Grant and Danny

Looking Ahead with MASN's Bobby Blanco | 'Bustin' Loose Baseball'

From 'Bustin' Loose Baseball' (subscribe here): Tobi Altizer is joined by Bobby Blanco of MASN Sports to talk about the demotion of CJ Abrams, and to look ahead to what's next for the Washington Nationals as they enter the final series of the 2024 regular season.

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Broadcast on:: 28 Sep 2024
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Bustin' loose baseball episode 152, I'm Toby Altizer. Grant Paulson out for this episode. But in turn, we got a special guest from Masson Sports, Bobby Blanco is gonna join us to break down the CJ Abrams situation and take a look at the team going into next year as it's the final week of the regular season for the Nationals. Bustin' loose baseball episode 152, and it starts right now. Bustin' loose baseball, hosted by Grant Paulson. Toby Altizer, gives you in-depth analytics. And interviews on everything baseball in the nation's capital. Now, here's your host, Grant Paulson and Toby Altizer. (upbeat music) - Welcome in to Bustin' Loose Baseball, alongside our guy from Masson Sports, Bobby Blanco. We got plenty to talk about. And Bobby, how you doing, man? We're recording this on a Monday, so we're both rocking our burgundy and gold, but we still gotta talk about the nats as they enter the final week of the season. - Yeah, Toby, thanks for having me. I really appreciate it. Love your show. I've listened a couple of times. I've heard you guys give me a couple of shout-outs, which is nice, I always appreciate that. But happy to be joining you, actually, as a guest. And yeah, it's Monday football night, Amanda. We've got some baseball to talk to, but the nats have an off day, so we can actually just sit back and enjoy it. The football games now are just kinda nice. - Yeah, it is nice. And honestly, it felt like it was gonna be an uneventful last couple of weeks. The Nationals have kind of struggled in September, and then we get the news Saturday that CJ Abrams gets demoted to Triple-A, essentially just to go hang out in West Palm Beach, 'cause he doesn't have any games to go play in in Triple-A. What's your take on that situation? We had an emergency pod and kind of gave some of our thoughts. I'm curious what you think of that situation. - Yeah, that was kind of a wild day, and just from my perspective, I was at the University of Maryland, and I said, "Oh, I was getting ready to go into a football game, and my phone starts blowing up and about CJ Abrams getting demoted." And I was like, "That can't be right." I know he's been struggling, but what's the point of setting him down to Triple-A? Their season ends Sunday. He's not gonna play like, "Why not just play the rest of the week?" We finished out the season, but yeah, I mean, some of the reports about him staying out late. Casino, you know, you get a night game, you're out until 8 a.m., you have a day game coming up that later that afternoon. I mean, it's obviously not a good look. I give a lot of credit to Mike Rizzo and Dave Martinez for kind of nipping this in the bud right away. I think a demotion to Triple-A, but basically just going down to West Palm and kind of having a season being ended early is a good punishment. I wouldn't be surprised if there was some stuff behind the scenes as well. You know, maybe some of his privileges taken away. He kind of needs to earn the trust back from the whole organization. I mean, that's not a good look. He's your all star. He's, you know, along with James Wood, Mackenzie Gore, Josiah Gray, you know, the face of this franchise moving forward now. But unfortunately, we saw some reports too that this wasn't the first time. And I think first and foremost, you kind of just hope that CJ as a person is okay, he's not going through anything, you know, too dramatic. And if he is, hopefully the nats give him all the resources he would need to kind of battle that. But yeah, just a tough look, tough weekend for the nationals going three and one, or one of three I should say in Chicago and then having your superstar all-star shortstop kind of mess up in that way. So it was brutal. I think they handled it right. I think they did the right thing. Hopefully CJ, this is message sent and received. We don't have to talk about this again. It's kind of awkward that, you know, we as the media members don't won't talk to him again until spring training next year. So we're not going to hear his side of the story. I know we'll hear from Mike Risen before the season's end. So we'll hear what he has to say about it. But yeah, no, it's a tough situation. And obviously just wishing CJ the best as a person because he is a good person, I do believe. So hopefully he kind of takes this and then, you know, makes this a, turns into a positive as opposed to, you know, kind of derailing his career or is personalized. - Yeah, talking with Bobby Blanco from Mass & Sports. And I want to get your thoughts on this because, you know, when you talk about CJ, you have something like this. I think immediately people question, okay, clearly this isn't being a professional. We understand that. You can't be out till 8 a.m. But I think immediately you think back to what happened with Luis Garcia last year and how could you not? And Luis Garcia was kind of sent down more so as a professional work ethic issue, right? He wasn't putting in the work necessary. I don't get that vibe from CJ. Like he seems like he's always put in the work. He's there early doing what he needs to. This is more so, he's just got to get out of his own way off the field doing some of this stuff. Like, so I'm hoping that the message getting sent here is something that'll, you know, get to him and he'll be able to fix it. But I'm curious your thoughts. I've always viewed him as a hard worker. He's kind of quiet and shy. But he's one that's willing to put in the work it. I wouldn't