The Nationals released Nathaniel Lowe when Dylan Crews was activated, rather than optioning Jacob Young, Daylen Lile, or Robert Hassell III to Triple-A Rochester. Lowe ranks last (26th) among qualified first basemen this season in Fangraphs WAR (-0.7), and his offensive and defensive metrics are the worst of his career. He is earning more than $10 million and was likely to be non-tendered this offseason. Washington pursued a cheaper first-base solution last offseason that has underperformed. Josh Bell has been the better offensive option but remains a defensive liability and a platoon candidate. Andres Chaparro appears to be the most qualified internal complementary option and was recently recalled.
To make the case for releasing Lowe as obvious as possible, he ranks last (26th) among qualified first basemen this season in Fangraphs WAR (-0.7). Essentially all of his statistical metrics as a hitter and fielder are the worst they've been in his entire career. And most importantly, he's already making north of $10 million this season and was almost certain to be non-tendered this offseason, entering his final pre-free agency season.
Even if we accept that Bell was playing better than Lowe, Bell isn't an ideal solution either. Even during his first stint in Washington, his defense was subpar, and that was three years ago. After all, he was signed with the intent for him to be a designated hitter. Bell also is nowhere near the Silver Slugger candiate that he once was. He's become a more apparent platoon hitter as well, so there is some value in carrying a complimentary option to pair with him.
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