Washington Nationals: Winter Meetings 2016 Day 1 Thread
For Day 1 of the 2016 Winter Meetings, Ricky Keeler and Ron Juckett will keep you up to date on the Washington Nationals news and rumors
Today marks the beginning of the 2016 Winter Meetings in National Harbor, Maryland. This is the week where a lot of the baseball experts think that the Washington Nationals will be one of the busiest teams. For the next four days, myself and fellow co-editor Ron Juckett will keep you posted on all the latest news and rumors being reported surrounding the Nats.
Throughout the last few days, the Washington Nationals have been rumored to be in trade discussions for White Sox ace Chris Sale and Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen. Plus, they are one of the teams in the sweepstakes for closer Mark Melancon. How many of those big names will the Nats be able to land this week?
8:23 a.m – Could Joe Ross be a critical piece in any blockbuster trade the Nats decide to make? Yesterday, Pete Kerzel wrote on MASNsports.com about how some people in the organization look at how long it took him to come back from the shoulder injury he had in early July this past season:
“Keep an eye on righty Joe Ross. Though the Nationals don’t want to lose him, they might be willing to bundle him with a couple of prospects to make a trade more palatable for the team giving up a superstar. Ross has his champions in the organization, but there are some who question his toughness, based on last year’s slow progression back from a right shoulder injury.”
Ross was the number four starter in this rotation last year, but only threw 105 innings last season. Rizzo is going to have to be creative in some ways if he wants to make a big deal done. While I was opposed to giving up Ross at the trade deadline in July for a rental (Ross’ contract is up in 2022), if the Nats can get someone with multiple years of control, it might not be a bad idea.
More from District on Deck
(12/5/16 – 8:00 a.m ET) – Could the Washington Nationals pull off two blockbuster trades soon? According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Nationals are trying to land both Sale and McCutchen in a trade. Here is what Nightengale tweeted last night:
The #Nats are actually trying to trade for Chris Sale AND Andrew McCutchen and believe they have the prospects to pull off both trades.
Keep it right here at District On Deck for all the latest news during this week’s Winter Meetings!
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