say it's shocking to see him do some of this stuff. I mean, obviously 8 a.m. is a little bit shocking. But at the same point, it's not something where I've ever questioned his work ethic. - No, I don't question the work ethic at all either. I think, you know, you've been in the clubhouse. So it'll be like, you know, we see him working out a lot. We know the struggles he's gone through this season. He's actually having a decent month getting his numbers back up to a level that we kind of expected of him after struggling in the most of July and August. So it is kind of disappointing. Also from that aspect were, you know, one, it's like, you know, he was struggling, getting better, had a good chance to finish the season strong and carry in some momentum until next year. But two, I mean, look, if you want to go hang out at as soon as 8 a.m., by all means, do what you need to do. You had to wait one week to do that until the season. - Yeah, exactly. - One week left in the season and you can do as much as you want from October until mid-February, within reason, I guess. But like, that's kind of more of like, maybe the upsetting part is that like, it's more dumb than like, you know, oh, he has a gambling problem maybe or he has a partying problem maybe or maybe it was just a couple of bad nights. Again, we've seen reports that this is really the first time that he's been out late in the casino. But, you know, he had to wait just one more week, man. The season's over and you could have done as much as you want it with no real repercussions. And so that's kind of disappointing. But no, I don't think the work ethic is in question. Again, I hope this is kind of the nationals are sending him a message, hey, this is not going to be tolerated. You can't be doing this, especially in season. We have a lot riding on you. We've a lot invested in you. For our future, if you're going to be the leader of this team, they all started off this team. You know, you can't be doing that. You know, and also this is not really a shot at CJ, but he hasn't really earned that right yet. I mean, I know he's a mall star this year, but it's only his second full season in the majors. You know, you're not like a, you know, seven-time all-star future, you know, first-style hall of fame around the making just yet, right? So they kind of have to earn some of those privileges as a veteran or the benefit of the doubt, I guess I should say. So, yeah, I mean, unfortunate situation. Hopefully, you know, he kind of accepts this, you know, knowing that his dad is around a lot and his dad is really tough on him. I'm hoping that, you know, maybe Mr. Abrams kind of steps in and becomes like a good father figure for him and helps him through this, but that look for him and the Nationals. Actually, I would take a look for the Nationals. Like I said, I think they handled it well and did the right thing, but hopefully he gets his act together and gets whatever he needs to order it out, and it comes back next year and is an all-star shortstop for them again. - Yeah, and that's part of why I wanted to bring that up is, you know, you look at last-year situation like Luis and you kind of like you pull the comparisons and I just don't think they're all that similar because this year it's more so a professionalism sort of thing from CJ, he puts in the work necessary. So I think, you know, at least I'm hoping that this will send the message and he'll understand going forward, he can't do some of those things, he'll act more like a professional off the field. Talking with Bobby Blanco from Madison Sports, and that's final week. They got six games left. They'll take on the Royals for three. We'll be back with another BLB after that and also wrapping up the season against the Phillies at the end of the week. They need two wins to get to their season win total from last year. They're sitting at 69 wins. They had 71 last year. Bobby, are they gonna get to their win total from last year or will they maybe, maybe go 500 this week and surpass five years win total? I hope that they get those last three wins. You know, maybe you take two or three from the Royals. Maybe the Phillies clinched the NL East and the number one seat in the NL before next weekend. So they're resting guys. You can maybe steal a couple of cheap wins from them. I really been like from the get go from this year, I 71 was the target for me. Like I know in the grand scheme of things, right now the win loss record doesn't mean that much. I think this is still an improvement from last year because of CJ having an all-star first half because of James Wood making his debut and being one of if not the best player on this team for the last couple of months of the season. Dylan Cruz making an impact late in the season. You know, you guys like Jake Irvin, pitching at all sort of levels at time, Mitchell Parker. I mean, we could talk all about the whole improvement. I still think this year is an improvement from last year despite the win total. But man, I want to see 72 wins on that scoreboard as opposed to 71 or less because that is an actual tangible number we can point to that hey, they did win more games this year. Next year is, all right, can they crack 500? Can they be in the playoff race in late August, September of next year? But you know, despite what the win loss record will be at the end of this week, I still think this is an improvement from last year, but I still want to see 72. - Yeah, I agree with you that it feels like an improvement, but you know, like you said, at the same point, they're going to either finish with 70, 71, 72 wins. So it's really not tangible improvement on the win loss record. What gives you that encouragement that you feel like, okay, they did take a stride this year, even if it isn't something you see in the win loss record? - I think it's the guys that we just talked about. I mean, CJ, you know, we talked about his whole situation, but