Good Morning Washington Nationals Fans,

Here are the latest headlines and analyses around the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball for today December 8, 2023. I am Haden, the Winter Meetings are over, let’s talk about what that means.

Leading today’s Morning Briefing: The Nationals sign Senzel and the Winter Meetings are over

The Washington Nationals signed former Reds utility man Nick Senzel to a one-year, $2M deal, according to Jon Heyman. Senzel played all around the diamond in 2023, logging an appearance in all three outfield positions, second base, and third base. According to a report from Mark Zuckerman of MASN, the Nationals plan to give Senzel a bulk of his playing time at third base, the position he played the most in the minor leagues. Defensively, center field and third base grade out as his best positions.

Senzel struggled to claim much playing time in the majors due to injuries and poor performance. When healthy, he never posted an OPS above .700 while in the majors outside of his rookie 2019 season. Senzel comes with an additional year of team control via arbitration following 2024.

My take: Senzel is a low-risk upgrade at third base, even if that is not the role he’d have on a contending team. This signals the end of either Carter Kieboom or Ildemaro Vargas’s tenure with the Nationals, with Kieboom being the more likely outcome. The 2024 Nationals infield picture is the clearest it’s been all off-season, with Senzel at third base, CJ Abrams at shortstop, Luis García at second, and Joey Meneses at first. Ildemaro Vargas (or Kieboom) would form a platoon with García and the newly drafted Nasim Nuñez would be the backup defensive specialist.

This move provides the Nationals with an opportunity to give Brady House more time to develop in the minors. With Senzel technically signed for 2024 and 2025, the Nationals are not as rushed in calling up House and can wait until he’s completely ready. Once House is up, Senzel can move onto the bench as a lefty-mashing utility player.

You can read more about Day 1 of Winter Meetings and the Nationals here.

You can read more about Day 2 of the Winter Meetings here.

You can read our wrap-up of the Winter Meetings here.

Around the MLB

The Arizona Diamondbacks landed one of the top left-handed starters Eduardo Rodriguez on a four-year, $80M deal. Rodriguez will now join a rotation with right-handers Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelley, and Brandon Pfaadt.

The Houston Astros have their new plus defensive catcher who will be on their roster for all of eternity in Victor Caratini, who the Astros signed for a two-year, $12M deal. Caratini bounced around the league, following Yu Darvish as his personal catcher until 2022 when he signed with the Milwaukee Brewers. Caratini brings strong defense and around average offensive production for a catcher.

The Baltimore Orioles add closer Craig Kimbrel for the 2024 season. Kimbrel signed on a one-year, $12M deal that comes with a club option with a $1M buyout, making it a $13M guarantee.

The Atlanta Braves already traded one of the salary dumps they acquired from the Seattle Mariners, sending left-handed starter Marco Gonzales to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Gonzales provides veteran leadership to a young rotation featuring Mitch Keller, Roansy Contreras, Luis L. Ortiz, Quinn Priester, and soon Paul Skenes.

The Cincinnati Reds shocked baseball by signing third baseman Jeimer Candelario to a three-year, $45M deal. The Reds seemingly had a log-jam of young talent in the infield, with Jonathan India, Matt McLain, Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, Noelvi Marte, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand all logging time on the dirt last season. I’m assuming the team trades one of these guys for pitching or a corner outfielder.

ICYMI: Latest articles on the Nats Report

Even though it is the offseason, we have been extremely busy producing a lot of great content here on the Nats Report. Here are just a couple of the articles that we have published recently that you might have missed:

• Perspective: Crafting a Team Identity
• The Nats Report’s Free Agency Wishlist
• Perspective: Juan Soto to Nats isn’t as Crazy as you Think.
• Prospect Profile: Brady House
• Nationals Maintaining a Lowkey Presence at the Winter Meetings

We are working on a lot of great Nationals-themed content all off-season so make sure that you are following us on all the major social media channels for the latest.

Featured Story of the Day

Quick Notes 📓

Quick Notes: Washington Nationals announce promotions for 2024 including a 2019 World Series Replica Ring

The Nats Report News Room • Dec 5, 2023

The Nationals have just announced the 2024 promotion schedule which includes some really interesting giveaways including the long awaited 2019 World Series Replica Ring. Here are the giveaways including the dates: April 1, 2024 - Opening Day Reversible Bucket Hat

Read full story →

If you haven’t already, please consider supporting this publication with a paid subscription so you don’t miss a thing:

The Nats Report is an independent reader-supported project with both free and paid subscriptions and not affiliated with the Washington Nationals.

Those who opt for the paid edition are providing vital assistance to bolster our independent coverage of the Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball.