The Washington Nationals are currently on a four-game winning streak. In that regard, although the team lost six of its first seven games, more recently, things are going about as well as anyone could've hoped.
The trouble what that thought process is it feels like we're cherrypicking and celebrating small victories, as opposed to sustained success. To that end, even with four consecutive wins, the team is still below .500 through 11 games.
With a different offseason approach, perhaps we could be celebrating more encouraging developments than a 5-6 record, or more success stories than a few individual core players. With that in mind, here are a few of the most noteworthy holes in the roster that, if filled, would likely have Washington in a different conversation.
Frontline Starting Pitcher
On one hand, it's hard to not be thrilled with the way MacKenzie Gore and Mitchell Parker's campaigns have started. But on the other hand, is that really enough? We'd probably feel a lot better if Gore was #2 in the rotation, and Parker and others were also pushed down a peg.
The Nationals are feeling the lack of depth already, with DJ Herz potentially missing a large chunk of the season (if not the whole year) and Michael Soroka (who was already experimental) also on the 15-day IL. That doesn't even mention Josiah Gray, Cade Cavalli, and top prospect Travis Sykora. However, I'd still argue that the lack of a veteran ace or #2 starter to truly lead the staff is a bigger issue than the dwindling depth.
Some true frontline starters like Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell and Max Fried were free agents this offseason. There were certainly other dependable mid-rotation types of pitchers available. Walker Buehler felt like a high-upside candidate. And clearly Garrett Crochet, who just inked a lucrative contract extension, was also available on the trade market.
Whether it's money or a haul of minor league prospects, it certainly seems like the Nationals had the resources to take a swing to acquire a leader of the starting rotation. Instead, they signed two backend starters (Soroka and Trevor Williams), a total unknown (Shinnosuke Ogasawara), and ultimately no one of true significance
Designated Hitter
We could probably expand this to the lack of an impact bat more broadly. However, the glaring black hole is at DH (quite literally, the "designated hitter"). The Josh Bell reunion is fun in some regard, and he's a generally capable hitter. But if he's being banked on to be one of the more featured hitters in the lineup, that's a swing and a miss. And if he was signed as some sort of placeholder instead of pursuing a better option, that's simply a bad process.
I'll acknowledge that we don't know what we don't know. It's entirely possible that Washington was in the running for some of the bigger bats on the market this offseason, and it simply wasn't reported or discovered by the media. Ultimately, only one team gets the privilege of signing a given player, and it can be difficult for bad teams to sign good players without significantly overpaying.
Still, let's call a spade a spade. Ever since the inception of the DH in the National League, this franchise has struggled to fill it with someone who meets the standard. It's frankly hard to fathom, but Bell appears to be another low-budget placeholder, with no obvious long-term successor on the horizon. And even more broadly, the team has lacked impact bats for an extended period of time.
Outfield
Whether it's a true impact player or not, the Nationals could have benefited from adding a quality option or two in the outfield. The team banked on (from left to right) James Wood, Jacob Young and Dylan Crews to a degree that they probably should not have.
I feel obligated to provide the disclaimer that I have plenty of confidence in Wood as a hitter. His upside at the plate is obvious, and it has come to fruition so far this season. My point has more to do with the fact that he's one of three starters in the outfield who is very young and didn't have many deposits in the bank at the Major League level.
I have somewhat similar feelings about Crews. However in his case, the hitting upside wasn't quite as apparent, and he didn't tear up the minor leagues in the way that Wood did. A better strategy would have been to force Crews to win the starting spot, with the option to send him to Triple-A if needed. Instead, that barely seems to be a possibility, even after a start to the season that has been about the worst-case scenario for Crews.
When it comes to Jacob Young, I am of two minds. The speed and defense that he adds are great, but he hasn't shown the ability to contribute much to speak of at the plate. If the lineup as a whole was better, someone of Young's prototype would be more manageable. But short of that, it's hard to feel great about having him in the lineup every day. In fact, given his recent struggles combined with a surge from Alex Call (who is similarly a better fit in a bench role), Young has often not been in the lineup recently.
Whether it was Anthony Santander or Teoscar Hernandez, or someone down a tier like Jurickson Profar (blessing in disguise?) or Tyler O'Neill, there were players to be had. Instead, the Nationals said "no thanks".
Bullpen
Here's the most age-old tale for this franchise. Even in the glory days during the 2010s, Washington has seemingly always had bullpen uncertainty, whether it's been the closer/setup roles or overall depth.
This year, the problem is both. They settled for Kyle Finnegan as their closer after non-tendering him earlier in the offseason, signed a couple cheap veterans in hopes that they could return to their prime form, and otherwise sat on their hands - despite having very little proven production in-house.
It's fun to see what some of the young, self-developed arms are capable of in the senior circuit. Asking for them to play high-volume and/or high-leverage roles should not be the plan on paper, though. They should be built up, not thrown into the fire, yet the latter is what has been forced to happen far too often.
Across the entire roster, I enjoy watching some of the young players we've been waiting for as much as the next guy. The successes of Wood, CJ Abrams and Keibert Ruiz among others are encouraging, as well. But still, it's simply hard to stomach some of the clear roster gaps, especially since they appear to be results of complete inaction from the front office. Failed good-faith attempts at least show that an effort was made. This year, like recent years, sufficient effort wasn't made.
Do you agree, or do you think these feelings are too strong? As always, you can let me know your stance @stephen_newman1 on X.