A decade ago, the Washington Nationals were a driving force in the National League. However, the former Montreal Expos hit the skids following the franchise’s first World Series title in 2019.
But there are signs of life in the nation’s capital as the Nationals managed not to finish in the National League East cellar for the first time in five years last season.
After four years of fifth-place division finishes, Washington moved into fourth after posting a 71-91 record in 2024.
Not everything can be fixed at once, given that Washington does not have the financial willingness of their NL East overlords. However, the Nationals again appear to be wading into the free-agent market.
To that end, Ryan Finkelstein of Just Baseball sees New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres winding up in the nation’s capital by the end of the winter.
The 27-year-old hit .257 with 15 home runs, 26 doubles, 80 RBI, and 80 runs scored last season, posting a WAR of 1.8.
Torres, a highly regarded prospect who the Chicago Cubs traded to the New York Yankees for closer Aroldis Chapman during the Cubs’ 2016 drive to win a World Series title for the first time since 1908, quickly endeared himself to Yankee fans upon his MLB debut in 2018.
However, after earning All-Star Game nods in his first two big-league seasons, Torres’ production trailed off during an attempted move to shortstop in 2020 and 2021. While his offensive statistics have again improved, he has not developed into the superstar that Gotham initially thought it had.
Though Torres remains a solid second-sacker with a career batting average of .265 and 20-plus home run power, resigning him does not appear to be a priority for the Yankees.
Spotrac projects Torres to have a market value worthy of a three-year, $20.8 million contract.
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