylor to reward their faith in him by producing consistently in his role. Because if he does he will establish himself as another young piece the Nats can continue to build their outfield with.
Finally, we have the other two young players of this quintet of outfielders, being Victor Robles and Andrew Stevenson. For the 21-year-old Robles the tools are there for him to be a star. He has great speed, good centerfield instincts, and developing power at the plate. These abilities have led to Robles being in strong contention for the starting centerfielder job to open the season. His main competition for this spot is Taylor and the numbers say the competition is close. Robles numbers, a .346 average, 1 home run, 5 RBI’s, and 3 stolen bases this spring. With these numbers along with Taylor’s success this spring it will be a tough decision for Davey Martinez. Robles has also had success in short stints at the major league level the last 2 Septembers. Posting a .277 average, 3 homers, and 14 RBI’s in 34 games played. Robles must continue to grow all parts of his game, as well as, the Nats try not to rush him into a starting role. Though from all indications so far this spring it will make it hard for the Nats to keep him off the opening day roster. For 24-year-old Andrew Stevenson he is more likely to be strictly a bench player this year. A role that will not give him consistent at-bat’s, but a chance to continue to absorb knowledge about the game. He got some valuable experience last year playing in 57 games, and posting a .253 average, with 1 homer and 13 RBI’s. Being a left handed batter gives the Nats versatility on their bench. Along with the versatility to play all three outfield spots at an effective level. His speed makes him a great asset as a pinch runner when a stolen base is needed. The option is still there for the Nats to send him back to the minors if they want him to get consistent playing time. Whether they choose to keep Stevenson into the regular season or start him in the minors is up to Washington. In the end, it is guaranteed both players will be up with the big-league club and play a role in the success of the Washington Nationals this season.
Overall the Nationals despite losing a player like Bryce Harper are well set up to move forward without him. They have a good mix of veterans and young players in this outfield quintet. All of whom provide versatility and quality production in many of areas of the game. With this outfield group the Nats are not only set-up for success this season but going forward with this highly talented group.
