WASHINGTON (AP) — Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said Friday he is happy with the progress of an organizational rebuild that began less than two years after Washington won the 2019 World Series, even though his team is a seller at the trade deadline for a fourth consecutive season.
Rizzo, who built a good portion of the Nationals' current core by dealing stars at the deadline, said Washington would listen to offers for outfielder Lane Thomas and All-Star reliever Kyle Finnegan, both of whom are under team control through 2025.
“There are a lot of teams that would really benefit from getting Lane Thomas,” Rizzo said. “He's got as good an arm as anybody in right field. He throws out a lot of guys. He's got power, he hits left-handed pitching and he's good against righties.
“We're going to do a deal that we're comfortable with. And if we don't, we won't do a deal.”
The 28-year-old Thomas hit 28 homers for Washington last season but his power has dipped this year, with eight homers in 270 at-bats entering Friday. He was a trade-deadline acquisition in 2021, when Rizzo got him from St. Louis for Jon Lester.
Finnegan, 32, has a 2.45 ERA and 25 saves in 29 opportunities. He was a late selection to the NL All-Star team. Rizzo called him Monday to deliver the news, and Finnegan let it go to voicemail.
“I can't imagine what was going through his mind when he got that call,” Rizzo said. “At this time of year, when my name comes on their phone, they're ambiguous at best.”
After contending through much of the 2010s and winning it all in 2019, the Nationals haven't had a winning season since. The only player remaining from their championship roster is left-hander Patrick Corbin, who's in the final year of a six-year, $140 million contract. Entering his start Friday night against Cincinnati, Corbin was 28-66 with a 5.61 ERA since 2020.
Washington's starting rotation, always a top priority for Rizzo, has been steadied this year by homegrown prospects Jake Irvin and Mitchell Parker, and deadline acquisitions MacKenzie Gore and DJ Herz. Shortstop CJ Abrams, acquired from the San Diego Padres in the Juan Soto deal, was an All-Star this year, and rookie outfielder James Wood has been solid since his debut on July 1.
“You can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I think the fan base can and knows what we're doing,” Rizzo said. “You can see the progress and the process working.”
Rizzo began dealing early this year, sending right-handed reliever Hunter Harvey to Kansas City last week for for third base prospect Cayden Wallace and the No. 39 overall pick in the amateur draft, which the Nationals used to select catcher Caleb Lomavita.
The Nationals have already signed first-round draft pick Seaver King and third-round pick Kevin Bazzell. The pair took batting practice Friday in Washington before they head to the Nationals' spring training facility in Florida.
Washington (44-53) entered Friday six games out of an NL wild card spot. Asked about his goals for the rest of the season, Rizzo did not mention the playoffs.
“Play good baseball, win games,” he said. “And in the process, teach these young players how to win those close games.”
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Washington Nationals' Lane Thomas runs to first on his ground out during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Friday, July 19, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
FILE - Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo is seen during a spring training baseball workout Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo says he's happy with the progress of an organizational rebuild that began less than two years after Washington won the 2019 World Series. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)
Washington Nationals' Lane Thomas, right, collides with St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn, left, while stealing second base during the first inning of a baseball game at Nationals Park, Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Kamala Harris said Thursday that Israel's killing of Hamas' top leader offers "an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza," talking plainly about next steps even as the pro-Palestinian demonstrators who gathered outside her campaign event underscored the complicated politics at play.
The Democratic presidential nominee said the war “must end such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination.”
“It is time for the day after to begin,” she said, speaking from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee just moments after the White House released President Joe Biden's statement on the death of Yahya Sinwar. Israeli officials said Sinwar was killed in a battle with Israeli forces in Gaza.
The administration's response to the killing of a chief architect of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel was carefully choreographed, leaving room for Harris to emphasize the push to end the war as she balances her loyalty to Biden.
With the presidential race at razor-thin margins and the election just a few weeks away, the vice president is seeking to solidify support in battleground states and shore up left flank voters who want to see an immediate end to the bloody conflict, some of whom threaten not to vote for her.
The Biden administration’s support for Israel has complicated her campaign push in metro Detroit, especially in Dearborn, an area home to the nation’s largest Arab American community. The death earlier this month of a Dearborn resident killed in south Lebanon ignited more anger in the traditionally Democratic area.
Speaking Thursday in Flint, Michigan, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she was hopeful for an end to the violence.
“Have the hostages returned and have a solution for long-term peace in the region. That’s everything that I think is so important. And, you know, any chance that we can do that, I think would be welcomed by so many people,” she said.
At Harris' next stop in Wisconsin, at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, her remarks focused on Trump and his falsehoods around the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Trump is “increasingly unstable and unhinged, and will stop at nothing to claim unchecked power for himself," she said.
William Schauberger, a 24-year-old political science major, said ahead of Harris’ rally that he wasn’t optimistic about prospects for resolving the conflict in the Middle East regardless of the election results. He deemed the loss of life in Gaza “straight up genocide” and predicted “neither party will do anything about it.”
Harris has not proposed any policy shifts on Israel, and her remarks largely echoed Biden's statement. But she has, of late, faced increasing pressure to articulate how she would govern differently from Biden.
While Biden’s favorability ratings remain underwater, some of the biggest pieces of his legislative agenda, from infrastructure to lowering the costs of some prescription drugs, are popular, and signaling any daylight with the president on foreign policy at a time of global crises could be seen as reckless.
Biden's written statement on Sinwar's death — released as he was traveling to Germany for a visit with Chancellor Olaf Scholz — focused on how U.S. intelligence helped the Israelis pursue Hamas leadership and noted that Israel had every right to “eliminate the leadership and military structure of Hamas.”
“Today proves once again that no terrorists anywhere in the world can escape justice, no matter how long it takes,” Biden said.
He said he would speak with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “congratulate them, to discuss the pathway for bringing the hostages home to their families and for ending this war once and for all, which has caused so much devastation to innocent people.”
Karnowski reported from La Crosse, Wisconsin, and Long from Washington. Associated Press writers Scott Bauer in Milwaukee and Todd Richmond in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Joey Cappelletti in Flint, Michigan, contributed to this report.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak at a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse, in La Crosse, Wis., Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak at a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse, in La Crosse, Wis., Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak at a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse, in La Crosse, Wis., Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse, in La Crosse, Wis., Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about the killing of Hamas' top leader Yahya Sinwar in a battle with Israeli forces in Gaza, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, following a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about the killing of Hamas' top leader Yahya Sinwar in a battle with Israeli forces in Gaza, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, following a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about the killing of Hamas' top leader Yahya Sinwar in a battle with Israeli forces in Gaza, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, following a campaign rally at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
