The Seattle Mariners remain interested in bolstering their lineup even though they've already inked Nelson Cruz, the MLB home run leader in 2014. According to reports, Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond may be in their crosshairs.
Previous reports from Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal centered on a deal that would send Jordan Zimmermann with Desmond, but nothing has happened on that front.
Zimmermann was arguably the Nationals' best starter in 2014, going 14-5 with a sparkling 2.66 ERA and 1.07 WHIP over 199.2 innings.
In 2014 Desmond slashed .255/.315/.430; those numbers were down from a .280/.331/.453 campaign the previous season. His line drive rate dropped dramatically while he hit more ground balls than ever, which explains the average dip despite his BABIP remaining close to identical.
In that deal, the Nationals would receive Mariners infielder Brad Miller, who struggled mightily last season, and top pitching prospect Taijuan Walker. Miller was a major disappointment in 2014; that's part of the reason for Seattle's interest in Desmond.
Miller slashed a woeful .221/.288/.365 with just 10 home runs and four stolen bases. Despite the atrocious season at the plate Miller remained a good glove-he was worth 4.3 runs defensively per Fangraphs-and managed to finish the season worth 1.4 WAR.
The holdup regarding this deal is over Walker. He is the top pitching prospect in the Seattle organization, and went 2-3 with a 2.63 ERA in five starts at the MLB level last season.
Part of the reason for shopping Zimmerman is that he is a free agent after the 2015 season. The Nats owe a lot of money to Ryan Zimmerman already, and have to worry about long-term deals for outfielder Bryce Harper and starter Stephen Strasburg in the near-future as well.
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