20 Greatest Players in Nats History (No. 6-10)

It’s time for the third installment of our 20 Greatest Players in Nationals History series, which means we’ve reached the Top 10. If you missed the first two installments, be sure to click these links for No. 16-20 and No. 11-15.

It was no easy task finalizing the 20 greatest players in 20 years of Nats baseball, and it was no easier deciding who made the Top 10, and in what order. Reminder: This is a subjective exercise, so there’s no hard and fast rule or stat to determine the order. This is about both the player’s tangible performance and also his broader impact and significance within the history of the organization.

We’ll wrap things up next Sunday with the highly anticipated Top 5. But before we get to that, here’s No. 6-10, featuring some pretty big names who each played parts of at least seven seasons in D.C. …

NO. 10 – IAN DESMOND
Shortstop, 2009-15
Stats: 927 G, 3793 PA, 3480 AB, 424 R, 917 H, 185 2B, 21 3B, 110 HR, 432 RBI, 122 SB, 37 CS, 232 BB, 890 SO, .264 AVG, .312 OBP, .424 SLG, .736 OPS, 99 OPS+, 16.5 bWAR, 16.2 fWAR

In March 2005, the Nationals called up a 19-year-old shortstop drafted the previous summer by the then-Expos to play in a few big league spring training games. He immediately turned heads with some dazzling plays in the field, prompting Jim Bowden and Frank Robinson to declare him the organization’s “Shortstop of the Future” and give him a chance to play in the team’s first exhibition game at RFK Stadium.

It took more than four years before Desmond made his Sept. 10, 2009, major league debut (he homered off the Phillies’ Joe Blanton). And it took two more erratic seasons in the majors before his game fully came together. But beginning in 2012, Desmond finally lived up to the billing. Now wearing No. 20 in honor of Robinson, he earned the first of his two All-Star selections with 33 doubles, 25 homers, 21 stolen bases and a .292/.335/.511 slash line that earned him MVP votes.

Desmond would put together three consecutive 20-20 seasons, winning Silver Slugger honors each time and establishing himself as one of the best all-around shortstops in baseball worthy of a major contract. The Nats offered him a pretty good one: seven years, $107 million. Desmond believed he could do better in free agency, so he turned it down. At which point Mike Rizzo pulled off a trade for Trea Turner, signaling a long-term change at shortstop.

Desmond’s walk year of 2015 did not go well, and he paid the price for it. He eventually signed with the Rangers for $8 million, not to play shortstop but to play left field. He did parlay that into a five-year, $70 million deal with the Rockies, but he was never the same player again and never played in the majors after opting out of the 2020 pandemic season.

Though the end of his time in D.C. wasn’t fun, Desmond nonetheless remains strongly connected to the Nationals organization, which recently announced plans to honor him with their 2025 Power of Baseball Award for his community work. He’s been back to Nats Park several times since retiring and will continue to be remembered fondly for both his performance and character.

NO. 9 – GIO GONZALEZ
Starting pitcher, 2012-18
Stats: 86-65, 3.62 ERA, 213 GS, 1253.1 IP, 1123 H, 537 R, 504 ER, 99 HR, 485 BB, 1215 SO, 112 ERA+, 1.283 WHIP, 20.6 bWAR, 22.3 fWAR

Rizzo’s acquisition of Gonzalez from the Athletics in December 2011 for four prospects (Derek Norris, Brad Peacock, Tommy Milone, A.J. Cole) was impressive enough, but the real key to the deal was the immediate signing of Gonzalez to a five-year, $45 million extension that also included two club options on the back end. Thus did the Nats get themselves long-term rights to a good big league pitcher, at a very reasonable price.

And Gonzalez was a good big league pitcher. Yes, he could be maddening at times, loading the bases on walks, racking up high pitch counts and muttering to himself on the mound. But more often than not, he found a way to get himself out of major trouble and in the big picture was highly effective nearly his entire seven seasons in D.C.

The peak came right away in 2012, when Gonzalez won a league-leading 21 games with a 2.89 ERA and 207 strikeouts to finish third in Cy Young Award voting. But he was consistently effective for years after that, not to mention exceptionally durable. Aside from a few weeks on the injured list in 2014, he made every single start.

The biggest knock on Gio is his postseason resume. He started six playoff games, failing to reach the sixth inning in any of them. Three of those starts were elimination games the Nats proceeded to lose. But those disappointing October outings aren’t enough to overshadow everything else he did here, nor deny him a secure spot as the fourth-best pitcher in Nationals history.

NO. 8 – JORDAN ZIMMERMANN
Starting pitcher, 2009-15
Stats: 70-50, 3.32 ERA, 178 GS, 1094 IP, 1047 H, 439 R, 403 ER, 104 HR, 221 BB, 903 SO, 118 ERA+, 1.159 WHIP, 20.3 bWAR, 21.2 fWAR

A second-round pick from a Division II school in a small Wisconsin town, Zimmermann had both the stuff and the temperament to thrive under the bright lights of any major league ballpark. The early stages of his career hit a speed bump with Tommy John surgery, but he returned fully healthy in 2011 (with a planned shutdown that September that drew far less attention than a teammate’s comparable shutdown the following year) and immediately fashioned himself as one of the most consistently effective pitchers in baseball.

