CJ Abrams: Our new man in the middle

[SkinsNatFan21RIP]

If they trade him they’ll regret it. It will be a giant mistake.

[imref]

If they trade him they’ll regret it. It will be a giant mistake.

depends on if he matures or becomes lastings milledge.

[Elvir Ovcina]

The union will want to grieve this if it costs him super 2,but I imagine there would be a ton of dirt raised by the Nats to defend the action

It can't cost him Super 2.  He's already past 172 days of service for this year, so he gets a full year of service time whether or not he actually is up for 187 days or only 177 (or whatever it actually is).  He'll be at 2.130, which will be close to the Super 2 line. 

If this had happened even ten days ago, potentially a different story.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

It can't cost him Super 2.  He's already past 172 days of service for this year, so he gets a full year of service time whether or not he actually is up for 187 days or only 177 (or whatever it actually is).  He'll be at 2.130, which will be close to the Super 2 line. 

If this had happened even ten days ago, potentially a different story.

good point.

Hopefully he'll get more serious about things like rest and any other "maturity" aspects holding him back. The demotion last year for Luis Garcia Jr helped his approach to the game. We can hope it helps. I don't want to wait for King or Dickerson to grab the spot.

[Elvir Ovcina]

good point.

Hopefully he'll get more serious about things like rest and any other "maturity" aspects holding him back. The demotion last year for Luis Garcia Jr helped his approach to the game. We can hope it helps. I don't want to wait for King or Dickerson to grab the spot.

Yeah, it worries me a lot.  For a guy to go from All-Star production to a real trough and then have something like this come to light makes one wonder.  I've said it before and I'll say it again: addiction sucks. 

Paraphrasing the Mets crew: 4 am is different than 8 am.

[Smithian]

Is there something forbidding this kind of behavior in his (or players' in general) contracts? Otherwise, it's none of their business what he does in his off-hours, if it's legal, right? What if he had been driving all night to visit his sick grandmother and then showed up just before the game?

I think you understand the difference between the team hearing CJ Abrams was up tending to a sick family and what in fact was the reality leading up to this demotion.

If CJ Abrams was hitting the ball all over the park and playing good defense, they'd probably have benched him for a game or two, but they'd move on. They didn't send Abrams down for one problem. This had to have been after a run of issues fans aren't privy to knowing.

I have no reason as a fan to think his behavior is part of his recent struggles, but I also have no reason not to think him being out until 8:00 am in the morning before an afternoon game isn't at least part of why he went 0-3 and helped the Nats extend a losing streak.

[imref]

Read the TalkNats article. Staying at a casino until at least 8 AM seems to be the straw that broke the camel's back versus an isolated incident.

[Slateman]

Is there something forbidding this kind of behavior in his (or players' in general) contracts? Otherwise, it's none of their business what he does in his off-hours, if it's legal, right? What if he had been driving all night to visit his sick grandmother and then showed up just before the game?

Like a formal rule or code of conduct? No. Zuckerman reported that the Nats dont have any rules regarding gambling (beyond what MLB imposes) and they dont have a curfew.

Which explains the demotion and not a suspension.

[varoadking]

A position switch has to be considered.

Yes...to another city...

[Slateman]

Yes...to another city...

Lol, thats not going to happen. Nor should it

[varoadking]

Lol, thats not going to happen. Nor should it

Oh, it's gonna happen...just a matter of time...

[varoadking]

Read the TalkNats article. Staying at a casino until at least 8 AM seems to be the straw that broke the camel's back versus an isolated incident.

Lots of Casinos up and down the Atlantic Coast...this will be like a paid vacation for him...albeit as a reduced salary...

[Elvir Ovcina]

I worry about gambling more than I worry about other potential addiction issues.  Staying out at a bar isn't going to get MLB looking at your BetMGM app with you staring down a potential lifetime ban if Manfred doesn't like what he sees.

[Slateman]

I worry about gambling more than I worry about other potential addiction issues.  Staying out at a bar isn't going to get MLB looking at your BetMGM app with you staring down a potential lifetime ban if Manfred doesn't like what he sees.

Its going to get investigated. We'll know a lot more about how prevalent CJ's gambling was/is. This was clearly a habit with him.

