Dylan Crews Debut w/ The Washington Nationals Was A Dud, But At Least Juan Soto Was There!

the Nationals did get dominated in Dylan Cruz debut and it also was kind of an underwhelming debut for Dylan Cruz but there is a takeaway of it and Dave Martinez thank you you are locked on Nationals your daily Washington Nationals podcast part of the locked on on podcast Network your team every day and thank you all for making locked on Nationals your first listen every single day as we are free and available wherever you get your podcast and of course you can check us out over on YouTube just search locked on Nationals and of course wherever you get your podcast as well whether it's Apple podcast Spotify Google Play and whatever else you can look up locked on Nationals hit that subscriber button for us and even as well over on YouTube drop a comment in the comment section you can also follow me at Twitter Ryan clare1 and as well as the show page _ Nationals and later on in today's show we'll be discussing Patrick Corbin going up against Garrett Cole and oh my God duck because I can tell you this that Aaron judge home run that is going to be hit tonight against Patrick Corbin might land it might just go right over your head as we speak today so it's a time traveling baseball when you're going up against Aaron judge and Patrick Corbin is on the bump oh my God we'll discuss that a little bit later on so second segment our takeaways from the Nationals Yankees series there are some takeaways and even then kind of getting behind the scenes of Dylan Cruz I saw some things that I really like from the Nationals as well as some of their older players some of their newer players as well so we're going to kind of discuss that later on as well but we start off discussing Dylan crw in his debut and ultimately it was pretty underwhelming but there was a good thing from yesterday's game before we get into it now through September 22nd all FanDuel customers can bet $5 and get a three week free trial of NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV visit fanduel.com lockon to get started so we get started with discussing the Nationals number one Prospect the number three Prospect in all of baseball Cruz making his Major League Baseball debut yesterday against the New York Yankees in first and foremost it was a good day now I will say this though it was an underwhelming debut it just was and with an underwhelming debut I think that came with an overwhelm Dylan Cruz Dylan Cruz is a major leager Dylan Cruz will be an All-Star someday but I also think this is going to take a little bit of time to cook it's not that I don't think Dylan Cruz is ready for it right now but I think going against certain opponents and if you're kind of talking about the New York Yankees which by the way the New York Yankees had I hate to say it this is not a knock on Nationals fans this is just the way the Yankees are 60% of the house yesterday at Nat's Park was Yankees fans if you're there let me know but that's kind of what I thought I just think the moment overall though was pretty underwhelming Dylan Cruz did draw a walk but other than that he went over but there was one good thing the way that Davey Martinez constructed that lineup finally you've seen it in years past whether it's CJ Abrams batting ninth for nearly a whole year why was he ever batting ninth he was not your ninth best hitter he was not one of your worst hitters on your team he should have been at the leadoff spot whether it's having jameswood bat six by ilaro Vargas and Juan YZ and players like that but DAV Martinez did the right thing you got to see kind of what the future could taste like now even then the results weren't great as CJ Abrams went over James Wood didn't have an impact and Dylan Cruz didn't have an impact as well but you saw what the future holds CJ amam at the leadoff spot Dylan Cruz your two hitter and James Wood is your three hitter that is going to be a special one two3 combo for years to come right here in DC that you will get to watch 162 games out of the year starting next season and then beyond that you know Brady Cruz or Brady house in the lineup you got to see the future yesterday I think that is an exciting part of this reel and that was an exciting part of Dylan Cruz's debut because this is going to take some time it's going to take a lot of processing in order to get Dylan Cruz ready to be up in the bigs every single day because we do kind of forget that part CJ Abrams it took nearly a year for him to click James Wood he came up right away and he has been great but I think Dylan Cruz will probably find that even middle stretch there I don't think he's going to take as long as CJ Abrams to really develop up in The Bigs but I also don't think he's going to click right away the way that James Wood has now I could be wrong here because overall I do think Dylan Cruz right now sitting here today is probably your second best hitter behind James Wood even but better than CJ Abrams but with that said though you can't just go into this season for the rest of 2024 for the next month and think Dylan Cruz is going to have like an 850 Ops