There was a lot of nonsense that went on in Washington this year. It was a season in which the Nationals were supposed to take a significant step forward, with James Wood and Dylan Crews leading the charge towards a potential wild card push. But instead, the team finished with nearly as many losses as they have throughout the last few years.
This offseason should be viewed as an opportunity to "trim the fat" off this roster, while certainly also adding some top end talent. With that in mind, here are a few players who could see themselves in danger this offseason.
Keibert Ruiz
This might be a longshot, but Ruiz appears to be in as much danger as ever. After an uninspiring 2024 season, he followed it up with an even more disappointing 2025. Ruiz batted just .247 this season with only two home runs in 68 games this year, while fighting on-and-off concussion symptoms.
Not only has his performance slipped; Ruiz has also been slapped with the dreaded "injury prone" label. Keep in mind that last year, the catcher battled a flu-like illness that resulted in a period of substantial weight loss. He was able to play through it for the most part, albeit as a lesser version of himself. This year however, he missed more than half the season, and performed even worse than the prior year when he was on the field.
Sure, there's plenty more time and money left on his contract, but with every year that passes, this becomes less of an obstacle. Ruiz is now three years into an eight year, $50 million contract that runs through 2030 with two additional club option years. At this point, more than $13 million of that contract has already been paid, with an average of slightly over $7 million per year due over the next five years. That's not desirable, but it's also easier to buy out than it was a year ago - especially after another underwhelming season, and with major leadership changes at the top of the organization.
Jacob Young
Robert Hassell III could arguably be tossed into this same category, but there seems to at least be some desire to get a closer look at the rookie. This cannot be said for Young, who in spite of his stellar defensive play, regressed at the plate and on the base paths in 2025. If he can't be a league-average hitter and excel as a base stealer, his path to play time becomes very cloudy.
KICKED IT OFF HIS OWN FOOT THEN CAUGHT IT⁉️🦶
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 21, 2025
ONE OF THE CRAZIEST SNAGS EVER BY JACOB YOUNG
(via @MLB)pic.twitter.com/qM1TCE0MaH
The equation was a lot different at this time last year. Young was coming off a semi-respectable season as a hitter with 33 stolen bases and a Gold Glover caliber season in the outfield. He missed some time due to injury this year, but his OPS dipped below .600 and he stole fewer than half as many bases at a significantly worse success rate.
Additionally, there's much more competition now. Wood and Crews both debuted in the second half of 2024, but we hadn't seen Hassell or Daylen Lile yet. The former will almost certainly be on the roster next year and is somewhat duplicative to Young, and the latter was perhaps the most successful hitter on the entire team this season. That leaves Young as the team's fourth or fifth best outfielder now (depending on whether you prefer Young or Hassell). Might it be time to turn the page to something newer?
Mitchell Parker
Much like with Young and Hassell, a case could be made for Jake Irvin as the odd man out. Both of them were similarly ineffective this season. However in Mitchell Parker's case, it's worth remembering that we were having a debate between him and DJ Herz last year before the latter's season ended before it began due to an injury.
Parker's first inning troubles were well-documented this season, although it should be noted that his 8.59 third inning ERA was even worse. But overall he gave up too many hits, was hit too hard, and couldn't stay around the strike zone consistently. That's the triple threat you don't want to see from a pitcher, not to mention a starting pitcher.
It's very possible that he sticks around in a bullpen role, but he simply can't be back in 2025 as a starter. The team needs to add a top-tier starting pitcher anyway, so there would need to be an odd man out. The same can be said for Irvin, but Parker did nothing to cement himself as safe this season.
Jake Irvin goes 6 innings allowing 4 runs (all via a pair of 2-run homers in the 4th). He finishes the season with a 5.70 ERA, tied with teammate Mitchell Parker for highest among all qualifying MLB starters.
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) September 27, 2025
What do you think? Are there other players who could see themselves on the outside looking in entering 2026? Let me know your thoughts @stephen_newman1 on X.