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2025 Washington Nationals season
Major League Baseball team season From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2025 Washington Nationals season is the Nationals' 21st season as the Major League Baseball franchise in the District of Columbia, the 18th season at Nationals Park, and the 57th since the original team was started in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. [1][2] The Nationals were led by Dave Martinez, in his eighth year as manager, for the first half of the season. Martinez and President of Baseball Operations Mike Rizzo were both dismissed on July 6.[3]
The Nationals are members of the National League East division.
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Previous season
The Nationals finished fourth in the National League East Division in the 2024 season, with a win-loss record of 71–91.
Offseason
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Reliever Jacob Barnes and starting pitcher Patrick Corbin became free agents after the 2024 World Series.[4] They were soon joined in free agency by first baseman Joey Gallo, as the Nationals declined their end of a mutual option for the 2025 season,[5] as well as first baseman Joey Meneses, utilityman Ildemaro Vargas, and reliever Michael Rucker, whom the Nationals outrighted from the 40-man roster.[6] Additionally, the Nationals lost starting pitcher Thaddeus Ward to the Baltimore Orioles on a waiver claim on November 4. Ward did not appear in a game for the Nationals in 2024, after spending the 2023 season on Washington's roster as a Rule 5 draft pick.[7] Facing decisions on whether to extend new contract offers for the 2025 season to players eligible for arbitration, Washington declined to tender contracts to two longtime Nationals relievers: closer Kyle Finnegan and former closer Tanner Rainey.[8] Starting pitcher Trevor Williams tested free agency after spending the last two seasons with the Nationals, but he signed another two-year deal on December 31, 2024, to stay in Washington.[9] Finnegan also returned to the Nationals, belatedly accepting the reported $6 million salary the Nationals had offered to avoid arbitration earlier in the offseason.[10][11]
Washington chose to protect prospects Andry Lara and Robert Hassell III from the Rule 5 draft, adding them to the 40-man roster on November 19.[12] Hassell's promotion to the major league roster came two days after he helped lead the Salt River Rafters to the Arizona Fall League championship.[13] For the third year in a row, the Nationals made a selection in the Rule 5 draft themselves, acquiring Tampa Bay Rays minor league reliever Evan Reifert.[14]
On December 10, the Nationals won the draft lottery, giving them the first pick in the 2025 draft. Going into the lottery, Washington had the fourth best odds of winning the lottery.[15]
The Nationals signed their first major league free agent on December 19, 2024, inking right-handed pitcher Michael Soroka to a reported $9 million contract over one year.[16] Days later, they traded left-handed reliever Robert Garcia to the Texas Rangers for first baseman Nathaniel Lowe.[17] On January 5, the Nationals announced they had reunited with Josh Bell, their primary first baseman in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, on a reported $6 million one-year deal.[18] Washington signed infielder Amed Rosario on January 8 to a one-year contract reportedly valued at $2 million,[19] then inked reliever Jorge López to a $3 million one-year deal on January 11.[20] For the first time in franchise history, the Nationals signed a player posted from Nippon Professional Baseball to a major league contract: left-handed pitcher Shinnosuke Ogasawara, who agreed to a two-year deal to pitch for Washington on January 24.[21] The Nationals added infielder Paul DeJong on a one-year, $1 million contract on February 16.[22] With spring training underway, Washington added to its bullpen mix with a one-year signing of reliever Lucas Sims on February 19.[23]
Transactions
- November 4, 2024: The Nationals lost right-handed pitcher Thaddeus Ward on a waiver claim by the Baltimore Orioles and outrighted right-handed pitcher Michael Rucker, first baseman Joey Meneses, and third baseman Ildemaro Vargas to the minor leagues; they elected free agency.
- November 19, 2024: The Nationals selected the contracts of right-handed pitcher Andry Lara and outfielder Robert Hassell III from the minor leagues.
- November 22, 2024: The Nationals declined to tender new contracts to right-handed pitchers Kyle Finnegan and Tanner Rainey.
- December 3, 2024: The Nationals signed left-handed pitcher Konnor Pilkington to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
- December 11, 2024: The Nationals selected right-handed pitcher Evan Reifert from the Tampa Bay Rays via the Rule 5 draft.
- December 19, 2024: The Nationals signed right-handed pitcher Michael Soroka to a one-year major league contract.
- December 22, 2024: The Nationals acquired first baseman Nathaniel Lowe from the Texas Rangers for left-handed pitcher Robert Garcia.
- December 31, 2024: The Nationals signed starting pitcher Trevor Williams to a two-year major league contract.
- January 5, 2025: The Nationals signed first baseman/designated hitter Josh Bell to a one-year major league contract.
- January 6, 2025: The Nationals signed outfielder Franchy Cordero to a minor league contract.
- January 8, 2025: The Nationals signed infielder Amed Rosario to a one-year major league contract and designated right-handed pitcher Joan Adon for assignment; he was outrighted to the minor leagues.
