WASHINGTON– The Nationals gave two utility men and a backup outfielder their walking papers as Spring Training winds down.
OF Alejandro De Aza, IF/OF Ryan Raburn and IF Reid Brignac were released after failing to make the Nationals out of Spring Training.
De Aza, 33, only hit .194 with 9 RBI’s in 62 at bats for the Nationals last season and couldn’t do enough to impress the team to keep him on the roster.
Brignac, 32, spent all of 2017 in the minor leagues, hitting .251 with 13 HR’s and 52 RBI’s for Houston’s AAA team. However, Brignac is not known for his bat, and will now look for another job.
Finally, Raburn, 36, was able to muster a .262 batting average with 2 HR’s and 6 RBI’s for the Nationals in 2017.
However, he fell short of gaining a bench spot this season, and reportedly told teammates that he planned to retire if he didn’t make the club.
The Nationals have elected to go with an eight-man bullpen to begin the season.
