Following the Washington Nationals’ stellar 2019 World Series run, there is no way to phrase the state of the franchise since then other than completely tanked. An energized, championship team went to a lamentable last place team in a few mere months. This season, however, the franchise is finally finding their groove after living in last place from 2020 through 2023. Currently, the Nationals are sitting in fourth place in the NL East, but the season is far from over, and winning 45.9 percent of games is not a terrible start for the franchise.
DMV native James Wood, unsurprisingly, has been a standout for the Nats this season. The six foot seven outfielder has already put up an impressive ten home runs, tied for fourth in the league. For context, he is tied with Shohei Ohtani, so being on the superstar level with such little experience is absolutely huge, and will continue to produce and become a key player, if not the face of the young team.
Catcher Keibert Ruiz, acquired in the 2021 Max Scherzer and Trea Turner trade to the Dodgers, is showing some improvement, batting .305 so far this year. However, his catching could benefit from fine tuning, as he has only caught 20 percent of runners stealing this season. For framing, Ruiz costs the Nationals an average of three runs per game, tied for most in the league. Ruiz signed an eight year contract extension in 2023, so his development and leadership behind the dish is especially crucial to the Nats’ future.
The fanbase has begun to turn on rookie and 2023 second overall draft pick Dylan Crews. While the outfielder is not producing at the plate quite yet, batting a .188, he has previously prevailed at both the collegiate level and in the minor leagues, so judging his future career based on a rookie year batting average struggle is foolish. It is predicted that he will round out as a hitter to regularly start in center field, where he has already demonstrated his range.
There is no question the Nats are a scrappy team, completing comebacks after falling behind early in games. In April 27th’s National League East rivalry contest against the Mets, the Nats fell behind 0-5 in the first inning, but through a nine hit effort, including home runs from Crews and reserve catcher Riley Adams, were able to triumph the game 8-7.
While many wins have been close contests, the Nats have also dominated against the top teams, most notably the Los Angeles Dodgers, who hold a strong 25-13 start. In an early April matchup, D.C. took two of three games from the franchise headed by Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman, losing the third game by only one run.
Taking a look at the farm system, the Nats still have top prospects that have yet to see the major league field. Three standouts are outfielder Robert Hassell III, shortstop Brady House, and pitcher Jarlin Susana. Hassell III and House are expected to see the major league field this year, while Susana is predicted to debut in 2026.
A previous weakness of the Nats has been their starting pitching, which appears to be a nonissue this year, in fact, they arguably have too many quality starting pitchers. The five man rotation is headlined by MacKenzie Gore, who leads the league in strikeouts with 68. Mitchell Parker and Jake Irvin also boast strong performances for the Nationals; all three pitchers are ranked in the top 50 for walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP), indicating they have been effective, allowing few baserunners. Cade Cavalli, still struggling to recover from Tommy John surgery, has yet to make an appearance, but is expected to join the rotation as soon as he completes rehabilitation.
The bullpen, on the other hand, is the Nationals’ Achilles heel. It seems that even with star studded, talented rosters, the bullpen is always a grievance for the Nats, and this year is no exception. Despite fantastic performances from the starting pitchers, the Nationals are in 26th place for WHIP, and 28th for Earned Run Average (ERA). In a couple of months, trading for a couple of veteran relievers who can serve as mentors might solve the Nats’ ongoing woes.
Overall, the Nationals are showing a lot of improvement this season, and the depth of their roster will certainly assist in their efforts of bringing another championship to the nation’s capital. A World Series win this year looks highly improbable, but in the meantime, there is much to look forward to, like an exciting pitching rotation and a potential Woods-Crews-Hassell III outfield.
