Don't expect the Washington Nationals to be sellers ahead of the trade deadline just because they're in last place.
As Nats GM Mike Rizzo noted in his weekly appearance with The Sports Junkies — presented by Burke & Herbert Bank — any team in Major League Baseball is only one hot streak away from being back in contention during such a short season.
Six games back in the NL East at 11-17, Washington will play the market as opportunities present themselves, the same as it would any other year.
"We're going to attack this trade deadline like we do most others," Rizzo said "(If) opportunity arises, we'll be aggressive. If things make sense for us, I think we'll certainly be active in the market. But if there's nothing there that we don't like and it doesn't work for us, then we'll be a little bit more passive."
This year's deadline arrives Monday, Aug. 31 at 4 p.m. and players must be on club's roster by Sept. 15 in order to be postseason eligible.
"We're planning on being aggressive and trying to improve the club any way we can, which has been kind of our model for the last eight or nine years or so," Rizzo said.
Rizzo has developed a reputation for finding shrewd, creative deadline deals, like when he scooped Trea Turner and Joe Ross from the Padres in a three-team swap also involving the Rays in Dec. 2014. All Washington had to give up was outfielder Steven Souza and fringe pitching prospect Travis Ott, the latter of whom has never cracked a big-league roster.
While for some time Turner appeared to be the absolute steal of that deal – and indeed, he remains a high-impact player — Wil Myers remains a star in San Diego six years later.
Rizzo doesn't set out to find lopsided trades as a matter of good business, he says.
"It's all dictated by your situation and where you're at, and the construction of your roster and your team," he said. "Often times when you're working these trades at the trade deadline, you're in kind of a situation that the other team is in the polar opposite scenario as you are. Okay, we're going for it and the other team is rebuilding, and that's kind of the way that you do a deal."
"I never think about winning a deal," he said. "The best deals I've ever done (are) when both teams get what they want, because that's good for repeat business and the GM can trust you the next time you do a deal.
"So I like deals that work out for both teams in the way they want it to and fit into their long-term plans. That's kind of the way I attack the trade deadline and dealing with the other GMs in the game."
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