Washington Nationals to deal with an unconventional free agency - MLB Update
While generally teams find star players available in free agency, the recent trend suggest that the organisations hardly let their quality members depart them.
Before they are valued through bidding in the free agent market, they re-sign them by offering the desired amount of money. As a result, the idea of dealing with free agency has assumed a peculiar significance.
In this regard, the Nationals will be extremely careful while they fill vacant spots on their roster by doing the shopping in the market. They cannot ignore the fact that the players present in the market are the ones that have not been considered as the
ideal options by their clubs.
While exceptions apart, most of the individuals in the market either demand very high or they do not meet the criteria set by the Nationals.
As far as the Nationals' requirements in the centre field are concerned, they have Michael Bourn to pursue in the market.
Bourn left the Atlanta Braves after the expiry of his previous contract as he tested free agency.
The fact he is looking for a substantial amount of money and a multi-year contract may make him difficult for the Nationals to acquire.
Evaluating his possible contributions for the club and how he can help in ensuring wins will be extremely important for the Nationals. Unless they weigh him as per their needs on the roster, they cannot determine the right worth of the contract that they
can offer Bourn.
Similarly, the Nationals face the shortage of their fifth starter on the rotation. Visiting free agent market requires proper analysis of the options.
The kind of changes seen over the years in free agency, the Nationals cannot entirely rely on it when it comes to the acquisition of a desired player.
There are equal chances that their Minor Leaguers hold better credentials than the ones they see in the free agent market.
This means that the old practice of relying on a handful of options for making a World Series Championship winning team does not have any place in the current world of baseball.
It will be interesting to see as to how the Nationals handle the intricacies that the free agency imposes on the teams these days.
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