Dylan Crews Wants To Bring New Mentality To Nationals With His Return
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It has not been the start to Dylan Crews' major league career that he or the Washington Nationals envisioned when they took him second overall in the 2023 draft.
Predicted to become an impact player as soon as he reached the bigs, the former top-ranked prospect has been anything but that during the first 83 games of his MLB career, slashing .207/.280/.357 for an OPS+ of 80 that's 20 points below the league average of 100.
His development was stunted this year, too, with a left oblique strain putting him on the shelf on May 21 that carried all the way into mid-August until he was finally activated off the 60-day injured list on Aug. 14.
Since he's returned, Crews has flashed some of his upside, getting a hit in five out of seven games while putting together incredible defensive moments in right field that reminded everyone why he was considered to be a five-tool player.
Even though his numbers don't look great with a slash line of just .217/.333/.391 and no home runs since coming off the IL, that isn't stopping the talented 23-year-old from trying to make his presence felt on this franchise going forward.
no matter what 🫡 pic.twitter.com/92OZy8vUZk
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) August 21, 2025
"Every day I just want to come out here and win, no matter what," he stated. "I just want to bring this team to a new culture and win every single day."
That likely is music to the ears of Nationals fans everywhere since they have seen virtually nothing but losses ever since Washington won their first-ever World Series title in 2019. And while his statement might feel like lip service, the team has gone 4-3 since he returned, splitting a series against the Philadelphia Phillies before winning two out of three against the New York Mets.
Crews played an important role during that stretch, sitting with a wRC+ of 104 despite is poor slash line, while also driving in four runs, hitting three extra-base hits, taking four walks and stealing a bag that all played a factor in the Nationals' success.
Is Dylan Crews About To Heat Up?
The best-case scenario for Washington is to see Crews finally heat up and start climbing towards the ceiling he was projected to have when he was taken second overall and was considered one of the best prospects in the sport.
Now that he's healthy, it should be all systems go for the right fielder at the plate, with his offense hopefully catching up to the elite defense he's already shown in his career with nine defensive runs saved and being worth three outs above average.
Because Crews hasn't shown consistency at really any point in the bigs just yet, it's hard to definitively say he's going to start producing to close out the season. However, with his mindset of doing whatever it takes to win instead of focusing on his performance like it seemed like was happening earlier in the year, that could lend itself to better results.
