Think, if you can, in the offseason and one of the most pressing questions facing the Nationals as they prepared to defend their title in 2020: Who was going to replace Anthony Rendon as the No. 3 hitter?
There was never a perfect answer to the question, but there were several potential answers, each of which gained a few weeks in the spotlight before being replaced by another.
Remember when we thought it might be Trea Turner? Forget about his breakneck speed, the Nationals shortstop really was more of a race producer than a table setter, it was thought. Then spring training began, manager Davey Martinez tried it once and didn’t like it, and that was it.
Thoughts turned to the apparently most obvious option: Juan Soto, the team’s best complete hitter. But Martinez didn’t love that option either, because he didn’t love that Soto hit right behind another left-hander (hitter No. 2 Adam Eaton) and didn’t like the idea of Howie Kendrick or Ryan Zimmerman batting cleanup.
How about Kendrick in third place? That made sense, too, and it may happen sometime this season. But then again, Martinez thought back to last year and remembered how much Kendrick thrived by hitting behind Soto, not in front of him.
Then, the Nats manager started using a newcomer at the No. 3 position during spring training: Starlin castro. And four months later, as the clock ticks toward opening night, Castro remains the No. 3 hitter in exhibition games.
He hit third in Saturday’s opening exhibition game against the Phillies. He was there again on Monday night at Camden Yards. And chances are he’ll be there tonight by the end of the exhibit against the Orioles.
So is it appropriate to go ahead and lure Castro in for opening night, hitting behind Turner and Eaton, ahead of Soto, Kendrick and Eric Thames?
“I like that lineup,” Martinez said Monday night. “On the other hand, we faced Gerrit Cole on the first day. I like where we are. I like what they are doing. But you never know. I could change it, just for the first day. We will have to look at all the numbers. I want to keep looking at different things with the release of Gerrit. “
OK, so maybe it’s not set in stone. But barring a specific matchup that alters his strategic thinking, Martinez appears to have the intention of beating Castro in third place most of the time this season.
It is not where the 30-year-old infielder usually hits, or hits well.
In 1,429 major league starts, Castro has hit everywhere in the lineup, but the vast majority of his starts have made it to the top half of the order. It has reached fifth place more than anywhere else (304 times), followed by second (291), fourth (270), and then third (204). His 3rd batting numbers (.271 average, .306 on-base percentage, .404 slugging percentage) are slightly worse than his career totals (.280 / .319 / .414).
But Castro became a completely different hitter late last season with the Marlins. After opening his stance and trying to throw more of the ball in the air, he hit .293 / .347 / .594 with nine home runs in his last 35 games, almost all while hitting third or fourth.
That renewed change, the success at the end of the season and the current composition of the rest of the Nationals’ lineup make Martinez confident that Castro is his best option to hit third in 2020.
“We will see what happens on Thursday, but I like that,” said the manager. “I like that Starlin hits in front of Soto. I know it will reach the base. Then you have Howie hitting behind him, and then Thames behind him. For me, that’s a very good configuration. “
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