It will be years before anyone can know if the Nationals got enough legitimate prospects during their 36-hour trade deadline binge of 2021 to lift the franchise back into contention. As much as folks want to instantly grade a team's performance on trades, it simply can't be done until all involved players have a chance to prove who they are on the field.
But this much we can say already about the 12 young players the Nats just acquired from six clubs in exchange for eight veterans: They have...
The reboot of the Washington Nationals began tonight with a 34-year-old journeyman on the mound, a 22-year-old superstar batting third, a major-league cleanup hitter batting behind him, and a bunch of other assorted parts surrounding them. Some are potential parts of the franchise's future, some are not.
It may have left a majority in the crowd of 33,882 sad, angry, intrigued, maybe even excited for the possibilities in a few cases. But this is the new reality for an organization that won its...
When the clock reached 4 p.m. and it was all said and done, the Nationals had traded away eight veterans off their 2021 roster, four of them key contributors to the club's World Series title only 21 months ago. In their place will come 12 prospects of varying pedigrees from six other organizations, all of them now trying to win this season while the Nats begin a rebuild they hope is neither too long nor too painful.
In the final moments before this afternoon's deadline, general manager Mike...
Major League Baseball has suspended Starlin Castro for 30 days for violating the league's domestic abuse policy, and the Nationals subsequently announced they will release the veteran infielder once he completes the suspension.
"My office has completed its investigation into the allegations that Starlin Castro violated Major League Baseball's Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy," MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in the league's announcement. "Having reviewed...
As they continue to tear down their 2021 roster in the final hours leading up to today's trade deadline, the Nationals took a key step in their quest to rebuild the franchise back up in the coming years, agreeing to a deal with recent first-round draft pick Brady House.
The agreement, first reported by Baseball America and confirmed by a source familiar with the signing, is for $5 million, which is more than $450,000 above the designated slot value for the 11th overall pick.
House, 18,...
Breaking up is hard to do.
How do you cut ties with your first true love, say goodbye to someone who brought you so much joy, explain to them you're finally ready to move on?
How do you do it? First, you come to the realization yourself that it's time. Then you suck it up, tell it to their face in simple, honest terms, tell them how they'll always hold a special place in your heart and then turn around and walk away, confident you made the right decision, resisting the urge to look back over...
The dismantling of the Nationals' 2021 roster continued into the night when general manager Mike Rizzo struck deals to send Kyle Schwarber to the Red Sox and Daniel Hudson to the Padres in exchange for three more prospects in total, this only hours after agreeing to a blockbuster trade that will send Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to the Dodgers, this after starting the day by shipping Brad Hand to the Blue Jays.
The trade deadline doesn't arrive until 4 p.m. Friday, but the Nats might well be...
The Nationals aren't just trading Max Scherzer to a National League West contender. They're also including Trea Turner in the deal.
A blockbuster trade that will send both Scherzer and Turner to Los Angeles for four young players, headlined by the Dodgers' two top-rated prospects (catcher Keibert Ruiz and right-hander Josiah Gray), is in the final stages of being approved by all affected parties, a source familiar with the discussions confirmed tonight.
Also included in the trade are...
The Nationals are still evaluating trade offers for ace Max Scherzer, with the Padres having put forth a package of prospects that might be enough but other contenders still attempting to top it, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
Despite a late-afternoon report by The Athletic that general manager Mike Rizzo was close to a deal with San Diego, sources said nothing has been finalized yet and a handful of other clubs remain in contention. Complicating matters is the fact any...
As if there hasn't been enough drama already today, there's still another ballgame to be played in Philadelphia!
The Nationals and Phillies face off one more time, with another scheduled seven-inning game. And with a big line of thunderstorms bearing down on the area at some point later this afternoon, it may be a good thing the game is only scheduled for seven innings.
Patrick Corbin gets the start, one day after he was originally supposed to pitch. The left-hander may be hours away from...
