Jayson Werth and Bryce Harper will stand out for Washington Nationals during 2013-MLB Part 2
Instead of being leadoff hitter in the true sense, Werth showed power and struck mammoth home runs, right in the beginning of the innings.
Such an unorthodox play from his part makes one wonder how horrible he could be for the oppositions if he was moved down the order by Washington.
A former teammate of Werth, Laynce Nix believes he can be highly successful down the order. If he is fit, he can decimate the best pitchers of the game.
“I think whether he wants to or not, he is the guy. And I think that, like any team, when you have all your pieces healthy it’s going to help everybody,” said Nix. “If you think about last year, the team went two months or so without Zim. Well, that hurts
everyone. And LaRoche wasn’t producing and he wasn’t healthy, either. So I think if you add those things up, it’s not necessarily fair to say that Jayson couldn’t produce being the guy.”
Number three or fourth position in the line-up is considered an ideal for hitters that are known for striking gigantic hits. His impact there would certainly have been stronger.
Yet, his stats suggest he was ahead of even Adam LaRoche and Michael Morse, in the latter half of the season in terms of hitting massive hits and producing home runs.
Most probably, Werth is going to start the year 2013 from where he left in the last season. This means the opponents can brace for the onslaught coming off from him, right from the beginning of the season.
Provided he plays through the season, he is Pablo Sandoval of the Nationals for 2013. His credentials to transpire in big matches are doubtless.
What we saw from him in just one match, which was Game 4 of the National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals when he struck the walk off home-run at a critical juncture of contest, is going to be a routine matter in the upcoming season.
The time has come that the Nationals take due return from him for inking an extravagant worth $126 million contract with him.
The moment is not far when the Nationals’ management will earn praises from everywhere for making the acquisition of Werth a couple of years back.
Those who raised eyebrows after Werth joined the Nationals at a mammoth per year salary will be forced to acknowledge his worth for the team.
Other than Werth, Harper is another individual, who is waiting anxiously to unleash the real power that he has in his arms.
He could not do so beyond a certain extent in 2012, owing to various reasons for example, playing for the first time in the majors brought pressure on him, and secondly he took more time to adjust to certain situations.
The fact these two hurdles mentioned will not be present before Harper the next year is a signal that his best will be witnessed during 2013.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
To be Continued in Part 3....
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