The Nationals made a few acquisitions, most notably with a trade for their new first baseman. They eschewed any investments longer than two years. They're probably still a season away from pulling out of the rebuild. If they take a step forward from last season's 71 wins, they should be positioned for a much more aggressive winter going into 2026.
Major League Signings
- RHPÂ Trevor Williams: Two years, $14MM
- RHPÂ Michael Soroka: One year, $9MM
- DHÂ Josh Bell: One year, $6MM
- RHPÂ Kyle Finnegan: One year, $6MM ($4MM deferred)
- LHPÂ Shinnosuke Ogasawara: Two years, $3.5MM (plus $700K posting fee)
- RHPÂ Jorge LĂłpez: One year, $3MM
- RHPÂ Lucas Sims: One year, $3MM
- 3BÂ Amed Rosario: One year, $2MM
- 3BÂ Paul DeJong: One year, $1MM
2025 spending: $38.5MM ($4MM deferred)
Total spending: $47.5MM
Option Decisions
- Declined $8MM mutual option on 1BÂ Joey Gallo in favor of $2.5MM buyout
Trades and Claims
- Selected RHPÂ Evan Reifert from Rays in Rule 5 draft
- Acquired 1BÂ Nathaniel Lowe from Rangers for LHPÂ Robert Garcia
Notable Minor League Signings
Extensions
- None
Notable Losses
- Patrick Corbin, Robert Garcia, Joey Gallo, Tanner Rainey (non-tendered), Joey Meneses (outrighted), Ildemaro Vargas (outrighted), Amos Willingham (via waivers), Michael Rucker (outrighted), Thaddeus Ward (via waivers), Joe La Sorsa (released)
The Nationals finished 71-91 last season, their second straight year landing 20 games under .500. Still, they feel closer to contention than they did 12 months ago. Top outfield prospects James Wood and Dylan Crews made it to the big leagues. The middle infield tandem of CJ Abrams and Luis GarcĂa Jr. each took steps forward, even if Abrams' season ended with an unceremonious disciplinary demotion. Center fielder Jacob Young had a nice season headlined by Gold Glove-caliber defense. A controllable rotation group of MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker and DJ Herz pitched reasonably well.
One can start to see the light at the end of the five-year rebuild. Yet the Nationals entered the offseason with a handful of huge holes. GM Mike Rizzo said in September that the front office was looking to add one or two middle-of-the-order bats. The Nats got very little from their corner infield or designated hitter positions, making those obvious target areas. They're still lacking a true top-of-the-rotation starter, nor did they have much in the way of middle relief depth.
They didn't fix all of it. There was never much hope of ownership allowing the front office to jump back in on Juan Soto. They seemingly didn't look at the top of the rotation market, uninterested in making a $200MM+ investment for Corbin Burnes or Max Fried. While they technically did add two middle-of-the-order hitters, they weren't on significant free agent splashes. The Nationals showed some interest in Christian Walker and made sense as an on-paper fit for Pete Alonso, but they ended up taking a volume approach to free agency.
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Pretty nice job on the rebuild.
Having Scherzer Turner Soto to trade away makes it one of the easiest rebuilds but they didn’t mess it up.
“Didn’t mess it up..True statement. The Scherzer/Turner part didn’t play out perfectly, but they seemingly did quite well in the Soto deal.
Not supposed to play out perfectly. Dodgers know what they are doing. They wouldn’t trade 7 years of someone they thought could be a mvp or cy young winner or even yearly all star for 2 months of Scherzer and year extra of Turner. So you have to be able to out develop the team with the best resources in baseball. Gray was a solid get. Ruiz disappointing probably. But fair trade. They don’t always or usually work out. Majority of prospects fail.
They have not gotten much production from the players acquired in the trade. I think Josiah gray led the league in homers and walks allowed one year. Now he’s hurt. Keibert ruiz has been their main catcher but he’s proven to be a dud. He’s still signed for several more years because he signed an extension. Another contract that I have never understood. At least it is not for nearly as much money as Strasburg’s. Elijah green has been a bust. Even if he never makes it, he is still set for life. I am on the fence with Brady house. He may be OK, a bust or something in between. He is also set for life along with a Cuban outfielder who has been a bust.
It was a fair trade at time it was made. Prospects failing and getting hurt happen.
They had to draft Green. If Pirates took Green then they had to take TJ. That was a obvious tier. The best prep hitter in a decade and one of the best athletes. One incredibly high floor another ceiling. If it wasn’t for Texas going underslot on Rocker who knows what Washington would have done. But the 1 through 4 was clear. Texas made a bold move and it could work out. Although I would say it’s Pirates poor development vs TJ being a bust. He still has incredible hands and the raw power is still there.