he had an all-star first half. He was his team's all-star. You know, he struggled. He was getting it back as of late and in September. So, you know, you've trampled that over 160-year game season, maybe finally put it all together next year. That's a big step for him, you know, looking down further down the line, we talked about James Wood, Dylan Kurtz, those are obvious signs of improvement, but like guys like Mitchell Parker, DJ Herrs coming up, and not only making their debut, but sticking with the major league team. I know they sent DJ down right before they all started to kind of get him a reset, but he's been a part of this rotation for a majority of this season now. And Mitchell Parker, you know, because of Josiah Gray's injury back in April, had to make his debut at Dodger Stadium, and is now at times been one of the best pitchers in this rotation. I think those kind of storylines really make this season an improvement because you've got guys that, those are two obvious examples where, you know, and Jake Irvin was this last year where, you know, they weren't really expected to be the first guys up, but they had their name called, and they made the most of that opportunity. I think those are really good. One, because Mitchell was drafted to DJ was traded for, but that's good player scouting and development stories for the Nationals and their new player development staff and part of their front office. They totally revamped that at the end of last year, and I think these are two good stories of that that, hey, we can draft, we can acquire talent through trades and make them a signature piece of our Major League roster. I think those right there are really good examples of how this team has improved this year because you've got guys like DJ and Mitchell, not only reaching the majors, but making an impact for the long haul. - Yeah, and honestly, it's almost like last year was a flip of what this year was. Last year, the first half wasn't very good. The second half was awesome, and you saw some guys take some real strides. CJ took some real strides in some of the guys. This year, it felt like the first half, you saw some real strides out of the pitchers you mentioned. Like Gore was awesome in the first half. Jake Ervin arguably had an all-star first half. Some of these guys just looked fantastic, and then maybe they came crashing down to Earth a little bit in the second half, but I've heard some scouts on the different podcast, kind of talk about this. If you've seen them do it once, maybe they can do it again. Like you feel like you can find something in there, and so with these guys, what they were able to do in the first half, if they can find a little bit of that, you feel encouraged, but looking at next year, Bobby, like you look at the rotation, they're gonna lose Patrick Corbin, Trevor Williams in the final year of his deal. So there's some veterans gone. I mean, they could go full youth movement in the pitching rotation. I don't think that would be the smartest. I think it'd be wise to maybe go get somebody. But what do you think the rotation looks like for next year? Is it something where you think they could go spend and maybe not go top of the market like a Corbin Burns, but go for somebody that's more middle to rotation? What do you kind of look at that rotation for next year looking like? - Yeah, I think it's gonna be majority youth. I think you're gonna have got, I mean, we know Desai Gray's gonna be out for all, basically all next year as well. So you're gonna start with Mackenzie Boor, Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker, probably DJ hers. If Kate Kavaldi is actually healthy when we get to spring training, he'll be competing for a spot as well. Maybe it comes down between him and DJ for like that fifth or fourth spot. And I do think they signed someone. I think, you know, Davey Martinez has talked so much about how Patrick Corbin and Trevor Williams have met so much, not to just the pitchers room, but, you know, the whole bullpen and the whole team as a whole, being just that veteran leadership. I think Davey sees a lot of value in that. I think Mike Rose does as well. So I would expect them to go get someone, you know, kind of in between a Patrick Corbin and a Trevor Williams, Patrick Corbin meaning his contract, not his actual performance, like, you know, in the long-- - 19 Corbin, right? - Right, right, like, you know, kind of someone, but like, you know, a multi-year deal for, you know, I don't have the list of a pending free agents for him from me, but like, not Corbin Burns, I wouldn't expect, although that'd be awesome. But yeah, someone in like kind of the tier B area of a starting pitcher to eat innings. 'Cause, you know, I mean, say what you woke up at Patrick Corbin, he at least did that, and that helps, and, you know, to be kind of that leadership role in that clubhouse for this young rotation, because, you know, we just talked about CJ Abrams and, you know, him kind of losing his grasp as the leader of this team because of this incident, you know, who's gonna step up? I don't know who we have a lot of confidence in right now to be that leader in the rotation going the next year. I mean, eventually it's gonna be the likes of Mackenzie Gorgeous Eye, Greg, Jake Irvin, but they're still so young, and they're still have very little major league experience comparatively to a free agent they could go get. So I think they're gonna go bring someone in, but it's gonna be mostly those young guys that we mentioned, and that's gonna be a fun rotation. If they pitch like they did for a majority of this year, I think that's gonna be a fun young rotation follow. - So I wanna get to position players in just a second, staying with the pitching staff, talking with Bobby Blanco from Aston Sports. When you look at it, to me, there's really two guys in the organization right now that have ace-type potential, one of them being Mackenzie