Davey Martinez names Carter Kieboom the Nationals' starting third baseman

Carter Kieboom has not joined the Nationals for their on-field workouts yet. But, he does have a job assignment.

Davey Martinez said Saturday that Kieboom will be the team's full-time third baseman when the season starts. The position was previously a competition between the rookie and veteran Asdrúbal Cabrera in spring training.

"As of right now, yes, I anticipate in a 60-game season, he's going to go out there and play every day," Martinez said of Kieboom.

The decision answers one of the largest questions of the offseason for the defending World Series champions. Their managing principal owner, Mark Lerner, said they could not afford Stephen Strasburg and Anthony Rendon. So, they paid Strasburg and not Rendon. He signed with Anaheim.

Josh Donaldson was a high-end free agent they could have paid to play third base. He signed a four-year, $92 million contract with Minnesota. Trade rumors were also attached to Chicago's Kris Bryant and Seattle's Kyle Seager.

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None of that happened. The Nationals instead entered spring training with a question about who would replace Rendon, an MVP finalist in 2019, someone the organization drafted, developed and played for seven years, and the central figure in their offense. They needed a replacement and settled on Kieboom.

The 22-year-old's brief, 11-game stint in the major leagues did not go well last season. He compiled -1.0 bWAR in barely two weeks. He struggled defensively at shortstop and produced an OPS-plus of 24 at the plate. However, the sample size is minuscule.

Washington has a history of playing its top prospects consistently under Mike Rizzo. Bryce Harper and Juan Soto were those the organization deemed ready at a young age, so they brought them up and put them in the field for good. The same idea follows Kieboom into the short season.

Kieboom started nine games at third base for Triple-A Fresno late last season. He made four errors. He played in 14 of the 17 spring training games before baseball slammed to a stop this year. Kieboom made three errors in 10 starts at third base then. It's an alarming rate. That's a 49-error full season. Rendon made 53 errors in seven seasons playing third base (729 starts).

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"The biggest thing for him was obviously his defense," Martinez said. "We feel that he's going to hit here. One thing when he left, [Tim Bogar] and Chip [Hale] talked to him about his footwork and really honing in on his footwork and getting his feet turned to where he's going to throw at all times. I know he's been working out. He's hit tons. I know he's faced live pitching and [was] trying to keep in shape the best he can and trying to do baseball activities as much as he can."

Kieboom is expected to join the group workouts in Nationals Park on Sunday. When the season starts, he will be standing at third base, a legacy spot within the organization first held by Ryan Zimmerman then Rendon. Even in a short year, Kieboom will be compared to the person he is replacing, though he would argue there is no comparison.

"I'm not here to fill [Anthony Rendon's] shoes," Kieboom told NBC Sports Washington in February. "That guy, in every category possible -- baseball, clubhouse, off the field, family, he checks all the boxes. He does it. He's a special player. That's not my job, to fill his shoes. My job's to be myself, do what I can. Control what I can control.

"There's going to be expectations of course. There's going to be comparisons to what I do versus what Tony does. But that just comes with the job. That comes with anything when somebody as great as he is leaves, and joins another team and somebody needs to come in and fill the spot. I wouldn't even say I'm replacing him. I don't -- he's not replaceable. But I'm here to fill a spot, take care of business, play my game and go from there."

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Davey Martinez names Carter Kieboom the Nationals starting third baseman originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

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