that hasn't been the case in double A or in tripa a this season I'm not going to expect that form up in the majors the goal for Dylan Cruz is to get acclimated playing every single day here being in the lineup batting second nailing down your routine I think yesterday was probably the perfect time to call him up by the way it made sense and also with Juan stto in town you all know the drill recruiting Juan stto to free agency we'll get into some more takeaways from this Yankees Nats game in the second segment of today's show but I do want to discuss Mark learner and Juan stto if you didn't see check over my Twitter Ryan clare1 you'll probably see a lot of others as well talknats reposted it as well you can check his account about that tweet as well Mark learner while the media was there on the field it was a swamped house for Dylan Cruz's debut and as well as the Yankees and Juan stto coming back to DC there were a ton of storylines for yesterday's game but I think one of the most slept on story lines was the way that Mark learner and Juan so too kind of shared a little conversation there on the side field I'm not here to say that that is them discussing a future because let's be honest Juan sto does not have any ill will toward this or organization he understands baseball he's not a diva he knew the business side of things and it was a harsh reality for him as he was pretty upset when the Nationals traded him but he's not upset with the organization he just probably thought he'd be a nap for life but Juan stto sits there yesterday talking with Mark learner I get that picture I'm like oh boy I just wonder what they could be talking about I don't think they were talking about free agency I think that's ridiculous I think if people were actually thinking that Mark lur is just going to be like hey what's the price tag you ain't doing that Juan sto's got an agent and the Learners they know the price tag it's going to be a blank check probably over $600 million that's what I would pay for Juan SoDo but I did see some people saying out there well I would not pay for woto at this point we need more pieces and you're right but if you add a Juan sto into this lineup let's just say that you did someone with that Ops above a th soone who's going to hit 35 40 home runs for your team soone who will drive in 120 130 runs per season in his mid mid 20s being one of the better hitters in all of baseball if you add that into your lineup right here today you're talking about a potential kind of wild card team here in my opinion I think we are a Juan SoDo away and a lot of teams could say this by the way but we are a Juan SoDo away from being a tender that's truly what I believe and of course you need starting pitching as well of course you need Bullpen help and yeah you need Brady house to come up and pan out in the majors of course all those things need to happen but you really aren't that far off and I think that was really kind of one of my main takeaways seeing juano and envisioning him in this Nationals lineup roaming The Outfield with Dylan Cruz and James Wood and the cherry on being Juan SoDo you can't tell me that's not a deadly lethal Outfield but ultimately I don't think that's going to happen but it was cool to kind of see them chat it up because the Learners and SoDo and Scott Boris his agent they all have good relationships so it was really cool to see that but ultimately Dylan Cruz debut underwhelming we'll see what he can do tonight against Garrett Cole good luck Dylan and thank you all for making locked on Nationals your first listen every single day as we are free and available wherever you get your podcast now let's get into some Nationals Yankees takeaways I think there are some things behind the scenes that some people should know about and I think one thing in particular it's kind of being really slept on behind the scenes here so we'll get into that but before that let me tell you guys about some of our very good friends over at FanDuel and of course you've all heard us talk about FanDuel before which is America's number one sports book well we have something a little different for you now through September 22nd all FanDuel customers can bet $5 and get a three-week free trial of NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV then with a YouTube TV base plan you'll be able to watch every regular season Sunday afternoon out of Market game all you need is a Google account in a current form of payment and you can cancel any time just visit fanduel.com lockon to download America's number one Sportsbook again visit fanduel.com lockon and you can get $5 and get a three-week free trial of NFL SUNY ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV now through September 22nd again just visit fanduel.com lockon now we get back into it with some Nationals Yankees takeaways as there are a lot of different takeaways we can get into but my number one takeaway is not a Nationals one Aaron judge is the best player in baseball Point Blank sitting here today if sh Otani was pitching I'd probably say sh Otani besides that point though Aaron judge is the best baseball player on this