Grant & Danny are home in DC after a very rough “work” trip to West Palm Beach, but before they caught their flight (and gave their favorite and least favorite moments), they caught train – as in the Lane Train, back-to-back Nats Player of the Year Lane Thomas!
The outfielder had a 20-20 and almost 30-20 season a year ago but was NOT an All-Star, and even if he’s only around that conversation this year, he thinks it beats the alternative.
“I think if you just keep yourself staying in that conversation, nothing bad comes from it,” Thomas said. “You always dream of being a big league player, and to just be in that conversation I don't wanna say it was good enough for me, but that's just a cool thing to accomplish, so there's no hard feelings. I know how that stuff works, you can’t pick everybody.”
And, to him, the Nats continuing to grow is more important than the back of his baseball card, or any goals he has to surpass or replicate certain numbers.
“As a team, I think you, it's hard to go into a big league season and say, like, we're going to win 100-plus games; we improved on ’22, and if you just keep trending in that direction, I think that's important, especially with some of the young guys,” Thomas said. “I think if they keep getting better and I keep getting better, I think we have a shot to keep winning consistently more games each year. Individually as a player, I think just being healthy and available in the lineup every day is what matters to me.”
Despite his success, Thomas still sees lots of room for improvement – he’d like to strike out less, but still work counts, and maybe steal more bases – and all the tools the Nationals are giving their young guys is helping with that.
“They’ve given us all the technology stuff we need. We have some new hitting stuff in the cage and they can compare it to swings from other time periods; there's all this information, but I think we've gotten a lot better on how to use it,” Thomas said. “They're giving us that information and helping us out on how to take it and use it in our everyday work. I don't like overthinking a lot of stuff, I'm gonna keep it simple; when I'm struggling, I go back to the basics and when I feel good, I'm trying to like figure out a way that when a rough game happens, to not keep trending in the wrong direction.
You know the stuff guys have and what their game plan is, and once you have a few years in, building your approach gets more comfortable, and it’s understanding how to handle those at-bats.”
And, at 28, even though he’s still in his pre-arb years, he’s a veritable veteran in this clubhouse, so he’s also learning about himself while he’s becoming a leader.
“We have a good group. I’m with a lot of the young outfield guys we have, and I feel like l’m just part of the group, but I definitely answer questions about like how you handle your day,” Thomas said. “We're here for a long time, and if you go out there trying to beat yourself up in a cage or defense or something, it gets exhausting. So it's like, put the good work in, but enjoy this time and really get yourself ready in the right way.”
