Latest news and updates about the Nationals
Entering 2024, there were high expectations for Jose Ferrer and the kind of breakout he could have after a strong 2024 season where he posted a 3.38 ERA and 2.76 FIP over 32 innings. While his season didn’t get off to the best of starts, posting an ERA over 5 in the first half of […]
From Federal Baseball | 16 days ago | 1 read
Teams across the league had to make Rule 5 Draft related 40-man roster decisions the other day. Now that has happened and we know who is available to be selected in the Rule 5 Draft. As a bad team, the Nats are likely to pick a player because they can afford to roster that player […]
From Federal Baseball | 16 days ago | 2 reads
A lot of things went wrong in 2025 but none were so clearly made to work NOW and so clearly a failure then the Nats' answer at 1B. The Nats brought in Nathaniel Lowe with a trade* to man the position in 2025-2026 likely with an eye for having him possibly be there beyond. He had been a sneaky good 1B, one that ranked 5-10 overall with consistent solid hitting since arriving in the majors and glove that he worked into average to good. There was one thing they didn't consider though... Nat...
From Nationals Baseball | 20 days ago | 1 read
The GM meetings are underway in Las Vegas currently, and teams are making and taking calls on all sorts of players and positions of need. In the Nationals case, they have been looking to add to the organization’s catching depth, according to Jim Bowden, and are actively making calls about it, along with the Rays, […]
From Federal Baseball | 23 days ago | 3 reads
In the last couple of days, there has been some buzz about a potential CJ Abrams trade. It has not been as loud as the smoke around MacKenzie Gore, but it is out there. Yesterday, MLB Trade Rumors put out a story on finding a match for an Abrams trade, and it got people talking. […]
From Federal Baseball | 23 days ago | 3 reads
There are a lot of question marks throughout the Washington Nationals roster, but the most uncertainty lies in the teams starting rotation. This is a stark contrast to last offseason where the rotation felt relatively settled after a few breakout performers in 2024. However, after regression and potential trades, it is anyone’s guess as to […]
From Federal Baseball | 23 days ago | 1 read
Huh. That was a longer break than I thought. Thanks for the kind words in the comments. Yes, I'm not as motivated to post as I have been in the past, but rest assured I won't end the blog with a ghosting. First I'll try a couple new things if I really can't keep up what I've done in the past. Then I'll let you know if that ain't working for me. Speaking of what I've done in the past - Off-season position reviews. The Nats catcher situation was bad. Having your ca...
From Nationals Baseball | 24 days ago | 2 reads
After firing 64 year old Mike Rizzo, Nationals owner Mark Lerner has seemingly been searching for the Fountain of Youth. In the past six weeks he has hired a 35 year old GM, a 33 year old manager and a 30 year old pitching coach. Clearly, the Washington Nationals have a new and very young […]
From Federal Baseball | 24 days ago | 3 reads
So, the Washington Nationals have a new pitching coach and his name is Simon Mathews. That is right, only one T in Mathews. At 30 years old, he continues the trend of the Nationals hiring young. However, Mathews is deeply knowledgeable about the current trends in modern pitching. He is equipped to bring the Nats […]
From Federal Baseball | 24 days ago | 4 reads
Since taking over as the pitching coach/guru/director for the Cincinnati Reds, the club has consistently established itself as a pitching-first organization that’s earned quite the bit of respect around the league. They’ve drafted well in that time, too. Adding the likes of Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Andrew Abbott, Rhett Lowder, Chase Burns, Tony Santillan, Graham […]
From Red Reporter | 25 days ago | 5 reads
While it is possible, I find it unlikely that the Washington Nationals will be shopping at the top of the free agent market. However, I do think and hope that they attack the middle of the free agent market. The Royals 2023/24 offseason is always one I look at and think why can’t the Nationals […]
From Federal Baseball | 25 days ago | 3 reads
Daylen Lile was the best thing Washington Nationals fans had in the second half of the 2025 season. As the rest of the team floundered, Lile looked like a star. His September was the most exciting month from a National since Kyle Schwarber’s June in 2021. He got rewarded with a 5th place finish in […]
From Federal Baseball | 26 days ago | 5 reads