- January 11, 2025: The Nationals signed right-handed pitcher Jorge López to a one-year major league contract and designated right-handed pitcher Amos Willingham for assignment; he was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves.
- January 17, 2025: The Nationals signed catcher Andrew Knizner to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
- January 24, 2025: The Nationals signed left-handed pitcher Shinnosuke Ogasawara to a two-year major league contract and released left-handed pitcher Joe La Sorsa.
- February 16, 2025: The Nationals signed infielder Paul DeJong to a one-year major league contract and left-handed pitcher Colin Poche to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
- February 19, 2025: The Nationals signed right-handed pitcher Lucas Sims to a one-year major league contract.
- February 27, 2025: The Nationals signed right-handed pitcher Kyle Finnegan to a one-year major league contract and designated outfielder Stone Garrett for assignment; he was outrighted to the minor leagues.
- March 18, 2025: The Nationals returned right-handed pitcher Evan Reifert to the Tampa Bay Rays.
- March 22, 2025: The Nationals selected the contract of left-handed pitcher Colin Poche from the minor leagues.
- March 26, 2025: The Nationals selected the contract of right-handed pitcher Brad Lord from the minor leagues.
Spring training
The Nationals held their spring training at the Cacti Park of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach, Florida. They invited the following non-roster players to camp: left-handed pitchers Konnor Pilkington and Colin Poche; right-handed pitchers Daison Acosta, Joan Adon, Marquis Grissom Jr., Clay Helvey, Brad Lord, Jack Sinclair, Tyler Stuart, and Jarlin Susana; catchers Andrew Knizner, Caleb Lomavita, and Maxwell Romero Jr.; infielders Brady House, Yohandy Morales, and Cayden Wallace; and outfielders Daylen Lile and Andrew Pinckney.[24][25]
Outfielder James Wood was hampered early in camp by quadriceps tendinitis.[26] Reliever Zach Brzykcy was also sidelined with a quadriceps injury,[27] as were fellow relievers Jorge López with a hip injury[28] and Derek Law with arm soreness.[29] First baseman Andrés Chaparro suffered an oblique injury that ruled him out for Opening Day despite a strong spring performance.[30] Starting pitcher DJ Herz landed on the injured list at the end of spring training with a sprained left ulnar collateral ligament of the elbow, after demonstrating significantly lower velocity and control issues in games.[31][32] Both Brzykcy and Law were also assigned to the injured list, while López recovered in time to make the Opening Day roster.[33]
Toward the end of spring training, the Nationals returned reliever Evan Reifert to the Tampa Bay Rays after he struggled with command throughout preseason play, opening a spot on their 40-man roster[34] that the Nationals filled by selecting Poche's contract.[35] Herz was transferred to the 60-day injured list after he was reportedly recommended to undergo Tommy John surgery, with Washington selecting Lord to fill his roster spot.[33]
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Regular Season
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Opening Day
The season kicked off at Nationals Park on March 27, 2025, against the Philadelphia Phillies. MacKenzie Gore was selected as the #1 Starting pitcher, and he answered the call by striking out 13 Phillies' batters over the course of six innings, only giving up one hit and zero walks, allowing zero runs during his time on the mound. His 13 strikeouts broke a team record for an Opening Day starting pitcher, last held by Max Scherzer, who pitched a 12 strikeout performance in 2019's Opening Day. Unfortunately, the Nationals' offense had trouble taking advantage of Gore's hot start, with only two hits (both by Keibert Ruiz) and one walk (taken by James Wood) throughout their first six innings, though one of Ruiz's hits was a home run, giving the team a 1-0 lead.
However, once both teams turned to their bullpen, the offense increased. Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber immediately smacked solo home runs against relief pitchers Lucas Sims and José A. Ferrer, respectively, giving the Phillies a 2-1 lead in the 7th inning. They added a run to their lead in the 8th on a wild pitch by Ferrer, going up 3-1. The Nats managed to put 2 runs across the plate in the 8th inning to tie up the game at 3-3, eventually sending the game into extra innings. However, despite holding strong at the Top of the 10th, Colin Poche was unable to get the 3rd out as the Phillies jumped back in the lead 5-3, and a dropped fly ball by Dylan Crews in right field led to a 7-3 score before Eduardo Salazar slammed the door shut. The Nats went down in order in the bottom of the inning, losing the opener by a 7-3 score despite a strong performance by Gore that earned him 0 ERA to start the season. Sims was credited with a blown save, and Poche with the official loss.