Gorge, the other being Travis Secora, who we won't see in the majors, you know, presumably until probably two years down the line, maybe, maybe late next year. I would highly even doubt that. So it feels like they're kind of missing that. Is it something where they need to sign something like, what do they need for pitchers? Because to me, like when you look at Jake Ervin, he fits in that bin of like a three to five starter. I think hers is in there. I think in the beauty of it, I've talked about this on previous part. The beauty is if you go with hers, you go with Ervin, you go with Parker in your rotation for next year, any one of those guys can pitch like a three and maybe slightly above it times, they can also pitch like a five at times. But the beauty is, if one of them just kind of go in and the other one takes a step back, it doesn't matter where you slot them in, they can kind of fill that role. But do they have another guy, or is that something where they have to go get? Because to me, they've got a bunch of back to middle of rotation. They just don't have the front line starters. - Right, and like looking specifically just to the next year, you know, when it comes to front line, sorry, I don't want to count out Josiah Gray, but he's not going to be here available next year. So, you know, down the line, it's probably more of a conversation between Josiah and Mackenzie. You know, well, this year, a lot of the conversation was spring training was, well, between those two guys, because you can't start patch of Corbin on opening day, watching one of those two guys, and we can get the opening day not. And then Mackenzie got the home opener, which is basically, you know, the next best thing after opening day. So, yeah, I agree that Mackenzie has the most top of the line stuff, ace-like stuff. And then after that, it is kind of a mixed bag in a good way, like you mentioned. But yeah, no, I still anticipate them adding somebody, not a Corbin Burns, although again, like I said, that would be fun and exciting. But someone who can't be, maybe like a solid number two or three guy, and you can bump everyone that you just mentioned down a bit, you know, you don't need to put all that pressure on Jake Irvin to be the number two guy on this rotation, or neutral Parker to be the number three. It kind of takes some pressure off. But also, like I said, an innings ear. Like, I really do think that there is, I mean, they got lucky last year in terms of health, that didn't obviously play come around again this year, but, you know, I think being able to have guys that eat innings take some pressure off these other young pitchers. I mean, the Nationals talk all about, you know, they wanna increase their starting pitchers' innings by like 20 to 30% every year. So, you know, these guys aren't gonna be making, ideally around 30 starts, but to keep them healthy, you know, you gotta spread them out. And I think having another guy or two, maybe, maybe bring in two guys and take some pressure off like guys like DJ Herz and, you know, if he starts on the monitor, that's fine. You know, he can come up later, because I do think, like you said, we're not gonna see a guy like Travis to core for a couple of seasons. So, there is a role to be filled between possibly losing Trevor Williams and definitely losing Patrick Corbin after the season. - Moving over to position players, you know, we've kind of alluded to it. I feel like they need at least one starter, whether it's front line or at least someone that eats the innings, just a veteran present, in that rotation. For position players, what do you view as the biggest need going in the next season? - Power bat. Then they need some kind of power, whether that's coming as a first baseman to replace Joey Gallo or a corner outfielder and you kind of make shifts, you know, with Jacob Young, Dylan Cruz, James Wood. But they need power and they need it badly. I mean, this is one of the worst power hitting teams in the majors. It was the same story last year. I just don't think you can go into the season counting on, okay, James Wood's gonna hit 30 homers. You know, Kevin Ruiz is gonna figure it out and hit 20 bombs for us. You know, you got lucky, not lucky, but like you saw improvement from like, I was like Luis Garcia, junior, but power is not his column card, you know, and neither is it gonna be for, you know, guys like CJ Abrams, you know, whoever of the infielders are still around. So first baseman, DH, corner outfit, whatever it may be, but they need a guy that can come in and they can kind of pretty much guarantee this guy is gonna hit 25 to 30 homers for us this year 'cause they need it badly. And I'm not talking about like a Joey Gallo signing where, hey, maybe you, you know, catch lightning in a bottle and he does that for you. I think it needs to be kind of more of a sure thing, maybe a multi-year deal. They don't have a first baseman of the future. If they have someone in the minor leagues, it's probably gonna be someone like Yo-Yo Morales. Not quite there yet. You can't really count on Brady House coming up next year either being their third baseman and suddenly being one of the major power bat in their lineup. So I really do think that they absolutely need a power bat in some form or another. And I can guarantee power bat, you know, like not a Joey Gallo, not some guy who signed to a one-year deal with $5 million deferred over three years, but someone you can count on for the next couple of seasons being your, you know, your number four, number five hitter that will pay 20 plus bonds for you every season. - Yeah, and I agree, and one of the things, I want to bring this conversation up. We had this about a month ago. It was kind of something that was all over Nat's Twitter. I'm curious on your thoughts on it. A lot of people were talking about, okay, they need to add a power bat. Like you were saying, I argue it should be a first baseman