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Baseball is officially back as all 30 teams have settled into their Spring Training game schedules. We are just 31 short days away from Opening Day 2024 as the 162-game gauntlet begins once again. While the start of the season nears close, there are still several big-name free agents who remain without a home. While that will be factored into this series, each preview will be updated appropriately once those players eventually sign. Those updates not only include the team who signs that player, but also teams that could potentially be negatively impacted as well. Next up for 30 previews in 30 days: the Washington Nationals.
Team: Washington Nationals
Division: National League East
2023 Record: 71-91
2023 Finish: 5th NL East, 14th NL, 26th MLB, missed playoffs
The Rundown
The Nationals rebuild is going relatively well, as the young players who have arrived in the major leagues have shown both promise and production. CJ Abrams, Keibert Ruiz, MacKenzie Gore and Josiah Gray have all been solid players in their first few seasons in the show. Abrams smashed 18 home runs and 28 doubles to go along with 64 RBIs and a .300/.412/.712 slash line. Ruiz homered 18 times, doubled 24 times, drove in 67 and slashed .308/.409/.717 last season.
The Nationals also feature quality bats like Lane Thomas and Joey Meneses along with free agent signees Joey Gallo, Jesse Winker and Nick Senzel. Washington rounds out their lineup with young bats Victory Robles and Luis Garcia. Not only do the Nationals have an MLB average lineup on paper, but a healthy mix of young and veteran players. This bodes well for a team that remains a year or two away from being competitive again, as Mike Rizzo has the luxury of potentially dealing some of those veterans for more young, controllable players at the deadline.
Gray and Gore will headline the Washington rotation again in 2024. Gray tossed his way to a 3.91 ERA in 159.0 innings last season. The 26-year-old struck out 143 hitters while walking 80 in 2023. Gore registered a 4.42 ERA in 136.1 innings in 2023, but was more effective than his ERA suggests. The 25-year-old fanned 151 hitters while only walking 57 last season.
Jake Irvin will likely serve as the third starter for Washington. The 27-year-old had a mid-fours ERA last year, as he will be playing in his first full MLB season. The Nationals will likely round out its rotation with veterans Patrick Corbin and Trevor Williams. Corbin is in the final year of his monster six-year, $140 million contract, while Williams remains a serviceable back-end arm. Both guys will simply be asked to eat innings for this team.
The Washington bullpen has the makings of an average MLB pen. The group was led in ERA last season by Hunter Harvey, who tossed his way to 2.82 in over 60 innings. The group of Kyle Finnegan, Jordan Weems and Robert Garcia all had earned run averages around the 3.60 mark, while Tanner Rainey had a 3.30 ERA in his last healthy season of 2022. Dylan Floro struggled last season but has historically been a solid arm as well. The National bullpen will have two more arms, which are currently projected to be young pitchers Jose Ferrer and Joan Adon.
Projected Roster and Alignment
| Starting Lineup | Bench | Starting Rotation | Possible Bullpen |
| 1. CJ Abrams – SS | Riley Adams | 1. Josiah Gray | CL. Kyle Finnegan |
| 2. Lane Thomas – LF | Carter Kieboom | 2. MacKenzie Gore | SU. Hunter Harvey |
| 3. Joey Gallo – RF | Ildemaro Vargas | 3. Jake Irvin | SU. Tanner Rainey |
| 4. Joey Meneses – 1B | Stone Garrett | 4. Patrick Corbin | MR. Jordan Weems |
| 5. Jesse Winker – DH | 5. Trevor Williams | MR. Robert Garcia | |
| 6. Keibert Ruiz – C | MR. Dylan Floro | ||
| 7. Nick Senzel – 3B | MR. Jose Ferrer | ||
| 8. Luis Garcia Jr. – 2B | LR. Joan Adon | ||
| 9. Victor Robles – CF |
Players to Watch
The Nationals have several different young players to keep an eye on this season, including Gray, Garcia, and Ruiz. However, I am going to focus on Abrams and Gore. Abrams is only 23 years old and will be entering his second full MLB season. Some stats to watch for improvement with the young shortstop include OBP (.300 in ’23), home runs (18 in ’23), RBIs (64 in’23) and strikeouts (118 in ’23). Abrams also swiped 48 bases last season, which remains an underrated part of his game.
Gore showed flashes of greatness in 2023 as he made 27 starts, totaling 136.1 innings. The now 25-year-old saw his ERA finish at 4.42, but was much more effective than that for most of the season. The left-hander raised his K/9 to 9.97 and lowered his BB/9 to 3.76 from his 2022 season in San Diego (9.29 K/9, 4.76 BB/9). With 1.5 years of MLB experience, the time is now for Gore to take the next step. Do not be surprised if the lefty came on strong towards the middle of the year and through the end of the season. I also expect the Nationals to try to stretch the pitcher out to at least 170 innings.
Top Prospects
The Nationals have an absolutely loaded farm system, headlined by three top 100 rated players. 2023 second overall pick Dylan Crews sits atop Washington’s charts and seventh best in baseball. The LSU standout was viewed as a slam dunk pick along with college teammate Paul Skenes in last season’s draft. Crews put together a .292 average, five home runs, 29 RBIs, nine doubles and a .377/.467/.844 slash line across three minor-league levels in the second half of last season. There is a chance the stud outfielder will get to the show around September this year.
James Wood sits 14th on MLB’s prospect list, the 6’6 outfielder was part of the return package for Juan Soto as he was selected in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft. Wood hits the ball extremely hard, which helped him slug 26 home runs, 91 RBIs, 28 doubles and a slash line of .353/.520/.873 between high-A and AA. We could also see Wood at the highest level sometime late in the year.
Brady House is the final National prospect in the top 100 at 48th. The third baseman was selected 11th overall in 2021. He excelled last season, hitting .312 with 12 home runs, 47 RBIs, 21 doubles and a slash line of .365/.497/.868. The 20-year-old will likely break through to MLB some time in 2025 with his play determining how early he gets the call.
Other prospects in this loaded system included Cade Cavalli, Elijah Green, Yohandy Morales, Robert Hassell III and Jackson Rutledge. Cavalli missed all of 2023 after major arm surgery but put-up solid numbers in AAA in 2022 before his injury. He will see MLB time when he’s deemed built back up and ready. Green is a 20-year-old outfielder who was the fifth overall pick in 2022. Morales played in four different levels after being drafted 40th overall last July. He hit a composite .349 in 166 at bats. Hassell III is the 2020 eighth overall pick who was in the Soto deal. Finally, Rutledge is a 6’8, 24-year-old right-hander who was picked 17th overall in 2019. He will likely be in MLB at some point in the middle of the season.
2024 Prediction
The Nationals will not stink in 2024. This team appears to have the attributes and potential success of the 2023 Reds (82 wins), Pirates (76 wins) and Tigers (78 wins). The lineup is solid and has the makeup of being able to carry this team for stretches of the season. The pitching staff is top-heavy with players who are ready to take a step forward. The bullpen can be above average, especially with just two of those arms having near-career years. Finally, help is on the way from the minor leagues. Those players absolutely cannot be rushed, but, when they are ready, must be pulled up. There are going to be some fun points this season along with some feelings of hopelessness. That’s what happens at this stage of the rebuild. Watch out for this team in 2026.
2024 Record Projection: 78-84
For more 2024 MLB Previews, check out the links below!
–Chicago White Sox 2024 Season Preview
–Colorado Rockies 2024 Season Preview
–Oakland Athletics 2024 Season Preview
