Robles and Sanchez looking to make noise before season wraps up

Nationals outfielder Victor Robles was slated to lead off in Sunday's matchup against the Cubs, until the game was postponed due to inclement weather.

The prospect has played in only 18 games so far with the Nats in parts of 2017 and 2018, but is expected to take over as a starting outfielder for the club (if a spot opens up) possibly next year and then hopefully for years to come.

But 2018 wasn't the big step Robles was hoping for after he made the Nationals postseason roster at the end of 2017.

Robles had what looked like a season-ending elbow injury suffered in his first week of the season with Triple-A Syracuse. But he fought his way back through rehab, which included 36 games late in the season with the Chiefs.

"You know, that injury, when I saw it, was really ugly," said Nationals manager Davey Martinez. "The fact that he came back and played only tells me that he's super strong and he's going to get stronger and he's going to heal. It might take this winter to get him really completely healed."

Robles had 37 doubles, eight triples, 10 homers and 47 RBIs with a pair of minor league teams in 2017, demonstrating that his bat could lead the offense. But the power numbers haven't been there as frequently in his injury-interrupted 2018 campaign, which is to be expected considering the severity of his early season injury. This doesn't concern Martinez. He knows Robles has the ability to produce big numbers when healthy.

"I think the power numbers will come," Martinez said. "Like I said, I'm not too worried about it. I told him for me, it's about hitting doubles, bunt when you think necessary and play good defense. Run the bases the way you are capable of running them. That's what I want to see from him. Here's a guy who could potentially hit 50, 60 doubles and lead the league in extra-base hits. That's kind of what I see out of him."

On offense, Robles is not afraid to get into the strike zone area and look for his pitch. Last year, Robles was hit by a pitch 21 times. He had injured his hand in the past because he was hit by pitches. This year, he has been hit in a minor league game just four times in limited action. He has been hit once in five games with the Nats since his early September callup.

In an attempt to prevent hand and arm injuries, does Martinez believe he should advise his 21-year-old not to crowd the plate?

"If you watch him, he kind of has a closed stance," Martinez said. "So guys that have that closed stance like that, and he kind of dives a little bit, so it's something that we need to be aware of and see where he's at. I definitely don't want him to get (hit). He understands that's part of it. He's not afraid, that's for sure. He stays in there. That's another good thing is that he's really not afraid of anything."

It was a big deal to see second baseman Adrian Sanchez break out with a double and a triple in Saturday's rain-soaked doubleheader. At 28, Sanchez has only 51 major league games under his belt. With Daniel Murphy gone and Wilmer Difo the starting second baseman for now, Sanchez could use these final 20 or so games to showcase himself as a candidate for a spot on the 25-man roster for 2019.

Sanchez already has an above-average glove, so if the offense comes around, that could give him a shot at staying with the club next season.The odds are long, of course.

"He's swinging the bat really well," Martinez said. "I like what I see. He pays attention to detail. Plays second base really well, too. His defense is good. So he's going to get opportunity to play, especially against lefties. I talked to (Syracuse manager) Randy Knorr (and) he said he's been swinging the bat really well against left-handed pitching. And he showed that the last couple days."