The Washington Nationals are in dire need of a first baseman. After Adam Dunn’s move from the National league to the Chicago White Sox in the American League, there has been a gaping hole in the batting order.
Carlos Pena was considered for a move but he moved on to the Chicago Cubs. That leaves the club looking for a sound replacement. Their only option that looks viable on the cards appears to be the Arizona Diamondbacks’ player, Adam LaRoche.
LaRoche has a good defensive record and he has been pursued by the club for a very long time. Mike Morse who will be an additional asset on the bench is being considered for the position but his movement in the batting order will be restricted. LaRoche has
recently confirmed the reports and spoke of a developing deal on the phone.
LaRoche was undeniably useful for the Arizona side in the 2010 season. His 25 home runs and 100 Runs Batted In were admired by the fans. It seems important to note that the first baseman was an imperative figure in the Diamondbacks’ squad. LaRoche’s batting
average of .261 was useful in putting most of the competing pitchers on caution. Furthermore, his on-base percentage of .320 and his slugging rate of .468 were very useful in driving him clear to the top of the National’s list for required first baseman.
The Nats are looking to add power to the pitching rotation as well and General Manager Mike Rizzo recently said, "The biggest step for me is wins. Who is a winning pitcher and how did they get to that win? Obviously, there are different parameters and different
metrics that we use. Wins are not the end all be all, as we saw in this year's American League Cy Young.
Mike explained that with selection comes the ease of bringing on another player. He said, "There are an array of options in pitching and position players - filling out holes. There are a whole bunch of things going on - one dominoes off the other and the
other interacts with the other. There are a lot of moving parts."
It appears the side is trying its best to sign on any replacement they can find and frankly, LaRoche can be the ace in the hole to fill the void.
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