If Nats land Yoenis Cespedes, how is Jayson Werth affected?

Last season, the National League East seemingly was decided by one player. OK, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but the Mets' addition of Yoenis Cespedes minutes before the trade deadline completely changed the complexion of their lineup. New York went from a bottom of the barrel offense to pouring in runs behind Cespedes' violent bat.

The Nationals inquired about a trade with the Tigers for Cespedes as well, but the slugger ended up with the Mets. New York evened up the division with a sweep over Washington that weekend and then ran away with the NL East behind 17 homers, 44 RBIs and a .942 OPS from Cespedes over the final 57 games of the season.

Now a free agent, Cespedes finds himself in the middle of a chess match off the field between the Nationals and Mets. Both teams are contending for his services, with FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal reporting the Nationals have offered Cespedes a five-year deal while the Mets are not interested in signing him beyond three years. It's unknown the actual money that's on the table, but it's likely to be in the neighborhood of $20 million per season.

So for the 30-year-old Cespedes, who has played on four teams in his four major league seasons and is coming off his best year, it seems the longer contract offer is a no-brainer. However, Rosenthal added last night that two sources say Cespedes prefers to stay with the Mets.

If the Nationals break through, landing Cespedes, the question remains where he will play and who the move will directly affect in the Nationals outfield. With his big arm, Cespedes won an American League Gold Glove Award for his play in left field in Detroit over the first 102 games last season before the Tigers traded him. He can also play center, but not nearly as well.

The Nationals just traded for Ben Revere to play center and fill their leadoff spot. So does that spell bad news for Jayson Werth's playing time?

It's unlikely the Nats move Werth, who has a no-trade clause and is a 10-5 player with $42 million owed over the remaining two years of his contract. Plus, at 36, Werth is coming off an injury-riddled season where he slashed .221/.302/.384 with 12 homers and 42 RBIs over 88 games.

But Werth is only a year removed from his stellar performance in 2014 when he hit .292 with 16 homers, 37 doubles and 82 RBIs. If the effects of last year's broken left wrist are behind him and Werth can return to form, there won't be any challenging him. But it's hard to believe the Nats trotting him out there night after night with an average hovering around .200 while playing a mediocre left field.

"You can't outrun Father Time," Werth said back at Winterfest. "Then you throw some injuries in there, so I know I'm at the end of my career more so than the beginning. But I don't feel like I'm slowing down any time soon."

Certainly, the Nats could look to trade Revere again, but acquiring the speedy left-handed swinging outfielder seemed to solve several needs. And then there's the question of where it leaves Michael A. Taylor, who is the best defensive outfielder on the roster.