The first of several deals the Nationals are expected to make over the next 28 hours was finalized today when closer Brad Hand was traded to the Blue Jays for catching prospect Riley Adams.
The trade was announced by the Nats during the first inning of their game against the Phillies but apparently processed prior to first pitch, because outfielder Yadiel Hernandez was recalled from Triple-A Rochester and immediately placed on the active roster.
Hand was among the most likely of the Nationals'...
Max Scherzer will start today's doubleheader opener in Philadelphia in what could very well be both his swan song after seven seasons with the Nationals and one last showcase for scouts of several clubs interested in acquiring the three-time Cy Young Award winner before Friday afternoon's trade deadline.
Scherzer will take the mound at Citizens Bank Park for a Nationals team that needed to place four players (Trea Turner, Daniel Hudson, Austin Voth, Alex Avila) on the COVID-19 injured list...
What does today have in store for the Nationals? It should be a fairly straightforward question, but the way things have been going around here lately, anything and everything feels possible.
If the day goes according to plan, the Nats and Phillies will play 14 innings of baseball, beginning at 12:05 p.m. We don't yet know who's pitching either of those games, but Patrick Corbin was supposed to start Wednesday's game before it was postponed, and Max Scherzer was supposed to start today's...
The wildest week in recent Nationals history took another unexpected turn when Major League Baseball announced tonight's game in Philadelphia is being postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak following Tuesday night's revelation that Trea Turner tested positive for the coronavirus.
MLB made the announcement at 5:45 p.m., saying the third game of this planned four-game series against the Phillies was called off "to allow for continued testing and contact tracing involving members of the Nationals...
It's impossible not to consider this week one of the most consequential in Nationals history. We don't yet know how it will end, but based on what has already transpired and what could be coming next, the ramifications for the franchise - both in the short- and long-term - are enormous.
It would be one thing if this was strictly about Friday's trade deadline, but it's not. There's more, and this one might be more important than anything else that happens. More important than Max Scherzer...
As if this week's events - and the prospect of events still to come - hadn't already left the Nationals and all who observe them on edge, here now was the sight of Trea Turner departing tonight's game in Philadelphia after scoring on Josh Bell's top-of-the-first homer.
Given the date on the calendar and the organization's July freefall, it wasn't inappropriate to immediately wonder if Turner had just been traded. Then, as replays of his trip around the bases began to be shown, it seemed...
A week that already was shaping up to be one of the saddest in the Nationals' recent history was jolted by another dagger of bad news today: Stephen Strasburg needs surgery for neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome, a potentially career-altering injury.
Strasburg's diagnosis came Monday night after an examination by specialist Gregory Pearl, the same Dallas doctor who performed thoracic outlet surgery on Nationals reliever Will Harris earlier this year.
Unlike Harris, whose condition was caused...
In what is shaping up to be one of the most significant weeks in club history, the Nationals do still have games to play every night. It may be too late for their performance on the field to change the front office's mind about what comes next, but they will be taking the field nonetheless and attempting to win a game against the Phillies.
Losers of five straight and 16 of their last 21, the Nats will try to get back on track tonight behind Erick Fedde, who was sharp last time out, allowing...
The Nationals are going to be sellers this week, of that there can be no doubt at this point. If it wasn't already clear after Sunday's walk-off loss in Baltimore, it surely was after Monday's walk-off loss in Philadelphia.
But there are different approaches to selling at the trade deadline, and that's where the real intrigue comes in as general manager Mike Rizzo starts fielding phone calls from his counterparts across baseball and decides how to proceed.
Are the Nats just selling veterans...
Whatever the rest of this week has in store, of one thing you can be sure: Davey Martinez is going to keep encouraging his Nationals to block out whatever trade deadline chatter they're hearing and just concentrate on that night's task.
"That message stands firm. I want them to focus on today," the fourth-year manager said on Zoom prior to tonight's series opener in Philadelphia. "Nobody knows what's going to happen an hour from now, nevertheless tomorrow or the next day. We've got a...