The Washington Nationals wrapped up an impressive series victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday with a 5-4 victory. The series win was impressive for many reasons, but perhaps no reason more important than to create some momentum with the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers coming to town beginning on Monday night.
For the club, the team desperately needed to create some positive momentum, as a 1-6 start to the season caused a ton of outrageous takes all over social media, and some to even question if the rebuild was ever going to end. While 3-6 certainly isn't anything to brag about, it looks a whole lot better when you consider the caliber of opponent that the team took down. The Nationals have their first winning streak of the season, and if they can somehow take 1 of 3 from the juggernaut Dodgers, it will be an absolute miracle.
Sunday's win was impressive as they got to newly-signed Diamondbacks pitcher Corbin Burnes early, and never allowed him to truly settle into the game. Kyle Finnegan earned saves on back-to-back days, but even that wasn't quite enough to make my 3 biggest winners list. With that being said, who were the 3 biggest winners on the team? Let's take a look.
Alex Call
Overall in this series, I don't think there was any single player that came out as more of a winner than Alex Call. As the team's 4th outfielder, the expectation was that opportunities for Alex Call would be fairly limited, and many people were not even sure if he would have a spot in the organization until the club DFA'd Stone Garrett back in Spring Training.
While Jacob Young rode the bench the last 2 games due to some mechanical issues with his swing, Call made the most of the opportunity he was given. He picked up 4 hits in 7 plate appearances, while drawing a pair of walks as well. He drove in 3 runs on his 4 hits, and even stole a base as well. What Call gives you at the plate that Young doesn't do consistently well enough is a professional at-bat. He is unafraid to take his walks, and he has one of the best plate approaches on the team. If he keeps playing like this while Young continues to sputter, he may give the Nationals no choice but to eventually make the switch.
I think the Wood-Crews-Call outfield alignment needs to stick around for a bit. Time to transition Young into a 4th OF, but that’s just my take 🤷♂️
— Bennett Lehmann (@DCBerk) April 5, 2025
Dylan Crews
The other guy who was a big winner in this series was Dylan Crews. It was a rough first week to begin the 2025 season for the 2023 #2 overall pick, but he bounced back in a big way over the weekend. Even if his impact wasn't exactly massive from a counting numbers standpoint, he finally has his first few base hits out of the way.
His first hit came on Friday, when he laced a single back up the middle for what had to be a very relieving feeling for Crews. Nationals fans on the internet were legitimately beginning to worry, but I even wrote last week once he broke the seal, the hits would begin to fall. He was overdue for a hit, and it finally came. Then on Sunday, he had his first multi-hit game of the year, and stole a bag as well.
If Call continues to play well, keep an eye on Dylan Crews potentially shifting over to his natural center field full-time, as the drop off defensively is not as drastic as some would think. We are talking about a Minor League Gold Glove award winner last year, after all.
Mitchell Parker
Switching over to the pitching side, how good has Mitchell Parker been so far this season? In 2 starts against 2 World Series lineups in the Phillies and Diamondbacks, all Parker has done is go 2-0 with a 0.73 ERA through 12.1 innings. While Parker is never going to be a guy who overpowers hitters and strikes a ton of guys out, he just knows how to get deep into games. His starts have been crucial in being able to help bridge that gap for Davey Martinez to get to his "A Bullpen," and you know the relievers appreciate his ability to go deep into games.
We knew Parker was different after he went into Los Angeles in his big league debut last season and became the 1st Nationals pitcher since Stephen Strasburg to win his MLB debut, and it appears as if he is out to prove that his successful rookie season was no fluke. At the very least, Parker has turned into a very reliable #3 starter in this rotation, and his performance on Saturday, going 6.0 innings and allowing just 2 hits and 1 earned run while scattering 4 walks was some of his best work as he routinely worked himself out of jams. I am very excited to see what Parker can do his next time out in Miami against the Marlins.
Who was your biggest winner of the weekend for the Nationals? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.