CJ Abrams

• Position:  Shortstop
• Current status: Pre-Arbitration (Arb-Eligible 2026, Free Agent 2029)
• How acquired:  Traded from the San Diego Padres with Mackenzie Gore, Robert Hassell III, James Wood, Jarlin Susana, and Luke Voit for Juan Soto and Josh Bell, 8/2/2022
• 2023 Grade: B-
• 2024 Opening Day Projection: Starting shortstop & leadoff hitter
• 2023 stats: 151 G, .245/.300/.412, 83 R, 28 2B, 6 3B, 18 HR, 64 RBI, 232 TB, 47/51 SB, 95 OPS+, .306 wOBA, 90 wRC+, 3.4 bWAR, 2.1 fWAR

2023 Analysis

Abrams was the Nats’ Opening Day shortstop and got off to a rough start, with three fielding errors from the jump that seemed to linger in his head for a while. Through June, he was slashing .230/.275/.385 and looked like he was in over his head, both at the plate (especially against lefties) and in the field. After a dispiriting four-game sweep at the hands of the Reds at home that included the annual July 4th showcase game, Davey Martinez moved Abrams to the leadoff spot on the 7th for the last pre-All-Star break series against the eventual World Series champion Rangers. Abrams responded with a torrid July, hitting .327/.391/.500 and stealing sixteen bases without being caught. Although his bat cooled back off in August and September, he kept running with abandon (successfully), going 38/40 on the bases after the move and playing better defense. His game resembles Trea Turner at the same age, only with a little more pop, and if he can iron out a couple of more wrinkles CJ could be an All-Star this year.

2024 outlook

Two big questions remain for CJ. First, can he continue to be a plus defender with ridiculous range without a strong first baseman saving many of his errant throws? Joey Meneses is no Dom Smith with the glove, and Smith was largely responsible for Abrams’ improvement with the leather. Second, can he learn to hit southpaws at even a below-average level? It might seem unfair to harp on a player who is *still* younger than ten of MLB Pipeline’s top 100 prospects and had less than a full season’s worth of minor league experience thanks to the pandemic and Fernando Tatis, Jr. being a knucklehead, but a .166/.240/.272 line against same-side pitching just won’t cut it for a guy who has to be in the lineup every day. If he can solve lefties to even something like .210/.290/.350, a 30/60 HR/SB season (only accomplished once in baseball history, by Ronald Acuña Jr. a year ago) is not out of the question - he had 11/33 in just 70 games in the second half of the season. All the tools are there, and we saw them improve almost daily in 2023. Abrams probably has the brightest future on the Nationals’ current roster.