Arguably the best shortstop in Washington Nationals history, Ian Desmond is ready for the next chapter of his career as he is set to leave via free agency next season. Even though no announcement has been made by the two sides, Desmond thanked the Nationals fans on Twitter, which surely means that he won't be coming back to Washington next season.

He recently told Washington Post, "I know that there's a new chapter looming. Over the course of my career, I've worn my heart on my sleeve and I've left it all out on the field. I feel like I've given everything I've got over that time. When that chapter closes, it'll be just moving on to the next one."

The 30-year-old was drafted by then-Montreal Expos in 2004, making his debut in 2009. He then became an all-star and the everyday starter in 2010. He was one of the original homegrown players of the Nationals system that started the era of winning for the team.

"Being part of a team that has set the bar, that's something that I'll hold on to for a long time. When I first started playing in the big leagues, there were no fans here, and we said, 'When we win, the fans are going to come.' That's what we always said. When we won, the fans did come. We set that bar," Desmond added.

The Nationals started the season as the favorites to win the World Series, per ESPN, but stumbled since the Jonathan Papelbon trade. Washington had a 52-46 record and a one-game lead in the NL East over the New York Mets before the deal but played miserably to a 27-30 record since, as reported by USA Today.

"This year, we haven't played that great, and the fans haven't been coming out. They want to see a good, competitive ball club on the field every day, winning. That bar has been set, and this is underachieving, and that's good. It's important for them to see it that way," the shortstop said as quoted by Washington Post.

Just like his team, Desmond did not have a great season, which could possibly affect his value in free agency, considering that he turned down a seven-year, $107 million extension from the Nationals in the offseason. He is currently batting .236 with 19 homeruns and 62 RBIs while committing 27 errors on defense, per Baseball-Reference.com.

"I went out this year and tried my best. That's all I can do," Desmond said.

In a report by FOX Sports at the end of August, the Arizona Diamondbacks, Seattle Mariners, New York Mets, San Diego Padres, Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees are some of the teams that could try to sign him this coming offseason.