'More Than Half' of MLB Teams Have 'Checked In On' Nationals Star MacKenzie Gore
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Things are starting to heat up when it comes to the Washington Nationals potentially trading their ace MacKenzie Gore this winter.
Almost immediately after the 2025 season ended when Paul Toboni was hired to become the new president of baseball operations, speculation ran rampant that the Nationals could ship their ace out of town to get pieces back for this rebuild.
Those rumors have turned more substantial over the weeks, as it was reported there have now been talks between Washington and teams around the league when it comes to a Gore trade. Now, ahead of the upcoming Winter Meetings, it seems like even more teams are interested in getting involved in these sweepstakes.
MacKenzie Gore Garnering Trade Attention From Over Half of MLB Teams
According to Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required), "Multiple executives recently described the trade market for starting pitchers as just as busy if not more intense than in July."
That bodes well for the Nationals when it comes to getting the best return possible for Gore, especially now that there are even more suitors in the mix for the left-hander at this stage of the offseason.
"... it is believed that more than half the league has at least checked in on Washington Nationals left-handed starter MacKenzie Gore, who is under club control for two years," the insiders reported.
There's no doubt that Gore is one of the best trade pieces available this winter. While it's going to cost the team that acquires him a ton in prospect capital, the savings they'll have via arbitration salary compared to going after some of the high-end free agents on the market could be worth it in the eyes of many front offices out there.
MacKenzie Gore, K'ing the Side in the 3rd pic.twitter.com/KI0u7NsgrB
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 23, 2025
Because of that, it's seeming more and more likely that Gore will get dealt at some point. There was a previous thought that Washington could hold onto him until the 2026 trade deadline. But with the trade market garnering this much attention at this stage, then it might be in Toboni's best interest to get something done before the Nationals head to spring training.
Of course, getting back the right return is the most important thing for Washington in this scenario. There have been tons of trade ideas thrown out there that would infuse either ready-made MLB prospects into the mix or bring in multiple young prospects who could be part of the next wave of this franchise.
Conventional thinking suggests Toboni and his front office would prefer the latter since they would want to get talented youngsters into their own developmental system. But again, getting the best return possible is what should be the goal.
Either way, it seems like something could go down during or after the Winter Meetings, so Nationals fans will want to keep a close eye on this situation.