A
For realizing what they are. Could be a C for just common sense doing what was needed. A is for not going crazy in a expensive free agent market. Them winning depends on the young players. If for some reason the young players all come close enough to their ceiling this year not having a 1b and dh won’t be the reason for them missing the playoffs. And if things don’t go well they have trade chips.
F.
A slam dunk Hall-of-Famer about to enter his prime was freely available to all 30 teams, and they didn’t sign him. “We don’t want to spend” is not a valid excuse here. “We don’t have $800 million” if anything would be a worse excuse. They’re supposed to compete next year, and Soto wanted 10-plus years.
A slightly higher F because they addressed the rotation depth and 1B.
55/100
“We don’t want to spend”…Your knowledge of business seems rudimentary at best. All you’ve said is “spend”. You didn’t even ask that they spend it wisely or efficiently.
A lot of broke people feel the same as you about “spending”, but obviously billionaires and people who understand money feel differently about tying up massive assets for 15 years.
it’s easy to spend other people’s money…
29 teams get a F because they weren’t stupid enough to give a DH a billion dollars.
So you’re saying there were no notable losses?
B for not trying to go from the outhouse to the penthouse in one fell swoop.
The key for 2025 is whether their up-the-middle quartet (Ruiz, Garcia, Abrams, and Young) can take another step forward. They especially need to see more from Ruiz, whose 2024 was a significant disappointment.
Regarding their offseason, there are many potentially flippable names among their nine free-agent signees. That could bode well for the Nats down the road.
Offensive Production:
The acquisition of Nathaniel Lowe is a positive step, addressing a need at first base. However, the overall offensive impact remains to be seen. The addition of Josh Bell also helps. This area would likely receive a C+ to B- grade.
Starting Pitching Improvement:
Adding Michael Soroka and Trevor Williams provides some depth, but there are questions about their consistency. This area would likely receive a C to C+ grade.
Defensive Stability:
With the addition of players like Amed Rosario and Paul Dejong, and the continued development of Luis Garcia Jr. there are signs of defensive improvement. This area could be graded a B- to C+.
Young Talent Development:
The continued integration of prospects like James Wood and Dylan Crews is a positive sign. This is hard to grade in the offseason, but the fact that they are in the majors is a positive. I would give this an Incomplete, but a positive outlook.
Overall Evaluation:
Based on these assessments, the Nationals’ offseason would likely receive a grade in the C range. They made some improvements, but significant questions remain.
I have them at a 72-77 win range.
I like Mike Rizzo a lot. A solid 2nd generation baseball person.
Unfortunately much of winning in MLB – particularly over a period of time – is about pitching. The Nationals under Rizzo have been pretty bad in that regard.
When looking at team pitching I always look at the bullpen first. Partially because MLB is now a bullpen game, and partially because fixing bullpen arms is easier as a pitcher can get by with even one or two pitches. Last year the Nationals bullpen was ranked (by one set of analysts) as 24th in MLB. In fact, for years when Rizzo’s Nationals were contending, come the trading deadline they were constantly trading for bullpenners….including finding a closer.
As far as starting pitching goes, they won a WS on the backs of making maybe the best FA signing of the 21st century in Max Schurzer, after drafting Steven Strasburg #1 overall in the 2009 draft. Not all #1 picks are successful. They deserve credit for that.
However MLB is now coaching pitching in a way where injuries and TJ surgery are no longer just epidemic, they’re accepted as normal. Meaning that sustainable contending organizations have to be able to constantly acquire pitchers year-round and be able to coach them up.
In addition to finishing 24th in ranking MLB team bullpen pitching in 2024, the Nationals finished 23rd in MLB team ERA.
Doing rebuilds in MLB primarily via position players doesn’t work for long. In fact, that’s the easy part. Those that contend and do it for years have to be able to constantly have strong pitching. Look how long the legendary Theo Epstein’s rebuilt Cubs contended (and how much they spent), and compare that to Jeff Luhnow’s rebuilt Astros….and don’t tell me about one WS, that team was in playoff contention right up until last season.
I don’t understand the hoopla about the Nationals rebuild. Until they demonstrate that they have superior pitching both at the ML level and in the high minors, than all the good pub will not help them in reality as they compete against the Braves, Mets and Phillies in their division.
Samuel, what’s the point of these long-winded speeches when you can’t even spell Stephen Strasburg’s or Max Scherzer’s names right? (Steven Strasburg and Max Schurzer)
Nats had leverage on Soto trade because he still had at least a year left on his Nats contract at the time so the Padres had to give up quite a bit. Scherzer/Turner/Schwarber were salary dumps w half a season left so the Nats took what they could get.