From 2011-15, Zimmerman delivered a 3.14 ERA and 1.135 WHIP, averaging 31 starts and 194 innings. The bulldog right-hander led the league with 19 wins in 2013, then followed that up with a 2.66 ERA in 2014, earning All-Star selections and Cy Young Award votes both seasons.

It all culminated on the final day of the 2014 regular season, when Zimmermann authored the first no-hitter in Nationals history, aided in no small part by Steven Souza’s diving catch in left-center field for the 27th out. Six nights later, he started Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the Giants and carried a one-hit shutout into the ninth inning. You probably know what happened next, and it wasn’t pretty, but it certainly wasn’t his fault.

As with Desmond, Zimmermann was set to become a free agent following the 2015 season. And as with Desmond, the Nats offered him a long-term deal, which he turned down. He had a pedestrian (by his high standards) 2015 season but still got a five-year, $110 million deal from the Tigers. It was an abject disaster, with Zimmermann often plagued by injuries and going just 25-41 with a 5.63 ERA in 97 starts for Detroit. He retired after two token appearances for his home state Brewers in 2021, then retreated to a peaceful life of fishing and hunting in tiny Auburndale.

NO. 7 – TREA TURNER
Shortstop, 2015-21
Stats: 637 G, 2803 PA, 2565 AB, 444 R, 769 H, 135 2B, 32 3B, 93 HR, 306 RBI, 192 SB, 37 CS, 208 BB, 509 SO, .300 AVG, .356 OBP, .486 SLG, .842 OPS, 120 OPS+, 22.3 bWAR, 23.8 fWAR

Officially, he was the “player to be named later” in a blockbuster, three-team trade with the Padres and Rays in December 2014. In truth, everyone knew Turner was the top prospect the Nationals were getting in the deal; they just weren’t allowed to formally acquire him until he was one year removed from the draft. So he actually only played 58 games in the Nats’ minor league system before making his debut on Aug. 21, 2015.

Turner would make it to D.C. full-time in 2016, though initially, he played center field while the slick-fielding Danny Espinosa held onto the shortstop job. Turner’s offensive prowess and speed, though, made the permanent move to shortstop a given by 2017.

He continually got better each season, developing into a well-rounded hitter who not only could compete for batting titles and stolen base crowns but also hit for power, including a career-high 28 homers in 2021. He finished top-seven in MVP voting in both 2020 and 2021, this after serving as leadoff man and starting shortstop for the 2019 World Series champions.

The Nationals had reason to want to keep Turner long-term, and he expressed a desire to stay as well. But in a storyline that should feel all too familiar by now, the club never made him an offer he felt was worth taking before having a shot at free agency. So with the franchise falling out of contention in 2021 and his value sky-high, Rizzo made the controversial decision to include Turner with Max Scherzer in a trade deadline deal with the Dodgers, bringing a sudden halt to his time here even though he still had more than a year of club control.

Turner thrived in L.A., earned a $300 million contract with the Phillies and continues to star for them, making far too many trips back to Nationals Park as a visitor. He’s still well-liked by local fans, though. That championship ring he helped secure probably has something to do with that, and distinguishes him from his former and current teammate who comes next on this list.

NO. 6 – BRYCE HARPER
Outfielder, 2012-18
Stats: 927 G, 3957 PA, 3306 AB, 610 R, 922 H, 183 2B, 18 3B, 184 HR, 521 RBI, 75 SB, 31 CS, 585 BB, 834 SO, .279 AVG, .388 OBP, .512 SLG, .900 OPS, 139 OPS+, 27.8 bWAR, 28.6 fWAR

He adorned the cover of Sports Illustrated as a 16-year-old in 2009, proclaimed as “Baseball’s Chosen One.” One year later, the Nationals made him their second straight No. 1 draft pick, pairing him with Stephen Strasburg as the faces of the franchise’s first rebuild. The spotlight was incredibly bright, the pressure immense. But for Harper, this was all part of the grand plan. He had always been prepared for it, and he relished the opportunity to now live it.

It’s easy to forget now how wild Harper’s rookie season was. He debuted on a Saturday night at Dodger Stadium with a double, a go-ahead sacrifice fly and an outfield assist. A couple weeks later, he stole home off Cole Hamels on Sunday Night Baseball. He won Rookie of the Year and batted second for a 98-win division champ, tripling and homering in a do-or-die Game 5 against the Cardinals.

And that was just the start. The only things that ever tripped up Harper during his time in D.C. were a couple of knee injuries, a torn thumb ligament and the occasional temper flare-up. When he was on the field and in full control of himself, he was unstoppable. He was a one-man wrecking crew during the 2014 National League Division Series (alas, the Nats could’ve used some offense from his teammates). He was the unanimous MVP in 2015 with a ridiculous .330/.460/.649 slash line. He was an All-Star six times in seven seasons. He won the Home Run Derby in his home ballpark in 2018.

And then he was gone. Like so many others, the Nationals tried to convince Harper to sign an extension, ultimately offering 10 years and $300 million (some of it deferred). Like so many others, he preferred to go to free agency. He had to wait until the final day of February, but he finally cashed in with a 13-year, $330 deal with the hated Phillies and was immediately booed upon his return to South Capitol Street.

It took a couple years, but Harper has settled into his new home. He won another MVP. He reached the World Series for the first time in his career. His D.C. days, great as they were, feel like a long time ago. So why does he check in so low on this list? It’s mostly a credit to the five outstanding players who rank higher. Not to mention the one legendary achievement they all realized here that Harper did not.