Nationals Look Like Completely Different Team After Embarrassing Phillies
In this story:
The Washington Nationals went to the City of Brotherly Love on Monday night and embarrassed their division rivals by a score of 13-2.
That hasn't happened often between these two franchises lately, and it spawned a ton of boos directed at the Philadelphia Phillies throughout the contest. Simply put, in that one-game sample, the Nationals looked like a much better team than the Phillies. And that has to be encouraging for this fanbase when considering the discrepancy in payroll between the two organizations.
But beyond that, it also was a sign that things are changing for the better in Washington. While the magical start to this season could end at any time, the domination in Philadelphia that took place on Monday was powered by three notable things that makes this Nationals team different than ones from the past so far.
Destroying Bad Pitching
This contest was virtually over after the first inning. With a bad pitcher on the mound in Taijuan Walker, Washington did what good teams do and pounce early. While it's still to early to classify them as a "good team," it was encouraging to see them act in that manner by destroying Walker.
In the top of the first, every single hitter got an at-bat with leadoff man James Wood stepping into the batter's box twice. Washington scored four runs during that frame and jumped out to an early lead. They put up one more in the second and two more in the third, giving themselves a seven-run cushion after three innings that they didn't relinquish.
It's early in the 2026 season, but this is a great sign. If they can take advantage when they face bad pitchers and have this type of offensive performance, then they'll win a whole lot more games than people projected coming into the year.
Smooth Sailing on the Mound
No matter what time of the year it is, holding that Phillies lineup to just two runs is impressive. And considering it was a maligned Nationals staff that accomplished that on Monday, there is some hope that things could be improved when it comes to overall numbers from this unit.
First, Foster Griffin earned a win in his return to the MLB. He allowed two earned runs on five hits with five strikeouts and no walks across five innings pitched. It was a good showing from the lefty, and he should be able to build upon that. However, it was what happened after he departed the game that was so encouraging.
Now being used in a long relief role, Brad Lord was once again spectacular. He pitched three innings where he gave up just one hit and no earned runs while also striking out three and walking one. That bridged things to Cole Henry, who came on in the ninth inning to shut things down and give Washington a statement win on Monday.
This didn't happen a lot last year, as the bullpen was a huge issue and had problems holding onto leads. But by using just two relief arms where they allowed only two hits and no runs between them across four innings pitched, that is a recipe for long-term success.
Contributions Up and Down the Lineup
The Nationals have scored double-digit runs in two out of their four games this season. The 27 runs they've scored through four games is the third-most in franchise history. And all of that is taking place with Wood struggling at the plate to begin the year.
While Joey Wiemer might be the story based on the historic start he's had, others throughout the lineup have also played a huge part in this offensive surge. That's to be expected from Daylen Lile and CJ Abrams, but to see the bottom of the order on Monday -- Jose Tena, Jorbit Vivas and Wiemer -- go 7-for-12 with two walks and three RBIs, that didn't happen a whole lot throughout 2025.
How long that lasts will be interesting to see. But so far, the way this Nationals team has performed is completely different than past versions during this rebuild. And that should give fans a lot to be optimistic about.
Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai