Agent: Nats' Abrams 'not thrilled' about 2B move

Two-time All-Star CJ Abrams is "not thrilled" about moving from shortstop to second base for the Washington Nationals, his agent said, but "his priority is to win games ... and to be a team-first player, so that is what he's going to do." Abrams' agent, Mike Sanders of Roc Nation Sports, told The Athletic that his client believes himself to be a shortstop "short-term and long-term" and that "I don't think we have a full evaluation yet of how good he can truly be there." Abrams, a National League All-Star starter this season, leads the majors with 19 errors, just three shy of his career high from 2023 and 2025. His .959 fielding percentage is his worst since his rookie season (.955), when he also played second base and outfield for the San Diego Padres. Nationals manager Blake Butera on Friday said Abrams would be swapping positions with second baseman Nasim Nunez because it "was the best thing for our team going forward." Abrams has only played shortstop in his five seasons with the Nationals. Abrams is having a career year offensively, with 28 homers, 91 RBIs, a .278 average and an .884 OPS. Nationals president of baseball operations Paul Toboni told The Athletic that he understands Abrams' frustrations about the position switch. "If I'm CJ, of course I'm upset," Toboni said. "It'd be weird if he wasn't. CJ has been a shortstop for his whole life, and it's a huge part of his baseball identity. If I didn't sense he was upset, I'd be worried that he wasn't being real with us. "This isn't a place where we just think through what is best for the team, then we do it without considering other factors. No, we think about CJ and how this impacts him personally because he's a huge part of this org. And it's our job to consider all these factors, decide the best path possible, and do our best to communicate to CJ, Mike and everyone else." Abrams is under contract with the Nationals through 2028. "CJ's enjoyed his time in D.C. and, as long as he's with the Nationals, his focus is going to be on being the very best player he can be and winning as many games with the Nationals as he can," Sanders told The Athletic. "The very best player and teammate he can be." The Associated Press contributed to this report.