The Washington Nationals have had a rough offseason, but they have a lot to look forward to. They have the reigning NL MVP as well as a plethora of young talent, including shortstop Trea Turner, who was recently ranked as the No. 11 overall prospect in the MLB.
Rumors indicate he could be a dark horse candidate to win the starting shortstop job out of spring training.
On paper, the big-ticket race for the starting job is between Danny Espinosa and Stephen Drew - two experienced MLB veterans. But another notable contender is Turner, who made his MLB debut in 2015 and is among the top prospects in all of baseball. And how fitting, as this battle will take place in the nation's capital.
When discussing the team's shortstop position last month, Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said, "We love competition," via Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post.
So how legitimate are Turner's chances?
"And while Espinosa and Drew duke it out, Trea Turner is the wild card in the competition," writes Chris Johnson of MASNSports.com. "The 22-year-old rookie is expected to start the year in the minors, but what if he impresses in Grapefruit League and forces the issue?
"Turner, the highly regarded prospect, is the type of player whose progress fans fly south to check on during spring training. Add to that the fact that he'll be involved in the biggest position battle and you have a pretty good storyline."
The Nationals acquired Turner last offseason from the San Diego Padres in the big three-team trade that sent outfielder Steven Souza Jr. to the Tampa Bay Rays and outfielder Wil Myers to the Pads. Washington arguably made out like bandits in the transaction, acquiring Turner and pitcher Joe Ross, who also made his MLB debut with success in 2015.
Turner excelled in just his second professional season in 2015 after being selected 13th overall in the 2014 MLB Draft. He hit .322/.370/.458 with 68 runs scored, 8 home runs, 54 RBI and 29 stolen bases in 116 games between Double-A San Antonio (Padres), Double-A Harrisburg (Nationals) and Triple-A Syracuse (Nationals).
In November, Baseball America ranked the youngster as the No. 2 overall prospect in the Nationals' organization and predicted he "could be on deck for 2016" with incumbent shortstop Ian Desmond hitting free agency. Previous rumors suggested Turner is viewed as Desmond's successor.
"Trea's gonna come to spring training with the rest of the big leaguers and compete for a job at shortstop, and we love the depth that we've created there," Rizzo told Janes earlier this offseason. "His talent level is extremely high, and we've got extremely high hopes for him, and we're gonna develop him the way that he should be developed."
Right now, Turner appears to be the Bernie Sanders of this group of undecided shortstop candidates. He has a favorable opportunity to prove his case between now and Opening Day, and if the fans speak up, he could shock the status quo.
