PHILADELPHIA — The Washington Nationals are in a healthier spot now than they were two weeks ago, before they traded Curtis Mead to the Boston Red Sox for Connelley Early.They planned to add pitchers, and got nine of them back across four deals. They didn’t want to blow up the roster unless they were blown away, and stuck to that. And… I also think they should have done a bit more.How did the Nationals, buyers in bulk, do in their first trade deadline under president of baseball operations Paul Toboni?It’s a B+, for me. Here’s how I evaluate the moving parts:The best things they didThey did the most important thing: Which is to say they acquired a controllable starter who can take the ball in October. The Early deal, to me, is an A. He has five years of control after this one. Early and Cade Cavalli give the Nats two October-ready starters, with some high-upside arms in the minor leagues in waiting. This acquisition carries the grade here.They (maybe) didn’t kill the vibe: Which does not mean that the visitor’s clubhouse at Citizen’s Bank Park is in a state of nirvana right now. It is a less optimistic clubhouse on Aug. 3 than it was a week ago, but the Nationals held on to CJ Abrams, which is the biggest thing they needed to do to keep the vibes from spiraling.
Grading Nationals’ trade deadline as CJ Abrams stays, Foster Griffin and others go
The Nationals bulked up on pitching. They also kept Abrams. Was that the right move?











