Nationals’ Robles looked like his 2019 self in weekend series

If Victor Robles ever becomes the player the Nationals hope he can be, the beginning of that transformation would look something like this past weekend. 

Maybe that’s what it was — but only time will tell.

Robles, whose inconsistency has marred the start to his career, displayed the skillset that made him a former top prospect — his blazing speed and even some sorely missed power — in the Nationals’ series win over the Rockies on Sunday. 

Robles, with all five tools on the scout’s sheet, was once thought of as a future star who would play next to Juan Soto for years to come. But his offensive output diminished the past two seasons after an excellent 2019 campaign in which the center fielder smacked 17 home runs, stole 28 bases and finished sixth in the Rookie of the Year voting. 

Against the Rockies, though, that 2019 version of Robles was back. 

He went 7-for-16 at the plate with a home run, seven RBIs and four stolen bases as the Nationals took three of four games from the visiting Rockies — Washington’s first home series win of the season. His best game of the series — and possibly his career — came in the front end of Saturday’s doubleheader, as Robles tallied a personal-high six RBIs — off two singles and a three-run blast — to lead the Nationals to victory.

“I’m really happy for him,” manager Dave Martinez said Saturday. “I know he was ecstatic, just because he loves this team. He loves his teammates, and he wants to contribute. It was a big day for him.”

Then on Sunday, one day after stealing a base in each game of the doubleheader, Robles utilized his speed to energize the Nationals en route to another win. He swiped two bags in the second inning and singled twice in the game to extend his hitting streak to four and boost his batting average to a respectable .257 before Monday’s game against the Mets. 

While stolen bases are no longer in vogue, they’re a big part of Robles’ game. He struggled on the basepaths last year with six caught stealings in 14 attempts, but he’s a perfect 5-for-5 this season after his four-steal weekend. 

Robles started the season ice cold at the plate — a continuation of his abysmal 2020 and 2021 seasons in which he hit a combined .209 with just five home runs and 34 RBIs in 159 games. He was hitless in his first 18 at-bats this spring before getting his first base knock on April 17. Since then, Robles is slashing .305/.362/.400 with seven extra-base hits in 110 plate appearances. 

“He’s getting back to not chasing, and he’s swinging the bat better,” Martinez said. “He’s staying in the zone a lot better. We’re seeing some good things from him.”

“Obviously, all the hard work is paying off, and I’m very thankful also that hitting coach [Darnell Coles] has never given up on me,” Robles said. “We keep grinding out there and working hard, and it’s starting to pay off.”

The weekend wasn’t perfect for Robles, though. 

In the second game of the doubleheeader, he committed a costly throwing error in the third inning to help gift the Rockies another run in what ended up being a one-run loss for the Nationals. Trying to get the runner out at home, his throw was uncatchable by the cutoff man, hitting the mound and bouncing into foul territory. The runner advanced to second on the error and then scored on a two-out single. 

The error was Robles’ fourth of the season — a total that is too high for an outfielder this early into the year, especially one with the defensive potential of Robles.

“He’s gotta understand who’s running, the situation of the game, two outs,” Martinez said. “We’re gonna keep harping on it, and hopefully he gets it and understands.”

Four innings later, Robles popped up a bunt with two strikes after failing to get his first two attempts down. Bunting has also been a problem for Robles this season, as he has failed a few times to get a sacrifice down while also choosing peculiar moments to lay one down for a hit. 

While Robles is in his sixth season, he’s far from a veteran. He played only 13 games in 2017, 21 contests in 2018 and 52 games in the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. In total, Robles has appeared in 390 career games — 40% of which came in 2019. 

With a player like Robles, whose athleticism drives his value, Martinez said he tries to guide him in the right direction when deciding when to bunt for a hit, steal a base or make a risky play in the field. But, soon, Martinez wants to be able to let Robles go and not have to regularly monitor his decision-making. 

“Everybody forgets because he’s been here so long like Juan, these guys are really young but they’re very talented,” Martinez said. “We’re going to continue to work with him, continue to try to teach him and hopefully one day it clicks and he gets better.”