Washington Nationals talks with Trea Turner nonexistent before trade

The Washington Nationals‘ decision to trade Trea Turner came as a shock to the baseball universe. He still has another year of team control left, and as the Nationals had reportedly been interested in an extension, the trade seemed to be a sudden reversal of course.

Instead, the Nationals’ interest in an extension may have been overblown. It turns out that they had not had talks with his representatives since a six year deal worth approximately $100 million was offered in March 2020.

Washington Nationals interest in Trea Turner overblown?

It would have made sense for the Nationals to be interested in locking in Turner. He had emerged as one of the best young shortstops in baseball, the type of player that the franchise could build around. Keeping Turner, and potentially Juan Soto, would have given Washington a perfect combination for their lineup.

But the Nationals have also dealt with potential payroll issues in a unique way. They keep deferring money to put off their financial reckoning, which may have been a part of their offer to Turner. However, the fact that there had not been any talks in over a year before the trade is telling.

This may have been due to the record extension handed to Fernando Tatis Jr. It would be fair to compare the two young shortstops in terms of production, especially as the Nationals themselves considered Turner to be on par with the Padres’ star. However, it seems clear that they did not want to pay him at that level.

The Nationals certainly came away with an impressive haul in that deal. They may have finally found their catcher of the future with Keibert Ruiz, and Josiah Gray is an impressive young arm. But those players are not exactly a given to become stars. Turner already is, but finances have gotten in the way.

The Washington Nationals had publically stated that they wanted to keep Trea Turner. However, their actions paint a vastly different picture.