While the Washington Nationals concluded their 2025 season on Sunday afternoon, it was a weekend of ceremony in the Nation's Capital. From the retirement and outpouring of support around longtime announcer Bob Carpenter to a handful of young future Washington Nationals being honored in the ballpark over the weekend, it was time for the big leaguers to get a little bit of love as well.
As part of the annual awards season for the Nationals, a trio of 2025 players were honored by the local DC sports media for their performances in what was a difficult season overall. Although the end result of the season was not what anyone at all had anticipated back in spring training, it was still nice to see these 3 players honored.
Player of the Year
The 2025 Nationals Player of the Year award really could only go to one man, and that was star outfielder James Wood. In what was just his first full big league season, the 23-year-old turned in an awesome campaign, although it might not have been as great as everyone expected based on his first half.
Wood finished with a .256/.350/.475 slash line, good for an .825 OPS to go along with 31 homers, 94 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases. His improvement in the field throughout the season was great to see, and hopefully he made some necessary tweaks down the final stretch that he can carry into 2026 and beyond. Daylen Lile's outstanding performance to finish the year gave him a lot of consideration, but it wasn't enough to unseat Wood's entire body of work.
Pitcher of the Year
The second award given out was the 2025 Nationals Pitcher of the Year, which was presented to lefty MacKenzie Gore. He made his first All-Star team this season, although his second half drop in production for yet another year was legitimately concerning. Hopefully, Gore can come back healthy in the 2026 season, unless he gets traded this winter, as was rumored at the deadline.
He finished the season with a paltry 5-15 record, and his ERA jumped up all the way to 4.17 to go along with a 1.353 WHIP. He also struck out 185 batters in 159.2 innings, but his amount of missed bats dropped off in the second half. Brad Lord turned in a very solid rookie season after bouncing back and forth between the rotation and bullpen, but Gore ended up getting the nod over Lord.
Good Guy Award
The final award given out by the DC media was the Good Guy Award, which was presented to Josh Bell. This one should be no surprise, as through thick and thin, Bell has always been regarded as a fantastic locker room presence. His first half was abysmal, but nobody would have seen the later half run that Bell went on to end the season.
After surprisingly not being traded for at the deadline, Bell finished the season on an absolute tear despite spending over half of the year below the mendoza line. His final slash line was solid, batting .239/.326/.421 to go along with 22 homers and 63 RBIs in 140 games. He stayed positive through everything, and young players in the locker room credited him with being a steady presence in the clubhouse in a tough season. Also important to note, his work in the community was second to none, and it was great to see Bell rewarded for all of his hard work on and off the field.
What do you think of the DC media's choices for the Nationals award winners? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.