planet you saw him making the web gem plays yesterday the way he roams center field I don't even want to talk about his hitting at this point 51 home runs on August 26 he hit his 51st and his 50th just two days ago Aaron judge defensively alone is unbelievable seeing him roam the Outfield as big as he is both height and width it is absurd to see in person we talk about how good and how big James Wood is James Wood is his height but they are certainly not the same stature Aaron judge is a different animal seeing him live in person yesterday I think was pretty damn cool and as soon as he comes up to the plate there is a buzz in the crowd that you would not believe and yes of course of course it was a lot of Yankees fans there yesterday but even then as Nationals fans you don't get to see Aaron judge every year Nationals fans they were locked in to see judge and hopefully see him hit home run number 52 well I can tell you tonight if you have tickets to tonight's game you're gonna see that I guarantee it right now so that is my number one takeaway my number two takeaway we kind of got into this in the first segment as well from this Nationals Yankees series Dylan Cruz just seemed overwhelmed he just did the crowd was really into it when he was at the plate but also I do think he does settle in after this Yankee series I didn't really think of this before but playing against the Yankees with a team that is out of contention talking about the Nets that is a pretty overwhelming experience talking about the crowd first and foremost the crowd was mostly Yankees fans yesterday if we're just being honest that is unfortunate but that's just what the case is and it's not them taking over Nationals Park for Dylan Cruz day the Yankees fans have these tickets probably months in advance if you're in the DC area and you're a Yankees fan you don't get to see them all that often you get to travel up to Baltimore but still if you are in the DC area they don't come to Nationals Park every year so you're going to buy a ton of tickets and get to see them and you get to see Aaron judge right here live in person person so you got to see that yesterday I just thought Dylan crw seemed overwhelmed with it I do think after this Yankee series with all the national Spotlight kind of taken away from it what Aaron judge is doing Juan soda returning I think that is when Dylan Cruz will settle in but one thing is for sure he just looks overwhelmed and I do think it's part of that Yankees kind of factor the spotlight the national headlines all the different things that comes with playing against the Yankees filled with Aaron judge Juan SoDo and tonight you go up against Garrett Cole the reigning Al Young winner good luck that is a very tough thing to play in in front of especially with that rowdy rockus crowd with the New York Yankees in town so that is one of my takeaways one of my other big takeaways that I don't think a lot of people will understand so if you don't know I work for 1067 the fan that is the home station for the Washington Nationals I produce for Grant and Danny luckily yesterday we were on the field for BP we have to do the show live from the field and with that I kind have to pull players aside and say hey like would you want to hop on with Grant and Danny so I won't get into like all the interactions here but one I thought was really cool CJ Abrams making his way from batting practice about to head back into the clubhouse I grabb him like Hey CJ would you be able to hop on with Grant and Danny real quick as he making his way into the clubhouse he goes sure of course shakes my hand does what he asked to do immediately is asked and this is not just once by the way this also happened with James Wood back in the day when he made his debut just over a month ago CJ Abrams is one of your team leaders at this point the leadership role that he has taken to be a kind of shoulder to lead on for younger players like James Wood and now like Dylan Cru as well you see CJ Abrams talking to these guys behind the scenes you see CJ Abrams kind of taking that leadership role in the clubhous and as well as doing the things that maybe others won't CJ Abrams is a leader in this ball club and that is a huge factor in my opinion for kind of what his value is for this team and also by the way selfishly speaking CJ AB is in a massive right now at least for his standards he's got like a 611 Ops since the beginning of August it has not been a good month for him and we all kind of know C.J Abrams is hot and cold so I'm sure he'll get hot here soon but he is taking on this leadership role being asked about Dylan Cruz how he's handling it how he would handle the pressure that comes with being Dylan Cruz going up against the Yankees same thing for James Wood the leadership skills from CJ Abrams so far this season I think has been on display but maybe not for the public eye I think it's been a really cool step up for him I think it's been something that you can't really just click right away with because CJ was that young guy with a lot of expectations with the national Spotlight on him even just earlier on this season he has been