over a corner out fielder for the reason of, I think Jacob Young deserves to be in the field every single day. I think he's earned the right to be your center fielder. Other people are saying, okay, well, Dylan Cruz is a legit center fielder. We've seen that plenty in the minor leagues. We saw it in college and even bits over the weekend, we saw him play a good center field. What are your thoughts on that? Does Jacob Young, like, has he earned that spot to the point that they don't even, you know, if they get a nice deal in a corner out fielder, I think you still do it. But is it something where, you know, Jacob Young is your center fielder and you're not worried about it and you're looking more at the first base market or what's your thoughts on that? - Yeah, I agree that I think if you had your pick, like if Mike Rizzo could, you know, make his selection right now via first baseman, someone who could be a first base DH type. And yeah, 'cause you have corner out fielder's, those three guys, Wood Cruz Young, is a great one defensive out field, but two, pretty solid offensively. I mean, if you think about the power that James Wood brings, you think about, you know, the gap to gap power and maybe some even a little more power that Dylan Cruz could bring. I mean, he could be like a 15, 20 homer guy, potentially. He also steals a lot of bags. We know, Jacob Young can steal a lot of bags and get on base for you. That's a solid offensive out field to go along with, you know, you probably have three gold glove caliber fielders out there. So I think if Mike Rizzo had his pick, it would be a first baseman power bat that could also, you know, split time as a DH, whatever it may be. And then you also have guys like, I mean, like, I know he was hurt from majority of the season, but don't sleep on Robert Hassel the third in the minors, maybe coming up next year, you know, Elijah Green. I'm why some people probably have given up on him. He had a strong second half at Fredericksburg. Maybe he finds the terms of corner comes up. I mean, they have plenty of outfielders. So I don't think outfielders should be a priority this off season. But like you mentioned, if that's what you end up with, then by all means do it because you do need to have power one way or another. - You mentioned the corner outfielders, James Wood, Dylan Cruz, they've kind of been the story here the second half. And James Wood has been fantastic. What have you made of James Wood? 'Cause we were talking about this, just the fact that, you know, we had the media awards come out and vote on that and whatever. And you kind of can't put James Wood in there because he didn't come up until July, but you felt like you could almost still do it because he's been that impressive. And it just speaks to how good he's been since he's been in the majors. What have you been your thoughts of James Wood as, you know, we're getting to the end of his first season on the bigs? - Yeah, full disclosure, I don't know for a lot of say, but I mean, I will. I voted for Luis Cristian Jr. for the player of the year. - Love it. - But it would have been James Wood had he been here this entire season. Like the only reason I didn't vote for James was because it came up in July and Louis has been here the whole season. So, but yeah, I mean, no, I think James has had, I mean, and you and I talked about this in person, you know, I'm sure when you had me on Grand Dany, we talked about how everything about him is impressive. What I think is the most impressive for me, watching him on a daily basis, is how he commands the strike zone. We know the power is going to be there. We know the speed yet. Let us say, I think his defense also has improved a lot. And I'd love to know there were some concerns early on. I think he has, he's done a really good job of getting better out there. The arm is fantastic when he makes plays, but the strike zone, you know, I always should think back to last year, all the strikeouts, now was the big red flag that was the one thing the Nationals really tasked him to improve upon over the last off he's heading into this spring training was cutting down the strikeouts. I know he's striking out a pretty decent clip still in the majors, but he's walking also at a good amount of clips. And we've talked about how it feels like he's getting, you know, kind of jocked up there by some umpires. One, because of his size, and two, he's a rookie. You didn't get the benefit of the doubt, really, but I think he is a fantastic guy out there. I think that at times where he could be frustrated and kind of let that frustration out, he hasn't, he's stayed with it himself, and he's, you know, David mentions all the time, he's like, hey, you know, you're not gonna get to all the calls, it's baseball, that happens, but, you know, stay within yourself, know who you are, command that strike zone, and wait for your pitch. I think he's done a really good job of that. And, you know, we could, this could be a very different conversation if he doesn't do that. You know, we'd be talking about, wow, we started off so well, but, you know, the major kind of caught up to him, and he struggled, so, you know, maybe it's a question I'm going to next year. Nope, none of that. That is not under on the table, because he is adjusted so well up here. And I think the Nationals also deserve credit for their patience with him, and the miners and wait him until July. I know it's supposed to be Jim, he had a heavy injury, but I think their patience with him is really pulling off, or are coming, you know, showing itself because he's having a really, really strong second house. - Yeah, and I feel like with him, like you said, it's just been so impressive, and at times he does get horrible calls, and he just relaxed, goes back to the dugout, kind of handles his business, and he's been so impressive, and I think he's going to be an absolute stud for this team going