A season of progress, but not more wins

History will forever show the Nationals went 71-91 in 2024. Just as they did in 2023. It’s not a won-loss record anyone should remember fondly, and the fact it didn’t change from 12 months prior would suggest the team as a whole didn’t really improve at all from one year to the next. For a franchise three years into a roster rebuild, that could feel quite disheartening.

Do you think it’s fair, though, to evaluate this team primarily on its won-loss record? Presented with that question over the weekend, Davey Martinez had to think long and hard before finally settling on an answer.

“Um … no, I really don’t,” the longtime manager said. “We’ve had a lot of different things happen in the course of the year.”

Martinez went on to detail how much the Nationals’ roster changed from April to September, how the team that ended the season was one of the youngest in baseball, which offered plenty of promise but also lent itself to more losses down the stretch than anyone would have liked.

“I thought a lot this morning about where we’re at,” he said. “We had to make so many transitions.”

Consider the Nats’ Opening Day lineup, way back on March 28 in Cincinnati. It featured a 2-3-4 of Lane Thomas, Jesse Winker and Joey Meneses. It included Eddie Rosario in center field. It began with Josiah Gray on the mound.

None of those players was around throughout September, aside from Gray, who watched from the dugout as his recovery from Tommy John surgery continued. The regular lineup usually featured the trio of CJ Abrams, Dylan Crews and James Wood. Center field was manned by Jacob Young, a serious Gold Glove Award candidate. The rotation was anchored by MacKenzie Gore and Jake Irvin.

This was a completely different team at season’s end than it was six months earlier. There were very few short-term stopgaps playing on a daily basis. Almost everyone who appeared on the field was a potential long-term solution.

And that’s why club officials view this 71-win season in an entirely different light than the previous one.

“Last year wasn’t the record I wanted. The year before wasn’t the record I wanted. And this year isn’t the record we wanted. Our goal is to win the division,” general manager Mike Rizzo said. “But with the youth on this team, I see that with the comparable record of last year, the way we did it this year, with the starting pitching coming along like we saw in the breakout of the young kids, and the minor league prospects having a strong season in the minor leagues, I think is progress.”

The Nationals believe they now have the makings of a successful rotation, with Gore and Irvin joined by rookies DJ Herz and Mitchell Parker, who all combined to make 114 starts with a 4.20 ERA and 1.297 WHIP. No, those aren’t the numbers of a playoff-ready rotation, but they’re a whole lot better than any recent season around here.

The bullpen was more reliable, led by All-Star closer Kyle Finnegan, workhorse setup man Derek Law and emerging young lefty Jose A. Ferrer.

The lineup featured legitimate young talent in Wood, Crews and Abrams, plus breakthrough performers in Young and Luis Garcia Jr. and potential role players Jose Tena and Juan Yepez. Catcher Keibert Ruiz, after an awful start to his season, produced a respectable .414 slugging percentage over the final three months.

This team, though, still had notable flaws. After ranking last in the National League with 151 homers in 2023, this year’s team still ranked last in the league and saw that total drop to a measly 135, fewest by this franchise in a 162-game season since 2008. Despite leading the majors with a whopping 223 stolen bases, the Nats’ 75 percent success rate ranked only 25th out of 30 clubs. They were also picked off a major-league-high 29 times. In the field, they were charged with 109 errors, third-most in the majors. They ranked 26th in Defensive Runs Saved (minus-17).

How much difference did all those “little things” make in the end? Well, the Nationals finished 14-23 in one-run games, 5-12 in extra-inning games.

“There are little things that good teams do to create wins,” said Finnegan, who had eight losses and five blown saves. “And that’s part of the development process, as well. Things you can control like running the bases well, eliminating mental mistakes. I think winning is a skill that can be learned. There are things that winning teams do, and I think we’re trending in that direction.”

The Nats don’t want to simply trend in the right direction, though. They want to actually get over that hump and start winning more games than they lose.

There are offseason acquisitions that need to be made this winter – a power-hitting first baseman, an accomplished starting pitcher, a couple of experienced relievers, maybe a veteran designated hitter – and it remains to be seen if ownership is willing to spend more on payroll than it during the first three years of the rebuild.

If the roster is supplemented, and if the current group of young players takes the next step forward, the Nationals should be better in 2025. Better enough to win? That’s the expectation that came out of the clubhouse and front office over the weekend.

“I think we should have better results next year, yes,” Martinez said. “One hundred percent.”

“The way I look at it, we’ve got a lot of guys who are ready to compete, and want to compete now,” Irvin said. “For me and for everybody else in here, I hope the focus is to come and be ready to compete for that championship. And I have no doubt in my mind that’s what it’s going to be.”

With increased expectations, of course, comes increased pressure. If the Nationals say they should start winning in 2025, they will subject themselves to more scrutiny if they don’t deliver.

They insist they’re ready to take on that challenge. After five straight losing seasons, after a repeat of last year’s 71-91 record, they believe the time has come to see real results on the field.

“I think next year it should be time to take a step forward and win more games,” Finnegan said. “I think we’ll be in a good position to be very competitive. That’s going to be our focus next year. We’re still developing, but we can win at the same time.”