Even after yesterday\u2019s heartbreaking loss, the Nats have had a positive start to the season. If you told me they would be 3-3 heading into the home opener before the season started, I would have taken it in a heartbeat. However, one offseason decision already looks like it is backfiring on Paul Toboni. That would be his choice to not address the first base position externally.<\/p>\n
Instead of signing a stop gap first baseman like Mike Rizzo had done the last few years, Paul Toboni chose to try to solve the position internally. His plan was to convert Luis Garcia Jr. into a first baseman and platoon him with guys like Andres Chaparro and recent waiver pickup Curtis Mead. The problem so far has been that none of these guys are natural first baseman and have really struggled defensively.<\/p>\n
We saw this yesterday, with Garcia Jr. really struggling with fairly routine picks. On back to back plays, Garcia was unable to dig out balls that a natural first baseman would likely be able to pick. This was part of what shifted the momentum in yesterday\u2019s game and it was really frustrating. For the season, Garcia already<\/a> has -2 outs above average at first base.<\/p>\n This should honestly not be all that surprising. Garcia had never played first base in his life until the end of last season. He had been a second baseman for most of his career, but after a rough defensive season in 2025, the new regime decided to move him to first. I understood the decision, but I had some questions. Garcia\u2019s bat is good for a second baseman, but he does not have the power of a typical first baseman. There was also always going to be a learning curve with this position change.<\/p>\n So far, the early returns have not been good. His biggest problem so far has been those scoops. Missing scoops is a pet peeve of mine, and yesterday made me quite frustrated. To get off of Garcia\u2019s back a bit, he has not been the only Nats first baseman to struggle with this. Andres Chaparro looked even worse over there, and that is likely a reason why he got sent down despite looking solid at the plate.<\/p>\n These missed scoops have also made me realize that the Nats have actually been quite good in that area the last few years. Nathaniel Lowe had very limited range, but his scoops were good. Joey Gallo and Dominic Smith had offensive limitations, but were good defenders at first. Right now, that first base defense is not there.<\/p>\n On a team with other defensive issues, a problem at first base is just the cherry on top of this mess. The Nats have<\/a> a -2 fielding run value so far this season, which is bottom five in the league. They are also tied for the league lead<\/a> in errors with 9 in 6 games. The Nats have made some outstanding plays, but they have also messed up a lot of the easy stuff.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t get it twisted, I love what Paul Toboni is doing. His long term vision has me bought in, and we are already seeing a team that is playing hard. Several players are showing some real improvements. I also cannot wait to see what he is doing at the minor league level.<\/p>\n However, his decision to not bring in a veteran first baseman looks like it will backfire. I am not sure Garcia\u2019s bat is worth the defensive headache he is bringing. There were plenty of options at the first base position, but Toboni stood pat. If I were him, I would have been all over Munetaka Murakami when his market dried up.<\/p>\n