Nationals Have Clear Goal To Accomplish Down Stretch With Starting Rotation
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The Washington Nationals are playing out the string in what is another lost season that will extend their playoff drought to six years.
2019 was the last time that the Nationals made the playoffs and they won the World Series that year. Getting back to that level of contention is the goal, but there is a lot of work to be done before this team is even back in the conversation as a playoff contender, let alone for a title. Especially because a step backward was taken in 2025.
This was supposed to be a year in which Washington started showing real progress, making a move toward being a playoff team again. An emerging young core was blossoming in 2024 and their development would determine how high this team would soar. Alas, that, mixed with most of their offseason additions being duds, has yielded some ugly results.
The Nationals are going to be hardpressed to reach the 71-win mark they have in each of the last two years, currently playing to a .403 winning percentage entering play on Aug. 16. That is well below the .438 they have recorded in 2023 and 2024.
One of the major reasons the team has struggled to string together strong performances is the up-and-down performance of the starting rotation. Beyond their emerging ace MacKenzie Gore, who hit a rough patch of his own recently, there isn’t anyone who has cemented their stats as a building block on the mound moving forward.
Who Will Step Up Alongside MacKenzie Gore in Nationals Rotation?
Jake Irvin will likely hold down a spot again and Brad Lord has been excellent during his rookie campaign. But can they elevate their performance to be a front-line guy like Gore has proven capable? The regression of Mitchell Parker in Year 2 has been a disappointment and no one knows what DJ Herz will provide coming off Tommy John surgery after a strong 2024 rookie campaign.
One player who has the skill set to be that top of the rotation arm is Cade Cavalli, who is back after battling injuries the last few years. He, along with Josiah Gray, was a highly regarded prospect who had upside but needed to prove they could stay healthy and perform at a high level.
Their incredible prospect, Travis Sykora, just underwent Tommy John surgery. Another electric arm, Jarlin Susana, dealt with UCL issues earlier in the year. They are both a little bit away from helping the Major League team. That leads to the question, why did Washington hold onto Gore?
It would be fair to assume they plan on being competitive before he can cash in as a free agent, but where is the help going to come from? It will be interesting to see how a new regime handles things in the offseason, because this looks like a franchise without much direction currently.
