Washington Nationals: Five biggest storylines for the 2018/19 offseason

After a disappointing 82-80 season in 2018, the Washington Nationals have a huge offseason ahead. Here are the five biggest storylines heading into 2019.

Yes, the Washington Nationals are sat at home on the couch this October. It wasn’t supposed to be this way, but here we are.

At least it means that they can get a head start on their offseason preparations, and boy, is it going to be a big one. There are going to several crucial decisions this winter.

So much went wrong for the Nats in 2018, and exposed a lot of holes. It’s funny thinking back about the complacency that the team, fans and reporters alike had around the team being comfortable NL East winners.

But in the end, they had too much to overcome with a rookie manager, slumps and injuries across the board as well as some interesting decisions from the front office.

Can they get back to the summit again in 2019? There’s a reasonable chance at the very least. They are still going to have a lot of hitting and pitching talent, they just need to apply it better.

But if anything, 2018 showed that the Atlanta Braves are ready to compete again. The Philadelphia Phillies are no joke either, they just need to stay the course and not fall apart like they did last season.

Hopefully, the competitiveness will whip out the complacency that was around the team last offseason, and force management to make the necessary changes. If not, they risk being left behind and constantly flirting with .500 again.

While there are going to be several storylines to track this winter, there are some huge ones that shape how the offseason goes. Let’s start with the big one, Bryce Harper.