forward. Taking a look at Dylan Cruz, also with Wood, everyone has struggled. All the rookies have struggled for the most part this season. He really hasn't had long stretches where his numbers are fine. Speaking of someone who struggled a little bit, Dylan Cruz only hitting 204 right now, as he goes into his final week as a first year big leader. What have you made of Dylan Cruz? To me, it feels like he's put together good at bats. He looks like a professional. I think he already is, and even though he's only been up for what, 20 games or so, it feels like he's already somewhere, as you talk about leadership in that clubhouse, I think just because of the draft position, and just the way that he carries himself, to me, he already seems like a leader in that clubhouse. What have you made of Dylan Cruz? I totally agree. I think he is the draft position, coming from LSU, basically winning the equivalent of the Heisman in college baseball. All of that coming together. He's a Boris guy. He knows how to handle this, and this meeting, the immediate tension, the pressure, he always says pressure is a privilege, which is cliche, but I think he truly believes it, and embraces that saying. When it comes to this play, I agree, I think he's adjusting pretty decently. I mean, it's not James Woodlike, but I don't think that's fair to put that kind of pressure on Dylan, no matter how much he likes to say that saying. I think that the league is just to him, he's getting a lot of off-speed stuff, a lot of breaking balls, and he's having some trouble adjusting to it, which will come, right? I mean, pretty much, you just talked about a lot of rupees that have struggled this year, and so that's not just him. I still think that Dylan Cruz is gonna be a great, if not phenomenal baseball player for this team, moving forward, and what a parent it's gonna be with him and James Wood in the years to come. But I think this has been a solid learning experience for him or where it was at 20 games, you said, so getting that experience, finished this season in the major leagues, pretty much knowing that that's kind of your roster spot to lose going into next year. And he's a very driven kid, he's very motivated. You can just tell, again, I don't wanna be too, too cliche when it comes to Dylan Cruz, but he does love the game, he does love, kind of like that first guy in, last guy to leave mentality. And I think he embraces that, and I think that's a good one for his on-field player, but two, like you mentioned, him being a leader in that club, so then it can go a long way. - Yeah, he reminds me a little bit, if you added some of the maturity just because of the fact that he played at LSU, he reminds me of the energy that Bryce brought when he was first brought up, but Bryce had to be told to stop running into walls, that's not the case for Dylan Cruz, like he's got a little bit of an understanding to go along with it, I think he brings that sort of thing. One of the talk you mentioned, you voted for Luis Garcia Jr. as player of the year for yourself, like I think it was honestly down to him and some of the other guys on the scene, like a CJ or a Jacob Younger, but I fully understand going with Luis Garcia, and I was gonna ask you maybe big a surprise of the year, but I don't know how it couldn't be Luis Garcia, 'cause this is a guy that we were talking about, and we talked about it on this podcast, Grant and Danny talked about it, plenty on the show, like going into the year, there were plenty of people saying, "All right, it's time, pull the plug, we're done." And it was something for me that it felt like he had one last chance going into spring training, and there was a spot in spring training, where I had back-to-back days with horrendous errors, and it felt like, "Okay, at that point, it's time to move on." They gave him one more shot, and he's taken full advantage this year. - Yeah, I think that those back-to-back days might have been like right after you guys left West Palm, and it was like nearing my time down there, and I remember writing and thinking and talking to people being like, "He's blowing this." Like he is like, "I wanna try to lift to come to start on the Major League roster over the Luis Garcia Jr." And I was like, "I mean, he's had his chance, I mean, maybe it's time to move forward." I think at the time, they trace better defensively. I think his bad will come around. I don't think trade, you know, trade-lips come is gonna be your long-term, you know, everyday third baseman, but he could definitely be your long-term everyday second baseman and, or, you know, really good defensive replacement coming off the bench. I think trade-lips can definitely has a role to play moving forward, but after the conversation, back to Luis, he proved everyone wrong. And I'm so glad he did, too. Like, I think that this is a great story for not just him, but the organization where they challenged him. You know, they really stuck it to him and been like, "Hey, you know, it's now or never. You're either with us or you're not." And I think after those two rough days in, what was the early March, whatever needed to be said, was said, whatever needed to happen, happened. And it clicked for him and he's having a really good year. If you've got a 280 hitter, you know, hitting close to 20 home runs with an OPS plus of over 100 as your everyday second baseman, that's solid. I mean, I think you'll take that and he's becoming the guy that they thought all along he could be. So what a great story for Luis. I'm, you know, knowing him a little personally, I'm like proud of him, but also professionally, it's kind of like, all right, like, he does have it in him. He can be this guy and that's exciting for him and the team. - Yeah. And I think the frustrating part for Louis throughout his careers, we've seen stretches before where he was able to have really good success and he wouldn't be able to carry it on for more