Intriguing Nationals Young Player Might Have Played Himself Into Larger Role

The Washington Nationals had a very interesting situation unfold towards the end of the year when general manager Mike Rizzo made the decision to demote All-Star shortstop CJ Abrams because he had been out late ahead of their game against the Chicago Cubs.

He said that wasn't behavior he wanted from players within the organization, so he made an example out of the talented young player.

Abrams' demotion gave some opportunities to others on the roster, and one player who was able to get more time on the field after being a bench piece for the majority of the season was Nasim Nunez.

Taken No. 5 overall in the Rule 5 Draft last December that brought him in from the Miami Marlins, the Nationals had to jumpstart his career since he needed to stay on their Major League roster for the entire year and their active roster at least 90 days, or else they would have to return him to the Marlins. Prior to this past campaign, he had never played above the Double-A level.

But Washington took a chance on the former 2019 second round pick, despite knowing he wasn't ready to play in the bigs.

For the majority of the season, his playing time was sporadic. It wasn't until the end of the year when Abrams got hurt and demoted that Nunez was able to get consistent starts.

And according to Mark Zuckerman of MASN, that might have earned himself a larger role in 2025.

"But it's possible his late-season performance could have opened some eyes within the organization and made some reconsider that plan. Club officials believed all along Nunez was a big-league-caliber defensive player, especially at the premium position of shortstop," he wrote.

It will be interesting to see what they decide to do with the 24-year-old.

Taken by Miami out of high school, he had to make a huge leap in his career with the Nationals by working with their Major League coaches everyday instead of playing in the minors like he normally would at this stage.

It's likely they start him in Triple-A, the usual plan that takes place for teams who select a young, developing player in the Rule 5 Draft, but like Zuckerman points out, what he did towards the end of the season could have him in the mix for an Opening Day roster spot coming out of Spring Training.