18:52: Nats manager Davey Martinez says Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com and other reporters that Robles is indeed heading to the 10-day IL with back spasms and that Alu is called the roster replacement.
5:38 pm: Victor Robles suffered a back injury while attempting to steal second base in the third inning of Saturday’s game, resulting in Robles being dropped from the game. The Nationals didn’t include Robles in the lineup today, and now it looks like a longer absence awaits, as Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post (Twitter link) reports that Robles is expected to be put on the injured list in 10 days.
domestic worker Jake Alu is expected to be called up from Triple-A Rochester to replace Robles on the active roster, as Alu is on track to join the National Team to begin their series in San Francisco on Monday. . The 26-year-old Alu was on the National Team’s 40-man roster, when DC added him back in November ahead of Draft Rule 5.
It was an unfortunate defeat for Robles, whose solid start has now been interrupted by injury. Robles is hitting 0.292/.388/.360 in his first 107 appearances, with 8 steals in 9 chances. Robles’ 113 wRC+ marks his highest overall score since the 2018 season, although of course both the small sample size and a bit of luck in the battle (347 BABIP) could indicate that some regression is on the way. arrive. However, Robles’ speed allows him to turn some of the ball on the sideline into shots, and he has greatly improved both his walk and strike ratio. After a 23.9% hit rate in his first six MLB seasons, Robles has a 13.1 K% hit rate in 2023, ranking in the 90th percentile of all players.
On the other hand, Robles’ once elite defense has taken a significant step back. After just 258 plays in the center area, Robles had -8 saved defensive runs as well as -2 above-average runs and -15.8 UZR/150. This will certainly give rival teams pause in treating Robles as a means of catching a deal deadline, as the rebuilding Nationals teams will likely open their doors for business to any veteran player. any. Robles signed a short-term contract extension in February, giving the Nats a $3.3 million club option for his services for 2024, although Washington has significant control account for Robles even if this option is denied. This bit of extra control can be an interesting element in any trade negotiation, but naturally, the first task of the job is to get Robles healed and back into the Nats lineup.
In spite of Alex called And Thomas Lane having started largely as Washington corner kicks, Call and Thomas are the most suitable candidates to step into center duty with Robles sidelined. This could open up more playtime for Garrett Stone And Ildemaro Vargas off the field, and Alu will likely also get some looks during his first time in action in the Main League.
As a 24th round pick for the National Team in the 2019 draft, Alu has published quality numbers for 2021-22 and MLB Pipeline places him at 27th on the list of 30 top prospects. Head of the Nats, Alu started this year on the injured list with a broken knee and didn’t seem to be really on track, with just a .240/.318/.333 cross in 86 PA with Triple- A Rochester.
However, Alu’s versatility in multiple positions may be more important than his stick from the Country’s point of view, when Robles is out of action and Jeimer Candelario also missed a pair of games due to dehydration. Alu has mostly played in third this season and could feature in the hot corner if Candelario needs more time to recover, but Alu has also had plenty of time at second-back and some games. minor in the league as left midfielder and first defender .
Speaking of the third base, Nationals announced that Carter Kiboom was recovered from the injured list for 10 days and returned from his rehabilitation mission, then selected to join Triple-A. The former top prospect scored just 0.197/.304/.285 in 414 appearances with the Nats from 2019-21, but he missed the whole of 2022 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Then, a shoulder injury forced Kieboom back into Spring Training, which resulted in him taking a break from the IL opening season. Kieboom only played three Double-A games during his rehab assignment, so Washington will give him a longer promotion at Rochester before considering a return to the major league roster.
