Washington Nationals news & notes: Winter Meetings odds & ends…

Davey Martinez is the manager of the Washington Nationals. He is in his fifth season in Washington. The Nats finished 55-107 last season. Martinez believes the team showed signs of improvement towards the end of their season, especially in their defense. They finished with the second-highest combined ERA in the big leagues. The team will compete to win as many games as possible in Spring Training. It will be the first time in Davey's career that they have lost over 100 games. His team is young and rebuilding. Their young players will start fresh in spring training. There are some changes at the positions of CJ Abrams, Luis Garcia and Ildemaro Vargas.

Keibert Ruiz is the catcher who was the main cog in the return the Nationals received from the Dodgers in a trade deadline deal. Ruiza played in 104 games last season before a testicular contusion in September took him out of action for the final weeks of the 2022 campaign.

Riley Adams played 44 games for the Washington Nationals in 22. Tres Barrera played 14 games, and catching prospect Israel Pineda played four. The Nationals have a backup catcher in Ruiz. GM Mike Rizzo said the team will compete for a new one in the offseason.

Washington Nationals signed an 8th round pick Stone Garrett to a two-year contract. Garrett played for Arizona Diamondbacks in 2022. He was a .276/.309/.539 hitter in the last two months of the season.

The Washington Nationals signed a player for 2023. He has some power and will compete for at-bats at the big league level. The team will give him some time to improve his game.