Can the Washington Nationals Rebound After a Historic Five-Year Decline?
Back in 2018 the Washington Nationals had a loaded roster. Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and then rookie Juan Soto headlined their lineup. Future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer was at the peak of his powers, sitting on top of Washington's rotation alongside Stephen Strasburg.
After winning back-to-back National League East crowns, that star-studded 2018 Nationals' squad underachieved with an 82-80 record.
The following year Harper signed with the Phillies, but Washington went on to win the 2019 World Series, beating the Astros in seven.
Since winning it all, the Nationals have had five-straight losing seasons, going 288-420 over that span. That's a .407 winning percentage over half a decade, coming off a world title. You don't see championship teams fall off a cliff this fast very often in professional sports.
Entering the 2025 campaign, Washington currently has the fourth lowest projected WAR in baseball. Perhaps worse, that they only have one player that ranked inside MLB.com's top ten rankings at each position. The Nationals new 29-year-old first baseman, Nathaniel Lowe, is the only one that made the cut for Washington.
Not only was Lowe a Texas Ranger last season, but he's only hit 89 home runs in his six-year career, going over 20 just once in 2022 with 27. Lowe's a nice player, but he's more of a supporting actor than a centerpiece.
On the bright side, the Nationals are currently the second-youngest team in the league.
Nationals 24-year-old shortstop CJ Abrams was an All Star last year, but did not make MLB's top ten at the position. Nationals second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. took a leap at the plate in 2024, and he'll turn 25 in May. Their 25-year-old center fielder, Jacob Young, should be considered a Gold Glove contender going forward. The Nationals are young and full of potential up the middle.
Right fielder Dylan Crews is among the primary contenders to win the National League Rookie of the Year this season. If all goes according to plan, he'll be the centerpiece of Washington baseball for years to come. Left fielder James Wood had a promising rookie campaign last season, and he won't turn 23 until September.
By this time next year we could very well be talking about Crews and Wood as the foundation for the new Era of Nationals baseball.
MacKenzie Gore showed flashes of being a top of the rotation option, striking out 181 batters in 161.1 innings. Gore will turn 26 later this month. Several of Washington's best prospects have already made or are on the verge of playing in the Majors, but three of their top prospects are pitchers.
Nationals fans are likely in store for another rocky year where the team doesn't even sniff contention. But it looks like the end of this bad run is finally near, where Washington could become a factor again in the National League East sooner than later. There may finally be light at the end of the tunnel.
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Ryan Reynolds has worked in sports media since 2019, where he’s primarily covered the NFL. He got his start writing for Evan Silva and Adam Levitan’s Establish the Run where Ryan became an authority on NFL awards markets. Ryan recently served as an Associate Director and content headliner for former NFL executives Joe Banner and Mike Tannenbaum at The 33rd Team. Ryan has also made multiple guest appearances on Fantasy Sports Radio on SiriusXM and VSiN. Outside of sports Ryan has a bachelor’s degree in accounting, graduating with honors from the University of Minnesota. He now has nearly a decade’s worth of experience in management. You can find Ryan on X @RyanReynoldsNFL or email him at RyanReynoldsNFL@gmail.com.