Four Upcoming Free Agents Washington Nationals Should Monitor This Year

The Washington Nationals are still in a rebuild, but have been more competitive than expected with a young and cobbled together roster.

If they continue to show positive signs of growth, now could be the time to consider investing in some major veteran free agents.

There are a handful of players that could compliment what they already have going for them with their younger stars in the outfield and the middle of the infield.

Here are four impending free agents that the Nationals should be watching closely in case they decide to go all-in this offseason:

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San Diego Padres RHP Dylan Cease

MacKenzie Gore has taken strides this season and looks to have staff ace material, but Washington should not count out the possibility off adding another established arm for a one-two punch at the top.

Cease hasn't had the best results this year with a 4.72 ERA, but his Stuff+ numbers and 3.20 FIP point to the fact that he should end be fine.

The Nationals currently have a bottom-half of the league strikeout rate in their starting rotation. A staff of Gore and Cease would transform that into a strength.

New York Mets 1B Pete Alonso

Washington did trade for Nathaniel Lowe this past offseason from the Texas Rangers, but it looks like he might not make it past this year's deadline.

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An impact bat like Pete Alonso at first base would completely transform this lineup.

Young players like James Wood and CJ Abrams are holding it down at the top, Robert Hassell III and Dylan Crews have shown potential. The veterans of the group, though, have been massively dissapointing.

Alonso is likely to opt out of his current deal with the Mets and could be worth opening the checkbook for if he can continue on the path he has set this year.

The 30-year-old is slashing .301/.396/.594 with 17 home runs in 30 games.

Houston Astros LHP Framber Valdez

The reasoning behind Valdez is similar to that of Cease, but he's a bit different of a pitcher.

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Whenever Valdez is on, he looks like one of the best pitchers in baseball. He is elite at forcing ground balls and bad contact. The issue is that when he does get hit, he gets hit hard.

The 31-year-old is overall consistent enough to be a star and could bring a confidence and reliability that this staff desperately needs.

Arizona Diamondbacks 3B Eugenio Suarez

Suarez is another way to find an impact bat, but with less commitment than with Alonso.

The 33-year-old has posted a .233/.308/.517 slash line with 18 home runs. His pop is the only real calling card that he has, but he has shown the ability to hit home runs for a long time.

The Nationals currently rank No. 21 in baseball with just 63 long balls so far this year, so that would certainly be helpful to add to the lineup.

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