Washington Nationals Boss Sets Different Tone Entering New Season

The Washington Nationals are entering a new phase of their roster building, and manager Dave Martinez has made it clear that the team is ready to perform.

Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez looks over his pitchers during Spring Training in 2025. | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals have had a very intriguing last decade of baseball, going from a contending team to a World Series-winning team, and then to a rebuild in the span of that time frame.

Manager Dave Martinez has been there for seven seasons, and now as he enters his eighth, he is setting the tone for the current roster.

In quotes provided by Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports, Martinez discussed the current state of the team, expectations entering 2025, and how things looked on the first day of a full roster workout. The first thing that stood out was how optimistic he was regarding the team and the change in how he viewed things.

"I hear a lot about how our core guys are going to be really good, and they’re coming," he said. "I don’t really want to hear that anymore. I told them today: ‘We’re here. This is the core. These are the guys we anticipated would be here. You guys are here. You got your feet wet. It’s time to go out there and perform every day, go 1-0 every day.'

"That’s the gist of it. I want to win, and I let them know today that’s what we’re here for."

This is a different type of message from Martinez than in recent years, and it is a positive sign that the development of key players has allowed him to create a vision once again. With key young players like James Wood, Dylan Crews, and CJ Abrams set to make the opening roster, and many more quality players in the pipeline, there is finally a core to build around for this team.

With two World Series victories under his belt, one of which coming with the Nationals, Martinez knows what it takes to get back to the next level of baseball. When it comes to building a young roster, the first step is competing, and coming off a 71-91 season, they could do with some more wins as they continue to add talent to the roster via development.

There was a lot to like from the Nats' first full workout, he said.

"I loved it...A lot of energy. I saw a lot of positive things today, which was awesome," he said.

Veteran additions such as Paul DeJong, Nathaniel Lowe, and Amed Rosario on the batting side of things will also raise the floor of the team, giving them options to rotate in and out of the lineup, as well as giving them insurance in the case of injury. With a revamped bullpen, an improving starting rotation, and a developing lineup, things could finally be looking up for Washington.