Part of the appeal of joining the Nationals, as Nick Senzel explained after signing a one-year/$2 million free agent contract with the club, is that he joined lifelong friend Lane Thomas in Washington. Although he could play, the 28-year-old also talked about playing on the left side of the infield alongside shortstop CJ Abrams.
“He’s a very talented player, very athletic, very good shortstop,” Senzel said. “I’m excited to be around him, learn from him, coach him in any way I can and be there for him. But watching him from the other side, I’m excited to be in San Diego.” I saw him in his first year here, and even the way he’s grown, he’s still so young, and even the way he’s grown the last few years, it’s almost exponential. As he starts to come into his own, get more at-bats and play more games, I’m really excited to be on the left side with him.”
Abrams, 23, finished his first full season in the majors with a batting average of .245/.300/.412 with 28 doubles, six triples and 18 home runs in 151 games and 614 at-bats, with an fWAR+ of 2.1. Met. .
His 18 home runs were four more than he had hit in his three professional seasons at bat up until last year.
“He’s giving himself a chance to hit every pitch hard,” manager Davey Martinez said late in the 2023 season.
“I’ve always said, if he really learns how to close the strike zone, he’s going to be an All-Star.”
“He’s going to be something else.”
Acquired from San Diego as one of five prospects (6 players total) In the deal that sends Juan Soto and Josh Bell to the Padres before the 2022 deadline, Abrams will play a total of 90 games that season, 44 in DC, and almost every game in 2023, with GM Mike Mike Rizzo explained the reason for his growth: He was instrumental in his work with both Martinez and hitting coach Darnell Coles.
“The difference I think right now is that Darnell and Davey have done a really good job with him, which is teaching him what his happy zone is and what his zone is to avoid swinging at. ” In the past, we were developing him by bringing up the four-seamer and then bringing down the breaking ball, but I think we’ll see little adjustments throughout the season. Now it’s like he’s dropping pitches that he can’t handle as well. And it’s like he’s looking for a certain count of pitches that he can hit. ”
“He’s a studious guy, a video expert, a guy who gets coached a lot by Darnell Coles and Davey Martinez. He has a bright future. [23].
“As I said during the draft, there are about 1,000 players older than him in this year’s draft, and this player has already had a year of experience in the big leagues.
“Bright future, great kid, high-energy player, fast player, athletic, has the tools, and is just starting to leave his mark on what his career is going to be. ”
Martinez said he saw a different Abrams in spring training earlier this spring.
Abrams told reporters he was also learning how to lead.
“He leads by example. For me, that’s going to happen in a way, I’m watching him take ground balls now, which is a lot different than last year’s spring training. he is confident
“He knows what he wants to do…He brings a lot of energy.”
“We’re trying to reduce his tracking and keep him in the middle of the field. I think he can get dragged a little bit at times, so if he can stay in the middle of the field, we’re trying to keep him in the middle of the field. I want him to be aggressive and be aggressive in the strike zone. I’m watching him. I’m watching his work. He’s doing everything right now. ”
As Washington Post reporter Andrew Golden pointed out: Abrams found success in the second half of the season pulling the ball and sending it through the air, but asked what the balance is in light of the results.
“He knows they’re going to put him in, and that was part of it last year. Hey, if you get the ball up the middle, make sure it’s not in. But the strike If it’s an in, go ahead and pull the trigger, and he did that really well. And there were times when they threw him around or started throwing things off his speed. The off-speed stuff is really something we got to try to not let him chase, and if he chases, let him stand up. We’ve all been working on it since this spring. Breaking balls. If you see it, be sure to get into the zone.”
For Abrams to be successful, he needs to pull the baseball into the air on pitches up the middle. no mistake. The numbers back it up. The team absolutely needs to step up this.
I think what Martinez was hinting at was that Abrams wouldn’t go after the curve ball or try to pull it away.
— Andrew Golden (@andrewcgolden) February 25, 2024