Start of 2026 Season Could Determine Nasim Nunez's Long-Term Future With Nationals

Nasim Nunez's future with the Washington Nationals could be decided early in 2026.

Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

This offseason, a new set of eyes will evaluate the Washington Nationals' major league roster and the prospects throughout their minor league system.

Because of that, it's hard to know exactly how all the pieces to this puzzle are going to fit together, since new president of baseball operations Paul Toboni and his front office could have a different assessment of the players than the previous regime.

However, the roster projections heading into 2026 seem pretty straightforward at this stage of the offseason considering how many young players are in place. And barring an aggressive free agency approach, plenty of starters can be penciled into the lineup.

But one player who has a wide range of outcomes is Nasim Nunez, the 25-year-old infielder who flashed to close out the 2025 campaign but also has a history of being underwhelming with the bat in his hands throughout his minor league career.

Beginning of 2026 Season Will Determine A Lot for Nasim Nunez

Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

Nunez has had an interesting tenure in the nation's capital. After being taken 46th overall in the 2019 draft by the Miami Marlins and being one of their top 20 prospects for much of his time there, he wasn't protected ahead of the 2023 Rule 5 draft, which allowed the Nationals to bring him into their organization.

But because he had to be on Washington's major league roster for the entire 2024 campaign so he wouldn't be returned to Miami, he sort of had a lost year because he only played 54 big league games and couldn't be sent to the minors.

The Nationals planned on giving him everyday playing time with Triple-A Rochester in 2025, but injuries changed those plans and resulted in Nunez being called up to the major league roster. Things didn't go well during the early part of the season, and he was sent back down when players got healthy.

However, the 25-year-old flashed some of his top prospect pedigree to close out the season in September, slashing .282/.326/.590 with four home runs and eight RBIs across 16 games and 39 at-bats that month.

nobody does it like nas 🙂‍↔️ pic.twitter.com/kTw13DrnTb

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) September 22, 2025

This power surge came following some tweaks that were made to his swing down on the farm after he wanted to give up switch-hitting, according to Mark Zuckerman of MASN. But coaches and others in the organization reportedly convinced him to stick with it, and he had the best stretch of his short major league career in September because of it.

Was that a flash in the pan or something more sustainable? That's what Washington has to figure out early next season, because if it was a flash in the pan and he reverts back to his past form -- a slugging percentage of .290 across 1,507 minor league at-bats -- then he'll likely only be a bench player and defensive sub throughout his career.

But if Nunez can build upon what he did during September, then the Nationals will have to assess how they are going to utilize him going forward since he primarily has only been a backup shortstop to date.

With all of this in mind, Nunez will be someone to keep an eye on throughout spring training and during the early part of the 2026 season. Because if he regresses back to his past form, then his fate will likely be sealed. But if he takes that step forward as a hitter, then the sky could be the limit for him as an already-impressive defender.