The Nationals need to address their pitching problem first and foremost. I would do that not by trading 2024 All-Star CJ Abrams but by trading MacKenzie Gore. The Nationals have a decently strong farm system, with highly touted pitchers that can bolster the team in the coming years, but they need help now--and for that, Gore is the way to go.
Presumed Plan : Wide open but I'll say Abrams plays SS while Nunez enters super sub role. Reasoning behind Presumed Plan : Nunez only played 24 games last year to add to his 23 in 2024. With that little time in the majors and very middling minor league batting stats, it's fair to wonder if he could in fact hit in the majors despite a very short impressive run late last year.
Throughout Abrams' career, defensive metrics have graded him poorly. Outs Above Average, a Statcast-based statistic that accounts for the cumulative value a player is credited or debited for, has graded Abrams poorly for every season of his career. This past season, Abrams' OAA at shortstop was in the second percentile. During his four years in the big leagues, he has never posted an OAA mark above the third percentile.
