After MVP-caliber season, time to think long-term with Rendon

As we transition into offseason mode here, we're reviewing each significant player on the Nationals roster. We continue today with Anthony Rendon, who completed an elite all-around season that made him a legitimate MVP candidate.

PLAYER REVIEW: ANTHONY RENDON

Age on opening day 2018: 27

How acquired: First-round pick, 2011 draft

MLB service time: 4 years, 130 days

2017 salary: $5.8 million

Contract status: Arbitration-eligible in 2018. Free agent in 2020.

2017 stats: 147 G, 605 PA, 508 AB, 81 R, 153 H, 41 2B, 1 3B, 25 HR, 100 RBI, 7 SB, 2 CS, 84 BB, 82 SO, .301 AVG, .403 OBP, .533 SLG, .937 OPS, 7 DRS, 6.9 WAR

Quotable: "He's just really consistent, every single day. First and foremost, he posts every single day. He goes to the post. And offensively, he doesn't really give at-bats away. Even when he's not necessarily getting hits, he's walking. And he's an elite defender, which goes completely under the radar. And he can really run the bases as well, too. He's just really fun to watch." - Daniel Murphy on Rendon

2017 analysis: On a team loaded with star power, the best player on the Nationals roster this season might well have been the one who least seeks fame. Rendon may try to avoid the spotlight, but his performance in 2017 was impossible for anyone to ignore.

After getting off to a bit of a slow start - his OPS in April was .768 - Rendon quickly turned it up and was a consistent force the rest of the way. He posted a slash line of at least .300/.400/.600 in May, June and July. And though he cooled off a bit in August and September, he was nonetheless Dusty Baker's most reliable player.

At a time when strikeouts are up across the sport, Rendon actually lowered his strikeout rate this season to a career-best 13.6 percent while raising his walk rate to a career-best 13.9 percent. He was one of only five qualified major league batters who walked more times than he struck out in 2017, joining a list that includes Joey Votto, Anthony Rizzo, Mike Trout and Justin Turner.

In the field, Rendon continued to excel at making both routine and non-routine plays. His .979 fielding percentage was tied with Nolan Arenado for best among all big league third basemen, and FanGraphs.com rated him the sport's best defensive third baseman by a longshot. As a result, Rendon joined Giancarlo Stanton as FanGraphs' over WAR leaders for the season among all National League players.

2018 outlook: The only question Rendon will face entering next season is the one that was such a hot topic this season: Where will he bat in the lineup? You can certainly make a case for him to bat anywhere from second through sixth in a batting order that has plenty of other skilled offensive players.

Wherever he ends up, Rendon will seek to maintain the consistency he displayed throughout the vast majority of the 2017 season. The few times he did struggle, he seemed to lose a bit of focus. He's never going to be a high-energy guy, but he does need to be careful to avoid getting too lackadaisical at times. That's nitpicking, though, and certainly not something that is a problem on any kind of regular basis.

The Nationals once again will face an intriguing dilemma this winter with Rendon, who is under club control for two more seasons. If they're serious about trying to lock him up long-term, now's the time to make a serious run at him. Rendon is represented by Scott Boras, whose clients tend to prefer testing the free agent waters. But as we've seen over the years, Rendon isn't your typical superstar. He likes it here, and he just might prefer to know where he's going to spend the next chunk of his career rather than subject himself to the unwanted spotlight that comes with free agency.