The Washington Nationals rebuild started at the 2021 trade deadline when they traded away a large chunk of their roster. However, 4.5 years later it is clear that those moves set the rebuild back rather than giving it the intended jolt. I wanted to look back and analyze the moves made at that deadline. Let’s […]
From Federal Baseball | 27 days ago | 3 reads
Over the years we have seen a few pitchers who struggled in the MLB reinvent themselves in the KBO. A couple recent examples are Merrill Kelly and Erick Fedde. This offseason, there is a former big league pitcher who put up record setting numbers in Korea and his name is Cody Ponce. If you have […]
From Federal Baseball | 27 days ago | 3 reads
Ryan Loutos started the season in the Cardinals organization and ended the year with the Nationals. But in between he spent 40 days with the Dodgers. The Dodgers tied their franchise record by using 40 pitchers in 2025, matching 2024. Loutos was No. 25 on the list, when he debuted for them on May 16 […]
From True Blue LA | 27 days ago | 3 reads
While Paul Toboni has not made any big splash moves, he signaled that big changes are coming this offseason. Minor League depth has been something the Nationals have been missing for years and Toboni is making it clear that he wants to change that. The Nats had 34 Minor Leaguers elect free agency, the most […]
From Federal Baseball | 28 days ago | 6 reads
In a season where the Nationals pitching staff was pretty brutal, Brad Lord was a bright spot. The former Home Depot employee stepped up for the Nationals in a variety of roles. However, as we enter 2026, Lord’s role is still up for debate. As a starter Lord was reliable, but he showed flashes of […]
From Federal Baseball | 29 days ago | 3 reads
The Nationals have a glut of outfielders currently in the major leagues, including James Wood, Dylan Crews, and Daylen Lile, as well as others who will be arriving soon, such as Christian Franklin and Andrew Pinckney. James Wood is locked into left field for the Nats, as he is the club’s brightest young star and […]
From Federal Baseball | 29 days ago | 3 reads
With the offseason fully underway, I wanted to introduce Nats nation to the 2026 MLB draft. Due to the lottery rules, we already know the Nationals will be picking 11th this year. With new POBO Paul Toboni’s background, the draft will be a massive emphasis for the Nats. Here are some players they should be […]
From Federal Baseball | 30 days ago | 2 reads
After yesterday’s minor deal with the Tampa Bay Rays to acquire a potential bullpen arm in Cole Wilcox, POBO Jerry Dipoto and GM Justin Hollander remain active in their efforts to add to The Pile this offseason and claimed RHP Ryan Loutos from the Washington Nationals. The move puts the 4o man roster at 38. […]
From Lookout Landing | about 1 month ago | 4 reads
Paul Toboni made a bunch of moves to the 40-man roster this afternoon. None of them were huge moves individually, but together the moves created a lot of space on the 40-man roster. With the offseason here, Paul Toboni will look to optimize that 40-man roster as much as possible. Earlier this afternoon, it was […]
From Federal Baseball | about 1 month ago | 3 reads
For a second time this offseason, a former Washington National has become a manager. This time it is former reliever Craig Stammen, who got hired as the manager of the San Diego Padres. Stammen had a 13 year career, which was split almost evenly between DC and San Diego. Now he will be managing the […]
From Federal Baseball | about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Baseball America is probably my favorite resource for all things prospects. There is a small paywall, but it is a price worth paying in my humble opinion. Today the great folks over there released their top 10 Washington Nationals prospects going into the 2026 season. They have a lot of boots on the ground, so […]
From Federal Baseball | about 1 month ago | 3 reads
The new era of Nationals baseball is right around the corner. Today the Washington Nationals released their 2026 Spring Training schedule. There is always an element of hope and newness to Spring Training, but this year will have even more of that with the new regime. The Nats open up their spring on February 21st […]
From Federal Baseball | about 1 month ago | 3 reads
Yesterday, Nationals President of Baseball Operations Paul Toboni took some questions from local media about his hiring of Blake Butera. This was the first time he shed light on the process and what is next. A lot of interesting stuff came out of the presser, so I wanted to talk about it. It has been […]
From Federal Baseball | about 1 month ago | 4 reads