[imref]

There's nothing about his gambling that appears to be illegal or in violation of MLB rules (or the CBA).

At this point all we can do is wait and see how he reacts to the demotion and what he does going into next season. I assume the Nats have no plans to move him off SS given they have Garcia locked in at 2B for next year.

[aspenbubba]

There's nothing about his gambling that appears to be illegal or in violation of MLB rules (or the CBA).

At this point all we can do is wait and see how he reacts to the demotion and what he does going into next season. I assume the Nats have no plans to move him off SS given they have Garcia locked in at 2B for next year.

I can't help but wonder what the Nats will do with Tena. All he does is keep hitting and he does look more comfortable at 2B. Yes , you can keep playing him at 3B until House is ready but I think the long term projection is for House to inherit the spot.  I hope Rizzo doesn't promote House until he displays that he ready in all aspects of the game as Crews has demonstrated he is not ready but is a legitimate candidate for being a MLB regular. Can any of House, Tena , Abrams  or Garcia play 1B? What about the OF?

[Slateman]

I can't help but wonder what the Nats will do with Tena. All he does is keep hitting and he does look more comfortable at 2B. Yes , you can keep playing him at 3B until House is ready but I think the long term projection is for House to inherit the spot.  I hope Rizzo doesn't promote House until he displays that he ready in all aspects of the game as Crews has demonstrated he is not ready but is a legitimate candidate for being a MLB regular. Can any of House, Tena , Abrams  or Garcia play 1B? What about the OF?

They can play Tena at shortstop to start the season. I think Abrams has to show that he put in the work this offseason, particularly with his defense. His errors seem to come on more routine plays. Also, he went from stealing 47 bases and getting caught 4 times last season, to Ripping 31 and getting caught 12. His increase in XBH doesn't really account for the discrepancy, especially since he also increased his walks. And while some of that is attributable to the coaching staff (as evidenced by the overall increase in caught stealing), it could likely be additional mental errors brought on by late night/early morning activities.

In short, they don't HAVE to break camp with CJ next year. Especially if he doesn't look good.

[imref]

Talknats:

source: “From what I know, [CJ] Abrams issues weren't on the road until the Chicago incident. His issues happened more in D.C. when he wasn't in the team hotel around everyone. I will say this, follow the stats."

I checked the stats and wow, huge home/road disparity.

At Nats Park: .229/.284/.383 with a .667 OPS
Road: .260/.341/.476 with an .816 OPS

Last year, the complete opposite:

At Nats Park: .258/.326/.438 with a .764 OPS
Road: .233/.275/.389 with a .663 OPS

[Smithian]

I can't help but wonder what the Nats will do with Tena. All he does is keep hitting and he does look more comfortable at 2B. Yes , you can keep playing him at 3B until House is ready but I think the long term projection is for House to inherit the spot.  I hope Rizzo doesn't promote House until he displays that he ready in all aspects of the game as Crews has demonstrated he is not ready but is a legitimate candidate for being a MLB regular. Can any of House, Tena , Abrams  or Garcia play 1B? What about the OF?

I'm not going to worry about our infield having too much depth until we go a month with players at all three positions playing well and someone like Wallace or House is hitting hard in AAA. At that point, they can make a move, whether it's Abrams or Garcia.

[Natsinpwc]

[KV]

Assuming that the casino story is true, is anyone else a little concerned that we haven’t had a statement or apology yet from Abrams?

[Smithian]

Assuming that the casino story is true, is anyone else a little concerned that we haven’t had a statement or apology yet from Abrams?

If it wasn’t true, we’d have heard something. I’m fine with CJ Abrams going dark. There’s no good answer, there’s only coming back and proving you’ve changed for the better.

[varoadking]

If it wasn’t true, we’d have heard something. I’m fine with CJ Abrams going dark. There’s no good answer, there’s only coming back and proving you’ve changed for the better.

Agreed...on all counts...

[aspenbubba]

If it wasn’t true, we’d have heard something. I’m fine with CJ Abrams going dark. There’s no good answer, there’s only coming back and proving you’ve changed for the better.

It is always the standard BS put out by a publicist apologizing to his teammates and fans and disappointing his family promising to do better. 

[OfftheBat]

He needs to go and never play for the nats again a Ham Sandwich would be better than him on this team

lol I think you're overreacting