Washington Nationals

The Oakland Athletics are acquiring utilityman Josh Harrison and catcher Yan Gomes in a trade with the Nationals, according to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal. (Source: Ken Rosenthal on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Gomes is batting .271 with nine home runs this season and will likely backup starting catcher Sean Murphy.

The Oakland Athletics are acquiring utilityman Josh Harrison and catcher Yan Gomes in a trade with the Nationals, according to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal. (Source: Ken Rosenthal on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: The MLB hot stove is sizzling right now, and the A's make another significant move by acquiring Harrison and Gomes. Harrison in particular is having a solid season and can play second base, third base, or the outfield for Oakland.

The Padres are acquiring RHP Daniel Hudson from the Nationals. (Source: Jeff Passan on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Washington's fire sale continues. Hudson is currently on the COVID-19 IL, but he has been one of the better relievers in baseball this season. He'll pitch in a setup role in San Diego.

The Washington Nationals traded outfielder Kyle Schwarber to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for right-hander Aldo Rameriz. (Source: Robert Murray on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Schwarber is the latest National to be traded and is headed to Boston. He's been sidelined since July 3 with a strained right hamstring. There is no timetable for a return, but the Red Sox are confident he will come back soon. Schwarber provides an already potent Red Sox lineup with a power-hitting lefty. The 28-year-old is slashing .253/.340/.570 with 25 home runs, 53 RBI, and 42 runs scored across 72 games in 2021.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are making significant progress on a deal that would send them right-hander Max Scherzer and shortstop Trea Turner from the Washington Nationals, according to MLB insider Jeff Passan. (Source: Jeff Passan on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: This deal isn't done yet, and just a couple of hours ago it sounded like Scherzer was on his way to the Padres. Now, the Dodgers are apparently on the doorstep of one of the biggest blockbusters in recent memory. Turner is currently on the COVID-19 IL after testing positive earlier in the week.

Max Scherzer is nearing a trade deal with the Dodgers along with Trea Turner. It's not a done deal, but the Dodgers have made "significant progress" per Jeff Passan. (Source: Jeff Passan on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: If the Nationals give up two of their most productive players in Scherzer and Trea Turner, one would expect quite a haul in return, particularly for Turner. If this deal goes through, Scherzer's value increases in terms of the ability to earn wins.

Josh Bell went hitless in four at-bats on Thursday. Bell started game one then pinch-hit in game two. He unfortunately grounded into a couple of double plays on Thursday.

Fantasy Impact: Bell's three-game hit streak ends on Thursday. However, he is still posting a solid month of July with a .277 batting average and .836 OPS. Keep an eye out if he gets traded, which could hurt or help his fantasy value.

Juan Soto recorded four hits in six at-bats in two doubleheader games. Soto walked twice and scored two runs on Thursday. He was also caught stealing in the second game.

Fantasy Impact: As July comes to a close, Soto is hitting .366 with a 1.220 OPS. It looks like the Nationals are trading away their top players outside of Soto, which could impact Soto's RBI and run production.

Kyle Finnegan earned his first save of the season on Thursday after throwing a clean 7th inning with two strikeouts in the first game of the doubleheader.

Fantasy Impact: With Brad Hand traded to the Blue Jays and Daniel Hudson hitting the injured list, Finnegan earned his first save of the season. He may be someone to speculatively pick up during the next FAAB period.

The Washington Nationals have traded left-hander Brad Hand to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for catcher Riley Adams. (Source: Jon Heyman on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Hand will head to Toronto and help solidify the Blue Jays’ closer role. He’s converted 21-of-26 save chances along with a 3.59 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and a 42:18 K: BB across 42 2/3 innings in 2021. Hand is expected to handle ninth-inning duties while Jordan Romano transitions to a setup role.

Wednesday’s contest between the Washington Nationals and the Philadelphia Phillies has been postponed due to the COVID outbreak. (Source: Ken Rosenthal on Twitter )

Fantasy Impact: According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, multiple players and coaches have tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday after shortstop Trea Turner did Tuesday. Fantasy managers should remove players from both teams in daily lineups. No rescheduled date has been announced. Stay tuned.

Victor Robles left Tuesday's game with an apparent injury that looked like he reached for his low back. Robles went hitless in three at-bats with one run scored, one walk, and two strikeouts.

Fantasy Impact: Robles was charged with the strikeout since Andrew Stevenson came in to finish his at-bat and struck out. Talk about adding insult to injury, but hopefully, Robles just needs a day or two off. At this point, he is better off figuring out what is going on than providing mostly negative value.

Erick Fedde struggled with eight hits and four earned runs allowed against the Phillies on Tuesday. He also walked one batter with four strikeouts.

Fantasy Impact: Fedde's curveball performed well with a 40% whiff rate and 45% CSW%. However, he finished with an 11% whiff rate and 21% CSW% overall on 86 pitches. Overall, it's been a rough month for Fedde with an 8.02 ERA and 1.92 WHIP in 21 1/3 innings pitched.

Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg (neck) will undergo neurogenic thoracic outlet surgery. He will miss the rest of the 2021 season. (Source: Mark Zuckerman on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Strasburg will undergo surgery to repair the nerve issue that hurt his neck this summer. He will miss the rest of the season, and the Nationals hope the 2019 World Series MVP is ready by Spring Training next year. Strasburg finishes the 2021 campaign with a (1-2) record, 4.57 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, and 21 strikeouts across 21 1/3 innings. Fantasy managers in re-draft formats can move on from Strasburg if they were still holding onto him.

Joe Ross threw five scoreless innings on Monday. Ross allowed three hits and two walks with four strikeouts.

Fantasy Impact: Ross only threw 72 pitches but his slider performed well with a 50% whiff rate. Even Ross's sinker was a called-strike machine with 16 called strikes good for a 41% CSW%. Given his success over the past four starts, Ross is a streamer in 15-team leagues.

Ryan Zimmerman hit a three-run home run and drove in four RBI. He went 1-for-4 with one strikeout.

Fantasy Impact: Zimmerman hasn't played much in July with a .088 batting average but made it count on Sunday.

Paolo Espino allowed three earned runs with six strikeouts on Sunday. Espino also allowed five hits and one walk yet served up three home runs.

Fantasy Impact: Espino allowed three earned runs total across ten innings pitched in his past two starts. His curveball performed well with a 55% whiff rate and 44% CSW%.

Jon Lester allowed three earned runs in five innings against the Orioles. Lester allowed three hits and one walk with two strikeouts.

Fantasy Impact: On Saturday, Lester tossed 70 pitches with a 7% whiff rate and 21% CSW% overall. This comes after Lester threw seven scoreless against the Marlins. He isn't someone to rely on outside of NL-only leagues.

The Nationals recalled INF Carter Kieboom from Triple-A prior to Saturday's game against the Orioles. (Source: Jesse Dougherty on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Kieboom is taking the place of Jordy Mercer, who was placed on the IL. He has hit just .236/.376/.385 in Triple-A this year.

Washington Nationals infielder Alcides Escobar (wrist) was diagnosed with a bruised right wrist after under going X-rays on Tuesday. (Source: Jesse Dougherty on Twitter )

Fantasy Impact: Escobar appears to have escaped a serious injury and is “day-to-day.” Nationals manager David Martinez said they "dodged a bullet." “There was a golf ball-sized lump on his wrist, but just on the muscle.” Escobar had played a vital role for the Nationals since joining the big-league roster in early July. The 34-year-old continued to hit the top of the order and slashed .300/.364/.433 across 68 plate appearances in 2021.