than, you know, a couple of weeks and then it would go back to the head scratching plays Luis Garcia had. This year, he's been arguably their most consistent player, just throughout the year, kind of giving you the same thing you feel like you can expect to 70 and feel good about what he's done defensively as well. So it's been impressive. A couple more, go ahead. - Oh, I was going to say, I think the biggest thing too is his improvement defensively. I mean, like the bat, I think we all kind of knew it was there. Like you mentioned, we've seen streaks of them getting hot and playing really well. So we all knew that potential was there. I think a lot of the questions coming in the year was him defensively and some of those errors he may have spring training was on the defensive side of the ball. And he's been, I mean, he has been such a revelation at defensively at second base. He's made some, one, he's making the routine play more often than not and then two, he's making some spectacular plays as well along the way, which is I think all they can ask for and it's been really fun to watch. - A couple more for you here before we let you go and talk about Bobby Blanco from Mass. And we'll do some quick hitters here. Three guys, where do they fit going in the next year? Let's start with Jose Tana. Where does he fit? - I think he'll start as your opening day third baseman. But I think, honestly, he's more of a placeholder right now until Brady House is ready. I think Brady House is the third baseman of the future. Tana is a good option. I mean, we've seen in the ends of a lot of these offices that are crazy. I think he also in a short amount of time, he also has improved defensively. I think there was an adjustment period playing in the Mater's every day that he needed some getting used to. But I think he's taken that mantle up and performed admirably. But I do unfortunately for him, I think that he's more of a place for right now until Brady House is ready. - Second name, Naseem Nunez, where's he fit? - You know, after this year, I mean, they were able to stash him and keep him through his Rule 5 status. So, we'll be able to option him after this season. And, you know, I see him starting as like the everyday shortstop and AAA next year in field depth. And I know they really love his glove. He plays an unbelievable shortstop, probably better than CJ at times too. I mean, he's got a great arm. He's so quick. His range is unbelievable. That is some good shortstop depth. If anything ever were to happen, God forbid, CJ Abrams. Not like, well, we just saw this weekend. We talked earlier, but more of like an injury situation. I think he is great. I mean, and that's kind of, you know, if he's not, you know, not everyone can be anything he's on time there in terms of you getting all star in the Rule 5 draft. But if you get solid organizational depth at a premium position from the Rule 5 draft, I think that's still a win. - Last one here, Darren Baker, where does he fit? - Man, Darren was to tie it back to Luis Garcia last year when Luis got sent down before the end of the year. You know, it was Darren Baker. Everyone was like, "Why not give him a shot?" You know, let's see what he's got. He's finally getting it this year. That also is just a cool story. Obviously being drafted by the Nationals twice, his dad, of course, managed shares, getting a Hall of Fame managerial career. I think kind of along the same lines of Nassim Unias, I don't know if he has a defensive capabilities that Nassim does, but he's probably better offensively. So maybe a better offensive version that seemed to me his book for second base. He does, he is versatile. They've tried to map the corner outfield spots in the minor leagues before, so he could play multiple rules, but I think that's just another organizational depth piece, which for a 10-round pick out of Cal, you know, that's not bad either. - Yeah, I felt like he's needed an opportunity for a while, and he's taken advantage so far, and it's time in the big leagues. I'm hoping they can maybe find a spot for him, even if it's just, you know, hanging out as a utility guy off the bench. Last question for you, Bobby, before we let you go, where is this team at in their rebuilds? Is this something where realistically you can look at next year? You know, it's felt like the timelines have been murky, like it felt like last year at times, the timeline got moved up a year, and then at times it felt like it got moved back a year, and then this year, first half of the season, it felt like, okay, maybe next year, and now it's kind of like, well, is it really next year? So where is their timeline? Where are they at in their rebuilds? - You know, we could've spent the whole pot on this question. I mean, like, seriously, that's the biggest question, right? I mean, that's what every fan wants to know. That's what we as reporters want to know. You know, the Nationals never did put a timeline on this from the get-go, which is fair, they probably shouldn't anyways, 'cause you don't want to say you're someone for failure, but I think, for me, being around this team, you know, almost every day, and I'm curious of what you think too, but we've heard Davey Martinez, Mike Rizzo, and some players off the cuff mention next year as a playoff run. They've been talking about, you know, this time next year, we want to be in it, we want to be making a push. And so whether they mentor or not, for me, that's kind of putting the timeline on it. And I think next year is, you know, we talked a little bit earlier about how the wins and losses don't really matter for this year. I think next year they do. I think if you're not closer, or at least above 500 next year, that's significant. I don't want to say step backwards, but, you know, maybe not as much progress as we've seen over the past two years. You've got guys like James Wood-Dilly Cruz making their debuts. You've got really strong