The final six and half weeks for the Nationals in 2025 might not appear to be supremely interesting on the surface, as they’re way out of contention at 47-72. But this is a very important stage for them, as they’re deep into a rebuild and need to start seeing signs of development from their young players. They also need to get a read on what veterans might be part of their future plans. Below are the five Nationals players under the most pressure for the rest of 2025, ranked in ascending order.
5. Mackenzie Gore
A few weeks ago, we wouldn’t have expected to see Gore on this list, but he’s struggled of late, with his ERA and WHIP ballooning to a mediocre 4.09 and 3.36, respectively. He does have an excellent 158 strikeouts in 132 innings, but even with that, his expected ERA according to Baseball Savant is 3.88, which isn’t much better than his actual one. He’s developing a track record of fading late in the year, and if he wants to be a true ace, he needs to figure out how to fix that. He’ll definitely have a rotation spot on this team for the next two-plus years (unless they trade him), but his status as a front-of-the-rotation guy is starting to look a little more unclear than it used to.
4. Nathaniel Lowe
Washington thought it was getting a solid first baseman when it traded for Lowe this offseason. But he’s regressed significantly in all phases of the game—so much that his job as the starting first baseman even for the rest of this season might be in jeopardy. Bennett Lehmann wrote Monday on District on Deck that the Nationals should let go of Lowe and/or DH Josh Bell to clear room for younger players to get more playing time. Given that it was reported that backup catcher Riley Adams and third baseman Paul DeJong were both taking reps at first base, the Nationals might be preparing to do just that.
Lowe is under contract through next year, though, and his value might be too low right now for the Nationals to swing a trade (he’d have to clear waivers first) and get an appropriate amount of value in return. If Washington is going to try at all to compete next year, Lowe could be a useful piece to help make that happen—but only if he is able to resurrect his career now. That makes this last six and a half weeks a very important stretch for Lowe. If he wants to be part of the Nationals’ plans in 2026 (and potentially beyond), he has to start performing. Alternatively, if the Nationals decide to stay in rebuild mode this offseason and shop Lowe, it would be very nice if he is able to regain some real value before they go and do that. If he can’t, their best option might be to non-tender him; Jackson Lynch wrote Monday on District on Deck that he believes this is the most likely scenario.
3. Jacob Young
Young is a great defensive center fielder. He’s in the 96th percentile of fielding run value according to Baseball Savant, and he has 11 Defensive Runs Saved and 8 Total Zone runs in just 86 games. But his hitting has gone from bad to worse this year; his OPS was at .658 in 2023 and .647 in 2024, but now it’s just .555. If he’s going to hit that poorly, it outweighs his defensive merits—his 0.9 Baseball Reference WAR this year illustrates that. He desperately needs to at least get back to his 2023-24 level of hitting—and even that might not be enough, given the Nationals’ crowded outfield.
Lehmann wrote in his Tuesday District on Deck article that he’d like to see Young demoted to Triple-A when Dylan Crews returns from injury, to work on his hitting. With the promising Robert Hassell starting to turn the corner offensively, Young might be running out of time, at least for now. An outfield of Crews, Hassell, and James Wood looks like it might be the most likely scenario for Washington’s long-term future unless Young turns things around at the plate.
2. Cade Cavalli
The Nationals just called up Cade Cavalli from Triple-A, and the results have been decent so far. He has a 3.86 ERA in 9.1 innings and 9 strikeouts, although his WHIP is a bit high at 1.50. He’d been struggling in the minors, but Washington’s TV broadcasters mentioned that his main goal in the minor leagues might have been development rather than results, and he might be energized by pitching in games that matter.
With that said, Cavalli’s poor minor-league performance might mean his window of opportunity could be limited. While Washington’s rotation is hardly strong, they do have other options: Mackenzie Gore, Brad Lord, Jake Irvin, and Mitchell Parker. Plus, they have other minor-leaguers whom they might prefer to give a chance to, such as Alex Clemmey, who was just promoted to Double-A and whom Bennett Lehmann wrote highly about on District on Deck yesterday. Cavalli really needs to make a statement if he intends to stake a clear position in this team’s rotation moving forward.
1. Keibert Ruiz
Keibert Ruiz looked like a decent catcher before 2024, but he has struggled mightily for a second straight year, potentially putting himself out of the team’s future plans for the time being. Drew Millas has impressed in a very small sample size, and it’s also possible that the Nationals could look to add a veteran catcher this offseason, in part to help a young pitching staff develop. When Ruiz gets off the 7-day concussion I.L., he’ll need to turn things around, and fast.