Youth is served: Juan Soto is the Nationals next phenom

Someone has to be the youngest player in MLB. The Nationals decision to call up 19-year-old Juan Soto could pay off big for the club.

In the aftermath of the Washington Nationals’ decision to call-up Juan Soto there’s been a palpable undercurrent of criticism about calling up a player so young. That’s all nonsense. The Nationals had a clear need to upgrade their outfield and Soto was the best option available to the organization.

Soto won’t turn 20 until late October. That does, in fact, make him the youngest player in the Majors. That will certainly require the Nationals to manage him carefully. The team needs to be careful to protect his confidence. It does not, however, mean they should have left him toiling in the minors.

The recent injury to Howe Kendrick that will cause him to miss the rest of the season made finding a new outfielder necessary for the Nationals. Bryce Harper is enduring a disappointing season but his two running mates in the outfield have been terrible. Moises Sierra, who was designated for assignment to make room for Soto, was just hitting .167 in 60 plate appearances. Michael Taylor hasn’t been much better in center field. His .185 batting average in 45 games is the worst hitter in Dave Martinez’s everyday lineup.

To put it bluntly, Soto has a low bar for success. He doesn’t need to be an All-Star to improve the Nationals. Even performing as an average Major League regular would really help his big league club. The fact that Soto was absolutely raking in AA shows he is capable of doing even more. He was hitting .362 with 14 home runs before Washington made the decision to call him up.

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Nationals fans shouldn’t count on Soto to save their season, but they have every right to be excited about his recent call-up. It may not be enough to get their favorite team into the postseason, but he’s a solid bet to improve their outfield immediately.