Nats trade Daniel Murphy to Cubs, Matt Adams to Cardinals
The Washington Nationals have traded second baseman Daniel Murphy to the Chicago Cubs and sent first baseman Matt Adams to the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Cubs sent Class A minor league infielder Andruw Monasterio and a player to be named later or cash considerations to Washington for Murphy. The Cardinals sent cash considerations to the Nationals for Adams.
It is unclear where Murphy will play in Chicago. Javier Baez, who is having an MVP-caliber season (.289 batting average, 25 home runs, 89 RBIs, 20 steals), is the Cubs' primary second baseman. Cubs starting third baseman Kris Bryant is currently on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. Murphy has experience playing third base.
Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said the trades give his team financial flexibility for the 2019 season. He said he still believes in the players remaining on his roster.
"I still think today we have the talent base on this team to play competitive games at the end of this season," he said.
Murphy, a career .299 hitter, is batting .300 this season with six home runs and 29 RBIs in 56 games. He will be a free agent after this season.
Murphy is hitting .340 since the All-Star break, 10th-best in the majors. Over the last three seasons, Murphy is hitting .366 with runners in scoring position, the best mark by anyone with at least 500 plate appearances.
The three-time All-Star was the National League Championship Series MVP in 2015, when with the New York Mets he hit four home runs in a four-game sweep of the Cubs. He set a major league record by hitting home runs in six straight playoff games that postseason.
Monasterio, 21, is hitting .263 with three home runs, 31 RBIs and 10 stolen bases for the Cubs' team in Myrtle Beach this season.
Adams, who began his career with the Cardinals, is hitting .257 with 18 home runs and 48 RBIs in 94 games. He is 0-for-21 dating to Aug. 5 and has started only four games over that span, losing playing time at first base to Ryan Zimmerman.
The Nationals have been a disappointment this season and are currently a game under .500 at 62-63. They are 7½ games out in the National League East. The Cubs lead the NL Central with a 71-52 record. The Cardinals, in third place in the NL Central at 69-57, are also in a three-way tie for the second NL wild-card spot.
The Nationals, who had finished first in the NL East in 2016 and '17, fired manager Dusty Baker after losing to the Cubs in five games to the Division Series last year. They replaced him with rookie manager Dave Martinez, who had been the Cubs' bench coach.
ESPN Stats & Information contributed to this report.
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