The Morning Briefing: Nationals Head to Milwaukee for a Three-Game Set against the Brew Crew

Here are today's latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals for Friday, August 20, 2021

by Richard Wachtel

Updated August 20, 2021

Good Morning, Washington Nationals Fans. Here are the latest headlines and analysis around the Washington Nationals for Friday, August 20, 2021.

Upcoming Schedule:

Friday, August 20, 2021: Washington Nationals v. Milwaukee Brewers; 8:10 pm EDT
Saturday, August 21, 2021: Washington Nationals v. Milwaukee Brewers; 4:05 pm EDT
Sunday, August 22, 2021: Washington Nationals v. Milwaukee Brewers; 2:10 pm EDT

Today's Top Story: Nationals Head to Milwaukee for a Three-Game Set against the Brew Crew

Tonight the Nationals kick off a weekend series against the Milwaukee Brewers. The team looks to extend its winning streak after sweeping the Toronto Blue Jays at home. There have been some bright spots during the two-game series against the Blue Jays. The Nationals saw production from recently acquired catcher Riley Adams. Adams was traded from the Toronto Blue Jays for Nationals closer Brad Hand. Adams, the seventeenth-ranked prospect in the Jays system, is a catcher.

The catching position wasn't a position of strength with Yan Gomes on the trading block and Alex Avila walking after this year. The Nationals needed to get younger at the position, and the Nationals front office defiantly accomplished that.

During this past trade deadline, they acquired Adams from Toronto and Kiebert Ruiz from the Dodgers, and don't forget Tres Barrera, who also has shown that he can be part of the catching core of the future.

During the series against the Blue Jays, the Nationals also saw production from Carter Kieboom, Josh Bell, and Juan Soto. Let's hope that they can keep the momentum going while they are in Milwaukee over the weekend.

Brandon has our series preview

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Zimmerman's unsure about his playing future after 2021

Throughout his major league career, Ryan Zimmerman has been a part of every big moment the Washington Nationals have been a part of; that might all change next year.

Speaking on the Sports Junkies on Thursday, Zimmerman admitted that he's still unsure about his playing future after this season. "A lot of it is going to depend on, first of all, how I feel and when it gets time to start working out, ramping up in the offseason, honestly if I feel like getting ready to work out again," Zimmerman said. "I think that's the most important part, too, is the hardest part of every season is the offseason before that season. You have to be ready. You have to put in the work to prepare yourself to play a Major League season. It's a good amount of work in the offseason. So, that's the first sort of thing, to see if I still want to do that."

Also, in the interview, the Nationals defacto Captain talked about if he wants to be a part of the re-build that the Nationals are now embarking on: "Now, it's honestly going to see what [the Nationals'] plan is as well. I've lost a lot of games before," Zimmerman said. "I've done that whole gig. I'm not saying I'm not in if they're going to do that, but we'll see what their plan is and go from there."

Zimmerman discussed his close relationship with general manager Mike Rizzo, who has been in Washington since 2009: "I could probably talk to him this morning if he would want me to come back next year," Zimmerman said. "I still feel like I'm productive. I still feel like I can help a team win," he said. "But there's a lot of things to think about."

Perspective: 5 Things that Should be on the Nationals To-Do List this Offseason

With the Nationals season over, it's never too early to start to think about what is on the to-do list of the Nationals. Here are 5 tasks that should be top priorities.

The 2021 season can be categorized as a huge disaster; I think that other adjectives can be used, but since this is a family-friendly site, let’s use “disaster” as the adjective that I will use. But it’s time to start looking forward instead of looking backward. If I was the GM for the Washington Nationals, here are the five tasks that would be on my to-do list for the offseason.

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