tinkered within the lineup over the years but he is your leadoff guy he is the guy that you wanted to play in a big situation at this point in CJ Abrams taking that leadership role should never go unnoticed and I do think it kind of does at this point but I can assure you of this behind the scenes he is establishing himself as a leader in that Clubhouse and that is a big deal in my opinion so that was one thing I thought was really cool but also there's one more and that is Juan SoDo He's Just Not Gonna Come Back you saw it from this morning Jeff passon the Mets and the Yankees are the likely suitors for to get over $500 million well I'm here to tell you I I think it's G to be more than 500 mil I think it could even be 600 mil and I think unfortunately it's probably going to be Steve Cohen with the New York Mets but also kind of in yesterday's environment this is not a knock on Nationals fans by the way we're just not a big market like the Yankees we don't have the history of them we all know how many championships they've won whatever seeing and playing in front of that fan base every single day it's different it does feel different I do understand that point of it now yes he does want to win I hate to say it the Yankees are likelier to win than us and the New York Mets and as well as the Blue Jays the Giants the Dodgers even at this point they are the team to go to right now in my opinion with what Aaron judge does it's unfathomable having that lineup go SoDo and then judge or judge than sto whichever way it is that's a pretty special lineup whichever way you spin it that is going to be a tough place to leave if I'm Juan stto so that is one of my other takeaways as well as we kind of talked about here but we unfortunately do play the Yankees tonight I say unfortunately because he's coming off as 100 win had a great game last week which oh my Patrick Corbin plays the New York Yankees tonight oh my God I'm out of breath thinking about it we will preview that reluctantly good luck Patrick oh my God Aaron judge oh my God we'll discuss that and preview that game as you could tell my enthusiasm Patrick Corbin on the bump tonight it's gonna be an exciting one we'll discuss that after we tell you guys about our friends over at supply house and of course get supplies from the site that's made for the skilled trade supplyhouse.com supplyhouse.com is a reliable way to order Plumbing HVAC and electrical products online their easy to use website is packed with helpful resources and the latest product info to help you get the job done 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comment as well in the comment section that is where you'll find us but I take a seat I'm going to take a seat I'm gonna think about this for a second and then we're going to move on if you're watching over on YouTube you'll see me kind of lean back right now Patrick Corbin goes up against the Yankees tonight oh my God I'm so scared I just am you saw what they did last night against Mitchell Parker who really hasn't been the same in the second half of the Season what he was in the first half dominating teams like the Astros the Dodgers all the better teams in all the baseball but this is a different animal Patrick Corbin after he is coming off against a very good start against the Colorado Rockies last last week I'm scared this could be a complete utter you know what show I'm predicting it right now for home runs off Patrick Corbin judge may have one J judge will definitely have one I'm gonna place that bet over on FanDuel I can tell you that much number two could come from someone like Anthony vulpi number three Juan SoDo he knows Patrick Corbin real well the storyline is there for Juan sto to hit a home run tonight against his former teammate with Patrick Corbin the story Line's already being set up but I do know for a fact I've seen the script judge is going to hit number 52 on the season tonight that's just the way that it is so that is kind of a scary thought to think of here but you also for the Nationals sake you're going up against Garrett Cole now if you're Dylan Cruz maybe you like the spotlight here maybe you like going up against a former saong pitcher the reigning siong pitcher by the way I think Garett Cole is still Garett Cole but coming off of earlier on the season when he was kind of shut down with some arm injuries I think Garrick Cole is still going to kind of go out there take the ball and go with six to seven Innings now the good thing about this that Dylan Cruz does hit righties a lot better than he does hit lefties so we'll see if that's kind of a a factor in this game ultimately but I'm looking at this and this is a very tough outing here for Dylan Cruz for Patrick Corbin and as well as the Nationals offense this game kind of has disaster written all over it so we'll see what the Nationals can do let's see if they can make chicken salad out of chicken you know what we will catch you guys on the flip side have a good one enjoy tonight's game and if you're sitting out in left field tonight good luck keep your head in a swivel Patrick Horman is on the bump against Aaron judge oh my God good luck