seasons from J. Garvin, Mitchell Park for DJ Herrs, you know, Mackenzie Gore pitching like an all-star or ace at times as well. So, you know, obviously they'll be missing Josiah Gray, this roster could look a little different next year, but if they add the right pieces, what, you know, I don't mean to answer your question with a question, but it's, you know, I think the follow to that is, well, what do they do this off season? Do they actually add that power back we talked about? Do they actually add, you know, a decent starting pitch into this rotation like we talked about? If they do, I think that is the signal that they're saying, all right, 2025. Yeah, 2025 is the year that we're gonna be back. We've got the young pieces in place. They've got their experience. We had a couple of veterans and this roster's ready to make a wildcard push in late September. I think that's what it's gonna be most telling of how they feel about it is this off season. If they actually spend some money, they actually add the pieces they need to, not just placeholders. Like we've seen them do in the past couple of seasons. And yeah, I mean, hopefully they do that 'cause that'll make next year very exciting. Yeah, I think it has to be next year, Bobby, right? I mean, you talk about James Woods gonna be on the opening day roster. Pretty good chance Dylan Cruz is gonna be on the opening day roster. You've got a lot of the young guys here and the young guys that are in the wings after that, they're not the top five prospects like James Wood was. Like Dylan Cruz is right now for MLB pipeline. Like they're good. I think some of these guys can be really good. I think Brady House has kind of slept on as a prospect overall, but he's probably not gonna end up as a top 10 prospect in baseball when he gets called up. Maybe Sakura has that sort of ceiling, but they've called their guys up. Now it's time to go. Like, you know, maybe it's something where they don't make the playoffs next year, but they have to be approaching 500 next year to feel like it's a success because if you're just right around the same spot you were this year, then, you know, I don't know that you're really taking steps forward. So I do think it kind of has to be next year. - I agree and I mean, I don't always love making this comparison 'cause they are different and it's sometimes too easy to, but I'm trying to like, I look at it as like next year could be like the 2022 Orioles, right? Where they weren't supposed to be that good. They finished with the 83 wins. They were technically in a playoff hunt, you know, entering September the last month of the season, which was exciting, but they didn't quite make it. And then the following year, you know, they won, was 101 games and, you know, was the one sitting in the AL. So I'm not saying that that should be the national's timeline, but you can make those kind of parallels and comparisons that, you know, if they do win 80 plus games next year with an improved roster and big steps from some of their top guys, top young guys, then, okay, maybe 20, 20, 20, 60 is the year that, hey, all right, you know, the Phillies, Braves are older and maybe they can take a stab at this division. - Yeah, and to your point, I mean, if we're gonna use them as comparison, like, the difference is the Orioles had guys like Jackson Holiday still coming down the line, Kobe Mayo. The Nats maybe don't have that, but for the sake of comparison, like, James Wood and Dylan Cruz are like a Gunnar Henderson and Adley Ruchman, they're up and they're ready to go. Those are your cornerstone guys. So now it's time to hit the gas pedal. If you're not gonna hit the gas pedal when crews and wood are in the bigs, I don't know that you're ever gonna hit the gas pedal. So at some point, you're gonna have to do it. - I think also your point where you said of, you know, they've called their guys up. I think it's very true because you look at, like, their top 30 prospects, Coronema V pipeline, Dylan Cruz still counts, but he won't be at the other season. Brady House, where we talked about, he's expected to make his debut sometime next year, but all their other top prospects are high air or lower. You know, they're not that close. So you've called up your crop of young guys, you know, the guys that are still probably gonna make their debut as, you know, cake of all the archivatives they view, shaking off Tommy John, maybe Robert Hasselt III, but then everyone else is either in high air ball or lower, single-way Fredericksburg, which shut up to the Fred Nats for winning a championship. - Absolutely. - And rookie level ball, you know, in their Dominican or in Florida. So, you know, their first crop of young guys, like you said, is already here. So now it's the time because that next wave isn't gonna come until 2026, 2027. And maybe some of these guys are trade pieces, you know, at the next year's deadline, or the 2026 deadline, something like that. So yeah, I think that your point of, you've made your move is very solid, and I agree with, because yeah, their guys are up and now you need to add the actual pieces to make this roster competitive, not just placeholders, not just guys that are filling time until some of the guys are up, 'cause you guys are already up. - Bobby, I appreciate the time, man. Always good to talk. - Yeah, man, thanks for having me. So I'd be really appreciated. Go commanders. Always good to chat and catch up with our guy, Bobby, from massandsports.com. Make sure you check him out on Twitter. Fantastic coverage on the team from Masson. That's gonna do it for episode 152 of Boston Loose Baseball. Appreciate you guys for listening. Grant and I will be back after the Royals series, so make sure you like and subscribe to the podcast, and leave a review, and we'll make sure to read it on our next podcast. Final week of the regular season getting underway for the Nats, we'll be back after the Royals series and joy