Nationals Will Reportedly Activate Dylan Crews Off Injured List for Phillies Series
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The Washington Nationals will look to finish the season strong.
2025 has been disappointing, with the team underperforming to the point where both their manager and president of baseball operations were fired. But with so many talented young players on the roster, making sure they develop to reach their ceilings is important.
And it sounds like they are going to get one of their former top prospects back in the mix soon.
According to a report from Grant Paulsen of MLB Network Radio, the Nationals are going to activate Dylan Crews off the 60-day injured list on Thursday ahead of their series with the Philadelphia Phillies if there are no injury setbacks during his final game with Triple-A Rochester on Wednesday.
Source: Barring a setback, Dylan Crews will be called up to join the Nationals for tomorrow’s home game against the Phillies.
— Grant Paulsen (@granthpaulsen) August 13, 2025
Crews is going to play in today’s day game in Rochester, his final rehab tune-up. If all goes well, he will be in the lineup in DC tomorrow night.
Crews has been on a rehab assignment for a while, with Wednesday set to be his 13th game in the minors as he looks to work his way back from the left oblique strain he suffered back in May.
Originally placed on the 10-day IL on May 21, he was moved over to the 60-day on July 22 before going on his rehab assignment a week later.
Since that point, Washington has been wanting to see some offensive consistency out of the 2023 second overall pick.
That is largely why he's been on this rehab assignment for as long as he has, since this stretch has been lengthier than usual for established MLB players.
What To Expect From Crews In His Return?
It's no secret that he has struggled during his time in the Majors.
With an OPS+ figure that's 22 points below the league average, he has looked lost at the plate more times than not across his 76 career MLB games.
The good news is he has already shown to be a great defender, with seven defensive runs saved in his short career while being worth three outs above average in the outfield.
If he can find his rhythm at the plate, then he could have his breakout heading into 2026.
And there's good reason to believe that's going to happen.
While his slash line this season is a measly .196/.266/.354, his underlying metrics are much more favorable.
Crews' expected batting average is .258, while his expected slugging percentage is .469.
That suggests he has gotten unlucky and things should start to turn around for the 23-year-old.
It might take a little time for Crews to get adjusted to Major League pitching again, but once he does, there's a good chance he pops for the remainder of the season and reminds everyone why he should be considered a franchise cornerstone for the Nationals going forward.
