After the August 3 trade deadline passed last month, Washington supporters had reason to feel pretty good about where things were headed. The Nationals had added pieces with an eye on the future, stayed in position to compete in 2026, and looked like they had managed to split the difference between building and winning.
That optimism didn’t last long.
Since then, the season has tilted in the wrong direction fast. The bats have gone quiet, losses have piled up, the bullpen remains on pace to break the all-time MLB blown saves record, James Wood missed time, and the CJ Abrams move to second base only added to the mess. What looked like a team on the rise suddenly found itself drifting away from the postseason again.
There is still plenty for Nationals fans to feel good about. The farm system is ranked in the top 10, the organization has young stars with real upside, and the front office is willing to embrace modern baseball technology.
That matters. But with the final month of the regular season here, there are still ways this can go sideways.
One of the biggest is Dylan Crews cooling off.
Crews has shown signs of life lately, including an eight-hit stretch over seven games in the final week of July that pushed his batting average into the .220s. He also delivered his first MLB walk-off, a moment that stood out for obvious reasons. Still, with so much talent waiting in the minors, he has an uphill climb if he wants to lock down a long-term place in Washington’s plans.
Another issue is what happens around Abrams and the shortstop situation.
Paul Toboni said Abrams has handled the move "like a pro" , and there’s no reason to assume trouble is coming. But a demotion from shortstop to second base can still weigh on a player, especially one who has become a favorite among fans.
Abrams has already earned a second All-Star nod and was closing in on Washington’s first 30-homer, 30-steal season, which made him look like a natural long-term fit at shortstop. The defensive numbers pushed the organization to make a change, and Toboni has made it clear he’ll examine every option to give the club the best chance.
Even so, one frustrated comment or a rough stretch could turn this into an uncomfortable offseason story.
The other concern is more straightforward: an injury to one of the young players Washington is trying to evaluate.
With the postseason no longer in reach, the final stretch is about learning what the organization has. Yohandy Morales has already debuted and came up a triple shy of the cycle.
Jared Simpson has looked encouraging. Will Dion and Erik Tolman have appeared in just seven and five games, respectively, yet both rank in the top 10 in WAR among Nationals pitchers this season.
Jackson Kent and Luis Perales are still trying to settle in, though Kent’s start against Miami was the best of his career. On the more established side, Daylen Lile has caught fire and earned an NL Player of the Month nomination, while Abimelec Ortiz has flashed major power even though the average hasn’t been there.
That’s the real appeal of this last month: a chance to see which of these players might matter in 2027 and beyond. But if any of them miss time now, it would take away from that opportunity. For a team already waiting for better days, that would be the most frustrating kind of setback.
In Other News...
Nationals Roster Move Adds Intrigue To A Telling Minors Night
While the Nationals farm system cycled through another full slate of minor league action, the night offered a mix of useful development markers across Rochester, Harrisburg, Wilmington and Fredericksburg. There were timely hits, steady innings and a handful of pitching lines that helped round out a busy evening for the organization, the kind of update that often says as much about depth as it does about the box score.
Amid all of that, the roster shuffle at the big league level added an extra layer of intrigue, with right-hander Max Kranick being outrighted from Washington. And because the performances below the surface carried their own weight, the night also stood out for what DJ Herz and Juan Reyes were able to do on the mound, giving the Nationals a couple more reasons to watch those affiliates closely as the season moves along. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals Have A Growing Nasim Nunez Problem At Shortstop
Nasim Nunez has kept himself in the Nationals lineup because of the things he does away from the batters box. His defense and baserunning have value, and Washington has continued to give him chances at shortstop, hoping the rest of his game can help cover for the offensive gaps. But for a player being treated like an everyday option, the bat has been too light for too long, and the underlying numbers only reinforce what the eye test has shown.
The concern now is that the production has slipped even further at a time when the Nationals need more from that spot, not less. Nunezs recent stretch has dragged down an already difficult season at the plate, and it has pushed the question from whether he can survive there to whether Washington can keep running him out regularly without getting burned on offense. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals Bullpen Is Chasing The Wrong Kind Of History
The late-season numbers have been ugly enough for the Nationals bullpen to make unwanted history, and the latest reminder came in a loss tied to Mookie Betts going deep. Washington has now seen 16 different pitchers record blown saves this season, a sign of how many different arms have been asked to shoulder the problem while manager Blake Butera keeps trying to piece together workable innings out of a unit that has spent most of the year under pressure.
There is still more uncertainty ahead, too, because one of the more important relief options is dealing with a forearm issue that could keep him out for a while. For a staff already chasing the wrong kind of milestone, any absence only adds to the challenge of keeping games within reach and avoiding another entry in a season full of negative firsts. [Read more 🡒]