Winning their first World Series title in franchise history is not going to stop the Washington Nationals from keeping spending money to keep the core together while improving the roster with a big splash.
According to MLB Insider Jon Heyman, the Nationals want to re-sign top free agents Anthony Rendon and Stephen Strasburg and they are interested in landing Madison Bumgarner or Zach Wheeler.
Rendon and Strasburg are slated to land two of top three of four deals this winter in free agency. Washington will have to shove out a few good pennies to bring them back. And that’s foreseeable. However, landing another dynamic high-priced pitcher like Bumgarner or Wheeler would be icing on the cake.
Where that puts the rest of the rotation or roster is unclear. But, the Nationals did shave off some dollars from their payroll by declining options on Ryan Zimmerman, Yan Gomes, and Matt Adams that will equal roughly $31 million.
General manager Mike Rizzo has long found the right pieces and splurged at the right spots see Patrick Corbin and Max Scherzer. He also values homegrown talent, see Victor Robles and Juan Soto. Bringing back Rendon and Strasburg and still nabbing someone of the caliber Bumgarner or Wheeler isn’t unthinkable.
