On Sunday evening, the Washington Nationals pulled off a major move by firing their general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez. This comes after the poor start to the season for the Nationals as they have a 37-53 record. They are even eyeing to turn their fortunes and make a return to the postseason after winning the World Series in 2019.
Why did Washington Nationals fire Dave Martinez?
Mike DeBartolo, who has been with the Nats since 2012, will be serving as the general manager for the Nationals. Before his interim promotion, he was the assistant general manager and senior vice president of baseball operations.
Shortly after breaking the news, MLB insider Jeff Passan joined ESPN MLB, where he gave details on what went wrong in D.C and why the management parted ways.
Yeah, I mean, Dave Martinez has said some stuff publicly, you know, about how the players have to be as accountable as everyone else for these losses, Passan said. And it did not go over well in the clubhouse.
Um, there's truth to it—like, it's reality—but it's just not what managers tend to say. I think you look at the development of some of the younger players. Dylan Crews, former number one overall pick, has struggled, you know, as he’s gotten to the big leagues.
According to Passan, the whole blame doesn't solely rest on Dave Martinez's shoulders.
But let’s also acknowledge: the Nationals haven’t spent money in a while, Passan added. Like, they very easily could have gone after Alex Bregman, for example, this winter, and they just weren’t in on any of the major free agents at all.
Jeff Passan gave the example of 2016 Cubs, when they invested money in veteran Jon Lester, which helped them on a championship run. On the other hand, the Nationals parted ways with their young core to carry the load.
Jeff Passan believes Dave Martinez's comments behind his axe
The Washington Nationals have not tasted success in the past five years. They have missed the postseason on each of the five times. Amid the frustration, Dave Martinez pinned the blame on his players but defended his coaching staff.
Following a 4-3 loss to the Miami Marlins on June 14, Martinez said,
It's never on coaching, Martinez told reporters. Never on coaching. Coaches work their asses off every single day. We're not going to finger-point here and say it's coaches. It's never on the coaches. They work hard. The message is clear. All the work is done prior. So sometimes, they have to go out there and play the game. It's always been about the players. Always.
According to Passan, these are the things which a manager should not say in the public. Throwing his own players under the bus after a string of losses was the only reason why the management decided to part ways with him.