The Washington Nationals have been one of the more active organizations this offseason, and frankly, they needed to be. No team came into the winter with more boxes to check - from front office restructuring to roster building to prospect development - and while not every question has been answered, the Nationals have made some meaningful strides.
Let’s start with the big picture. The Nats are clearly turning the page on their recent past and embracing a fresh identity.
Their front office and coaching staff? The youngest collective group in Major League Baseball by a wide margin.
That’s not just a fun fact - it’s a clear signal that this franchise is betting on innovation, energy, and long-term vision over experience and status quo. It’s a bold shift, but one that fits a team still very much in the early stages of a rebuild.
That said, the major-league roster hasn’t seen the same level of transformation - at least not yet. And that’s where the frustration comes in for Nationals fans.
This team, as currently constructed, isn’t built to compete in 2026. The core pieces just aren’t there yet, and while the coaching and front office changes are encouraging, the product on the field still feels like a work in progress.
But here’s where things get interesting: the farm system is starting to show real signs of life. A wave of new talent has entered the organization over the past year, headlined by 2025 first-round pick Eli Willits.
He’s the kind of high-upside prospect who could be a foundational piece down the road. Add in arms like Luis Perales - acquired from the Red Sox earlier this offseason - and you can start to see the shape of a future contender forming.
The Nationals are no longer just collecting prospects; they’re building a pipeline.
Still, one of the biggest storylines that continues to loom over the Nationals’ offseason is the status of MacKenzie Gore. The left-handed ace, who earned All-Star honors, has been the subject of trade speculation for months. But as things stand now, a deal seems increasingly unlikely.
Why? Because the three teams most closely linked to Gore - the Cubs, Yankees, and Red Sox - have all gone out and addressed their rotation needs elsewhere.
Chicago landed Edward Cabrera. New York brought in Ryan Weathers.
And Boston made a splash by signing Ranger Suárez. Are those pitchers better than Gore?
Probably not. Gore likely has a higher ceiling than both Cabrera and Weathers and isn’t far behind Suárez in terms of current value.
But the Nationals didn’t pull the trigger, and now those opportunities appear to have passed.
That’s a tough pill to swallow, especially considering all three of those teams have farm systems that could’ve provided Washington with high-end, controllable talent in return. It’s not that the Nationals had to move Gore - but if they were ever going to maximize his value, this winter felt like the window.
Now, with those suitors seemingly off the board and the Nationals holding firm on their asking price, Gore looks more likely to stay put - at least for now. Of course, this is the MLB offseason we’re talking about.
Things can change fast. A surprise injury, a sudden shift in the market, a team getting aggressive - it only takes one phone call to reignite talks.
For now, though, the Nationals seem content to hold onto their ace unless someone blows them away with an offer. And maybe that’s the right call. Gore is still young, still under team control, and still flashing the kind of stuff that makes you think he could anchor a rotation for years to come.
So while Washington’s offseason hasn’t delivered a blockbuster just yet, it has laid the groundwork for what could be a pivotal stretch in the franchise’s rebuild. The front office is younger, the farm system is stronger, and the team’s identity is starting to come into focus. The Nationals aren’t ready to win right now - but they’re starting to look like a team with a real plan for how to get there.