2015 Washington Nationals baseball preview

Courtesy Photo | Cory Hancock, public affairs intern for Joint Force Headquarter-National Capital Region and the U.S. Army Military District of Washington. (Courtesy image)  

WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES

04.02.2015

Story by Cory Hancock 

Joint Task Force - National Capital Region

WASHINGTON - The 2015 Major League Baseball season marks the 10th anniversary of the Washington Nationals. My first Nats game was July 7, 2005, during their inaugural season. They played the New York Mets in front of 44,492 fans at RFK Stadium in Washington. Brad Wilkerson (my all-time favorite Nat), Matt Cepicky (who?) and the flat-brimmed Chad Cordero, among others, played in what turned into an 11-inning loss.

The Nats of 2005 had many players who were past their primes, a farm system devoid of talent and a stadium that was crumbling. While they finished .500 that year, several 100-plus loss seasons followed.

This summer’s Nationals will have a $200 million player (Max Scherzer), two $100 million players (Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth) and one of the top young players in the game, Bryce Harper.

Scherzer, who got a max deal this off-season (pun intended), will add his star power to an already loaded pitching rotation. Long-time third baseman Ryan Zimmerman will shift to first base, as he replaces Adam LaRoche. The move should be good for Zim’s health, but I still question his ability to field the position.

Second base is a weakness for the Nationals. Infielder Yunel Escobar, brought over in a trade from the Oakland Athletics, is a career .276 hitter. While his career batting average is decent, he has played shortstop and will now move to second base. Learning a new position is difficult but at the age of 32, this transition is made even harder.

Danny Espinosa is another option. Espi is great defensively but has had problems swinging the bat last season, hitting just .208 over the past three years, not the type for production the Nats expect.

Injuries during spring training have ravaged the Nats. Outfielders Denard Span and Jayson Werth as well as third baseman Anthony Rendon are all expected to start the season on the disabled list. How the Nats will cope with these injuries so early in the season will be huge.

It is a contract year for several key Nationals players, including pitcher Jordan Zimmermann and shortstop Ian Desmond. In a perfect world, both would be re-signed, but that is unlikely. Instead, Desmond will likely return, but I do not predict J-Zimm will be on the team after the July trade deadline. He’s coming off a great season (14-5, with a 2.66 earned run average), including a no-hitter, but his demands will be too high but so will his trade value. A void in the rotation, either by trade or injury, will be filled by 15-game winner Tanner Roark and minor leaguer A.J. Cole (the second best prospect in the Nationals minor league system according to Baseball Prospectus).

The Nationals have set aside five dates for military appreciation days. The five branches will be honored on May 8 (Navy), June 2 (Army), July 21 (Marines), Aug. 6 (Coast Guard) and Sept. 21 (Air Force).

According to the Nationals website, military service members receive discounted Nats tickets available exclusively to them and their families. Tickets can be purchased through MWR and ITT offices at area installations and the Pentagon. Most ticket levels also include a food and beverage credit to reduce the total cost of the outing. For more information on the Nationals Military ticket discounts, call 202-640-7647 or visit nationals.com/military.

Editor’s note: Cory Hancock is a U.S. Army Public Affairs intern assigned to the Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region and the U.S. Army Military District of Washington. He is currently on a developmental rotation at the Pentagon.

• Date Taken: 04.02.2015
• Date Posted: 04.02.2015 19:33
• Story ID: 159040
• Location: WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, US