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With 16 days until Opening Day, one would think that the Nats would start making some moves, put regulars in more often, and take Spring Training a little more seriously.
Cue Max Scherzer night game.
Here’s the beat from West Palm Beach.
(16 days)
With two weeks until they head north, the Nats have plenty to figure out
What's Mike Rizzo's contract status? How's Daniel Murphy's knee? Will Victor Robles make the Opening Day roster? Who will back up Matt Wieters? Is it really gonna be A.J. Cole? What does the bullpen look like?
Jake Arrieta deal shows that NL East is beginning to turn around
The Nats are still the best (on paper) team in the division. With that said, it's no longer a cakewalk division, as the Phillies will certainly be better this season, the Braves are on the upswing, and the Mets can't be worse. It may not be the worst thing for the Nats, who could use some high-leverage situations before October 1st.
Trimmer Wieters looks to rebound from career-worst season
Matt Wieters' weight is down to a less ideal batting average (225, the same as his 2017 clip), is doing some crazy stuff with Kevin Long, and desperately wants a rebound.
Dave Martinez needs the Nats to learn from their spring mistakes
Yes, it's only March 13th. That said, it's a little less than two weeks until Opening Day, so the team should start getting a little more worried about baserunning, and quickly, especially after the Nats got picked off twice and were thrown out once on the basepaths on Monday.
An early look at Bryce Harper's free-agent market
The Cubs, Dodgers, and Nats are all the big-name favorites — but don't count out the Phillies, Angels, Yankees, and (the insider pick here in the Wire Taps) the Padres.
Victor Robles, Juan Soto, excited to play with each other one day
They're both listed in baseball's top 30 prospects. They both played Monday afternoon, with Soto driving in two runs and Robles playing spectacular defense. In other words, the future post-Bryce is more than bright.
Most indispensable players for 30 MLB teams
Nationals: Bryce Harper. Shocking.
Mike Rizzo: Phillies better with Jake Arrieta
With Arrieta off the market, Nats have to figure out their fifth rotation spot — though it seems A.J. Cole has mainly made his claim thus far (but watch out for Erick Fedde!).
Matt Reynolds pushing for Major League spot — but he looks locked out
Reynolds is trying to earn a bench job, having played in 16 of 18 games this Grapefruit League season. Only issue? Wilmer Difo, Howie Kendrick, and Daniel Murphy are all blocking him out. Needless to say, he's first man up when someone inevitably goes down. (Also: Trevor Gott was good on Monday!)
Today’s Game: Mets vs Nationals — 7:05 PM
Probable Pitchers: Zack Wheeler vs Max Scherzer