Nats make shocking move, demoting young SS Luis Garcia

The last-placed Washington Nationals have been in the headlines this week, trading Jeimer Candelario and fielding offers on Lane Thomas and Kyle Finnegan before Tuesday’s trade deadline. However, they’re back in the limelight a day later with two roster moves, including the shocking demotion of second baseman Luis Garcia.

The Nats requested an unconditional release of outfielder Corey Dickerson and optioned Garcia to Triple-A Rochester, per Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports.

Dickerson’s release is not a surprise. Like Candelario, the Nationals took a chance at the 34-year-old Dickerson in hopes of him emerging as a trade candidate for the rebuilding club. With the deadline passed and no deal, Dickerson served no purpose for the Nats.

They have an enviable list of outfield prospects in the farm system and several stopgap options outside Thomas. While the team waits for James Wood, Dylan Crews, Robert Hassell, and others to get ready for the big leagues, Alex Call has been a pleasant call-up as of late. The club also has Stone Garrett and will call up former New York Yankees first-round pick Blake Rutherford to replace Dickerson, per Talk Nats.

Luis Garcia is supposed to be the Nats’ second baseman of the future

Meanwhile, the demotion for Garcia is surprising. The 23-year-old was considered the future at second base after sliding from shortstop with the arrival of CJ Abrams last August. Garcia’s numbers on the surface are respectable this season. He has a .260 batting average with six home runs, 42 RBI, and 46 runs scored. Yet, his .294 on-base percentage entering Wednesday is less than stellar.

He’s struggled since the All-Star break. His struggles in the past week laminated his deficiencies, hitting .192 while his on-base percentage dropped to .222 in seven starts.

At the heart of his shortcomings, Garcia isn’t lifting the ball off the bat. This season, 53.6% of his batted balls are grounders. Put that in perspective MLB’s average is 42%. In return, Garcia is well below the league average in flyballs at 18.0%.

The demotion presumably is meant to send a message to a young player the team has heavily invested in.

News of Garcia’s demotion and Dickerson’s release came after Nats manager Dave Martinez spoke to the media following Washington’s 3-2 walk-off win over the Milwaukee Brewers. For now, it’s unclear the definitive reason behind Garcia.

This time of year, teams like the Nats get extended looks at young players that spent the season in the minors. However, Luis Garcia is supposed to be part of the team’s future. Maybe it’s temporary to get his swing right. But, his numbers fall in line with his four-year career. And that’s concerning.

He’ll presumably get to play every day while at Rochester. In the meantime, one thinks the team will focus on improving his hitting. It’s still early for Garcia, but he must fix his weaknesses sooner than later.