Washington Nationals Among Worst Teams in MLB Over Last Five Seasons

The Washington Nationals have seen their share of struggles over the last five seasons.

Mar 30, 2023; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo talks with the media before the game against the Atlanta Braves at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images | Brad Mills-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals are a mere six seasons removed from making it to the top of the mountain as World Series Champions for the first time in franchise history, needing only 15 years to get there.

Since then, a mass exodus of star power has taken place as the club has retreated back into a rebuild, with names like Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, and Juan Soto all yielding major returns on the trade market.

The five campaigns since the World Series have been a slog because of the rebuild, and Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report recently ranked the Nationals 28th in his MLB power rankings covering the last five seasons.

"The Nationals entered the 2020s on the highest of highs after winning their first World Series in 2019. And, dang it, Nats fans should still be beaming with pride about that one. As for what has happened since then, well, not so much. Those 420 losses are the most of any team over the last five years, and it wasn't exactly A Good Time to say farewell to Juan Soto, Max Scherzer and Trea Turner, much less to watch Stephen Strasburg wither away."

The returns they received for their superstars have expedited their rebuild, something that was evident with the way their new core played in 2024.

Despite finishing the year with a 71-91 record, the team showed a new spark on offense, and they haven't even gotten all of their prospects to the Majors yet.

James Wood proved to be the rookie standout in 2024, and with his size (listed at 6-foot-7 and 234 pounds), his power in the future could rival that of Aaron Judge.

Dylan Crews struggled to find his footing in MLB after debuting near the end of August, but the young phenom did show flashes of brilliance that fans can be excited about with a full year for him in 2025.

Many are still sleeping on this team despite their young core already being solid, and they could prove to be more pesky than most expect in the National League East, potentially even rivaling the New York Mets for finishing third in the division.