Kyle Goon: Extending CJ Abrams makes the most sense for the Nationals. Think of the alternative.

The best thing for any team is a clear direction.

At 52-51 and two games back from a wild-card spot in a crowded field, the Nationals find themselves in a tricky spot — are they buyers or sellers? Only they can decide.

But there’s one decision that should be a no-brainer, especially as the whispers of potential trades flood clubhouses between now and the Aug. 3 deadline.

CJ Abrams is playing so well right now, there’s no way the Nats should deal the 25-year-old at the deadline. The smarter option, as difficult as it may be, is to extend his contract.

For Washington — and maybe for Abrams — extending the partnership is better than any alternative, and it would be a sign that, for once, the Nationals aren’t ready to ship off another of their young stars, as they have for years since their 2019 championship.

With two more years of team control remaining, it feels premature to think of Abrams — a former No. 6 overall pick — at a crossroads with the team that has developed him into an All-Star. But perusing lists of MLB trade candidates will yield his name because his long-term future isn’t nailed down.

When you have a young shortstop on pace to hit more than 35 home runs for the highest-scoring offense in baseball who is looking for a payday, the big-market sharks circle the waters.

Of course I carry a Baltimore-centric perspective into this conversation, and in that respect the 2026 Nationals remind me a bit of the 2022 Orioles: ascendant, promising, on the brink of something special. In 2022, the Orioles grated some fans by selling beloved players Trey Mancini and Jorge López at the trade deadline. Those moves turned out to be prudent for the following season’s AL East championship.

But Abrams’ profile doesn’t match the player you sell off for a haul of prospects. He’s the star you hope a prospect might one day become.

Abrams is on the cusp of setting the franchise record for home runs by a shortstop (Ian Desmond hit 25 in 2012). By most marks, he’s the best-hitting shortstop in baseball this season: Head to head with Bobby Witt Jr., the only two main categories in which he trails the Kansas City Royals star are stolen bases and wins above replacement.

The WAR disparity reflects Abrams’ greatest deficiency: defense. While he leads shortstops in key hitting metrics, he trails almost all of them in outs above average (-11) — a range-based measurement of fielding skill — and is tied for the most errors (15) at the position.

It would be reasonable for Abrams to look for a Witt-size contract (11 years, $288.8 million), but it might not be the right comparison to make. As ESPN’s Jeff Passan put it in his trade deadline roundup: “Why isn’t he higher? Evaluators simply don’t think he’s a good shortstop.”

Having the best offensive season of his career probably makes Abrams reluctant to change anything, including his position. Meanwhile, the Nationals’ top prospect, Eli Willits, plays shortstop. The uncertainty over Abrams’ future position makes agreeing on a long-term contract difficult. The Nationals talked with Abrams’ camp in 2024 about an extension, but the discussions never got far.

Splitting ways, especially now, would make way less sense than staying together. These two parties could use each other.

If the Nationals move on from Abrams, they have to consider how that influences James Wood, their other rising superstar. Wood is having a career season, too, and at 23 the ceiling for the 6-foot-6 slugger seems to be in the stratosphere.

Although Wood will not become a free agent until after the 2030 season, the pairing of him and Abrams is good enough to make a push this season and in 2027.

The Nationals have moved their stars — namely Juan Soto and Trea Turner — in recent years because they either couldn’t come to contract terms or weren’t ready to win. Once you start the rebuilding cycle, it’s hard to pull out of it until you have multiple stars to build around. The Nationals have at least two.

It’s not time to recycle a star for prospects. It’s time to start thinking about chasing another World Series. That might not be feasible in 2026, but it definitely feels possible in 2027 if president of baseball operations Paul Toboni can be aggressive this offseason to find pitching.

You can do this without signing Abrams to a long-term deal, but it’s not ideal to go all in on a competitive window without extending one of the key pieces. You don’t want Abrams’ interest to drift from the team to his own future — auditioning for other clubs while in the midst of trying to help his own win.

For Abrams, it’s not clear that his next club is as close to contending as the Nats could be next year or that any of his next teammates would be nearly as good as Wood, who seems destined to contend for MVP awards.

Why not continue in D.C., which has become his home and nurtured him into a big league star? He may want to ensure that he is the shortstop of the future wherever he lands, but it’s not clear that any other team is willing to extend him more positional leeway than the Nationals have.

Most critically, the franchise needs to send a message to its fans, who celebrated in the D.C. streets for the 2019 World Series, then all too quickly saw the nucleus of that team crumble. Re-signing Abrams is a message that ownership sees the same potential that the fanbase does and is willing to give the Wood-Abrams pairing a shot at adding to the trophy case.

It’s true that dealing Soto, another promising young hitting talent without an obvious defensive position, netted Abrams and Wood from the Padres. But every deal for prospects is akin to buying a fistful of lottery tickets. It’s hard to see Washington crossing its fingers again, hoping Abrams can get them a player in return who can be half as productive.

Keeping Abrams figures to be expensive. Staying in D.C. could one day require Abrams to find a new defensive spot. But, if you’re watching the Nats night to night, you can talk yourself into seeing the dawn of an exciting new era for this franchise, one in which Washington’s high-powered offense gives it a chance against any team in baseball.

Can you put a price on hope? If the Nationals want to keep it, they should pay Abrams. It’s the best option they have.