March/April
The Nationals started off their season poorly, only notching one win in their first 7 games, a 5–1 win against the Phillies on March 30. Brad Lord made his MLB pitching debut in relief that game, but exited with an infinite ERA, having gotten no batters out but 2 walks and a hit that resulted in the Phillies' only run that game. Mitchell Parker notched his first win, and Kyle Finnegan his first save, of the Nats' 2025 season. Dylan Crews started off in a dramatic slump, not even recording his first hit of the season until an April 4th game against the Diamondbacks. In fact, after going 0-3 with a walk and a run scored in the season opener, Crews didn't even get on base until then, and flirted with matching an MLB record for most consecutive strikeouts (by a non-pitcher) over multiple games, ending it with 8 after hitting a groundout on his first at-bat against the Blue Jays on March 31. On the pitching side, the new acquisitions were even worse: Michael Soroka turned in a poor performance in his first 2025 start against the Blue Jays before immediately going on the IL. Meanwhile, Poche and Sims each accrued a double-digit ERA, struggling to get opposing batters out in multiple games. The team arguably reached their nadir on April 28, in a home game against the Mets. Despite putting up solid performances the previous three games, the Nats were decimated 19-5. The team's pitching was so awful that utility infielder Amed Rosario was tabbed to finish the game as a relief pitcher.
However, the Nationals also had some positive signs, rolling into a 4 game win streak split between series against the Diamondbacks and Dodgers between April 5-8. Lord, who had to make a spot start in Soroka's absence, pitched a solid 3 innings and allowed 0 runs while notching 4 strikeouts, 2 of them against the Dodgers' star player Shohei Ohtani. The Nats would win that game 8-2. Closer Kyle Finnegan went a perfect 9/9 in Save opportunities between March 30–April 23. Ruiz re-emerged as a solid hitter, maintaining a .300 or higher Batting Average throughout the month of April, and Wood emerged as a potential home run leader, having hit 9 from the start of the season through April. Following his strong performance on Opening Day, Gore tallied up several strikeouts over his next several starts, and led all MLB pitchers with 59 Ks by the end of April.
Regular season transactions
- May 1, 2025: The Nationals signed left-handed pitcher Andrew Chafin to a major league contract and designated left-handed pitcher Colin Poche for assignment;[36] he elected free agency.
- May 6, 2025: The Nationals signed right-handed pitchers Parker Dunshee and Adrian Sampson to minor league contracts.[37]
- May 9, 2025: The Nationals released right-handed pitcher Lucas Sims.[38]
- May 23, 2025: The Nationals selected the contract of outfielder Daylen Lile.[39]
- May 28, 2025: The Nationals signed outfielder Delino DeShields Jr. to a minor league contract.[40]
- May 31, 2025: The Nationals designated right-handed pitcher Jorge López for assignment.[41]
- June 10, 2025: The Nationals claimed right-handed pitcher Ryan Loutos off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers.[42]
- June 16, 2025: The Nationals selected the contract of third baseman Brady House and designated first baseman Juan Yepez for assignment.[43]
- July 6, 2025: The Nationals fired manager Dave Martinez and general manager/president Mike Rizzo and promoted assistant general manager Mike DeBartolo to interim general manager.[3]
- July 7, 2025: The Nationals promoted bench coach Miguel Cairo to interim manager.[44]
- July 8, 2025: The Nationals signed right-handed pitcher Luis García to a major league contract.[45]
- July 22, 2025: The Nationals selected the contract of left-handed pitcher Konnor Pilkington.[46]
- July 26, 2025: The Nationals acquired right-handed pitcher Clayton Beeter and minor league outfielder Browm Martínez from the New York Yankees for infielder Amed Rosario.[47]
- July 30, 2025
- The Nationals traded right-handed pitcher Luis García and left-handed pitcher Andrew Chafin to the Los Angeles Angels for left-handed pitcher Jake Eder and minor league first baseman Sam Brown.[48]
- The Nationals traded right-handed pitcher Michael Soroka to the Chicago Cubs for minor league shortstop Ronny Cruz and minor league outfielder Christian Franklin.[49]
- July 31, 2025
- The Nationals traded right-handed pitcher Kyle Finnegan to the Detroit Tigers for minor league right-handed pitchers Josh Randall and RJ Sales.[50]
- The Nationals traded outfielder Alex Call to the Los Angeles Dodgers for minor league right-handed pitchers Sean Paul Liñan and Eriq Swan.[48]
- August 3, 2025: The Nationals claimed left-handed pitcher PJ Poulin off waivers from the Detroit Tigers.[51]
- August 14, 2025: The Nationals designated first baseman Nathaniel Lowe for assignment.[52]
- August 17, 2025: The Nationals claimed right-handed pitcher Julián Fernández off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers.[53]
Major league debuts
- March 30, 2025: Brad Lord[54]
- April 13, 2025: Cole Henry[55]
- May 22, 2025: Robert Hassell III[56]
- May 23, 2025: Daylen Lile[57]
- June 16, 2025: Brady House[58]
- July 2, 2025: Andry Lara[59]
- July 6, 2025: Shinnosuke Ogasawara[60]
- August 5, 2025: PJ Poulin[61]
Overall
Season standings
National League East
National League Wild Card
Record vs. opponents
Record vs. National League
Updated with the results of all games through August 4, 2025.
Record vs. American League
Updated with the results of all games through August 17, 2025.
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Game log
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Current roster
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Farm system
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References
External links
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