After coming over from Cleveland, Jose Tena showed flashes, but needs more consistency
When Jose Tena came over in the Lane Thomas trade, he was seen as a secondary piece, with left handed pitcher Alex Clemmey being the real prize. However, Tena was always the most big league ready player in the deal. He produced in AAA and had already made his MLB debut in Cleveland. After a couple weeks in Rochester, Tena got handed the keys to the third base position down the stretch.
The results were mixed, but he showed enough flashes to warrant consideration for a roster spot heading into 2025. It would be a bit underwhelming if he was the starting third baseman to open the season, but he has shown promise, especially at the plate.
Tena hits the ball very hard. His 91.2 MPH average exit velocity, and 49.2% hard hit rate are elite metrics. This helped him hit a solid .267. Surprisingly, the extra base hits did not come very often, with only 8 of his 43 hits going for extra bases. Given his batted ball data, more XBH should come moving forward. His xWOBA being 19 points higher than his wOBA shows Tena was a bit unlucky at the plate.
One thing Tena could work on is his plate discipline. He only walked 4.2% of the time. However, given his minor league track record, he should be solid at the plate. He would be especially solid if he was platooned with Amed Rosario, who hits lefties well. Even in his big league sample, Tena was good against righties. He hit .292, with a .731 OPS.
A Tena/Rosario platoon would be a pretty substantial upgrade on what they had last season, at least offensively. However, defense is a different story. Tena is probably a better fit at second base than third base, but he is going to have to play third due to Luis Garcia. In his time at third base last season, it was an adventure. In 37 games at third base, Tena made a staggering 10 errors. If he continues at that rate, he will not be long for the position, and likely the big league roster. In Cleveland, I doubt Tena focused much on playing third base, given the existence of Jose Ramirez. Hopefully he makes strides defensively with a full offseason to prepare.
With CJ Abrams being a questionable defender himself, the defense on the left side of the infield could be a pitchers worst nightmare. At the end of the day, Tena is better suited to be a utility bench bat than the everyday third baseman. The Nationals either need to sign Alex Bregman, or hope Brady House has a bounce back year.