Good Morning Washington Nationals Fan,

Here are the latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball for today, October 20, 2023. I am Haden Raymer. Before we dive into the news today, I wanted to let you all know about the survey that we put out. In it, we ask you what you want more of from the Nats Report team and what we can improve upon. You can find the survey by clicking the link here and you may also find it in your inbox. Please make sure to fill that out so we can continue to improve. Now let’s dive into the news.

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Leading today’s Morning Briefing: The Nationals DFA three players

The Nationals continue to make cuts to their 40-man roster after designating reliever Hobie Harris, outfielder Blake Rutherford, and infielder Michael Chavis for assignment. Rutherford and Chavis immediately became free agents, and Harris is set to become a free agent after the World Series. This brings the Nationals 40-man roster to 41, meaning they will need to decide on one more player before the World Series.

There are quite a few routes the Nationals can take with this, but it seems likely that more than one person will be non-tendered or DFA’d  by the time those deadlines come around. The Nationals still need to clear room for players that they would like to protect from the Rule 5 draft. Pitchers DJ Herz, Mitchell Parker, and Cole Henry are all eligible to be taken this winter in the Rule 5 draft. Additionally, shortstop Kevin Made, acquired in the Jeimer Candelario trade, is eligible.

Potential players moved off the 40-man include pitchers Cory Abbott and Andrés Machado, and hitters Alex Call and Dominic Smith. There is also the Victor Robles decision, which has a $3.3M club option. If the Nationals decide to decline the option his tenure with the Nationals is over. He should still have a minor league option left, and his $3.3M contract is not much in baseball terms, so the decision for him is more of a “Is he worth the 40-man roster spot?” question. Personally, I’d keep him in Triple-A as minor-league depth, but one could argue to keep Alex Call for that role over Robles.

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MLB Postseason Continues

The MLB Postseason continues with the Championship Series round

Astros 8, Rangers 5; Astros 10, Rangers 3: The Houston Astros have tied the series. The lineup exploded these past two games, with Jose Altuve leading the charge  with three extra-base hits.  Cristian Javier dominated in the Astros 8-5 win, throwing 5 and 2/3 innings of two-run ball. Max Scherzer allowed five runs in just four innings. Yordan Alvarez got four hits between the two games while batting in five runs.

D-backs 2, Phillies 1: The Diamondbacks prevented a sweep with Brandon Pfaadt throwing 5 and 2/3 scoreless innings with nine strikeouts. For those of you who love the advanced pitching metrics, there was an interesting thread about how Pfaadt’s placement on the mound affected the way his sweeper was playing. Ketel Marte ended up walking off the Phillies in this game as they now prepare for game four in Arizona with Joe Mantiply taking the mound for the D-Backs, and Cristopher Sánchez taking the mound for the Phillies.

Featured Story of the Day

MLB announces Hall of Fame ballot for the contemporary baseball era, including managers and umpires via MLB.com

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