The Washington Nationals moved to Washington DC from Montreal in 2005 when I was only five years old. I have watched a city grow to love a team, its players, and the atmosphere of baseball. Over that time there have been a few players who I have latched onto that made me fall in love with the game and gave me lasting memories.
Full credit for this idea goes to Jeremy Hasson. He wrote about the five Nats who made him fall in love with the game. You can read his by clicking here.
Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso Soriano spent only one season with the Nationals in 2006, but it was a magical season. That one season set a benchmark for what I considered to be a truly elite season growing up. I have always felt that Soriano should be celebrated more by the franchise for what he accomplished.
Soriano’s 40/40 season will forever be in my memory. Lost in that though was that he had 41 doubles as well. Of course, at the time I didn’t really know what I was watching. I just knew every single game he did something electrifying. The 2006 Nationals finished last in the division and did not really have much of a reason to watch. Soriano gave you that reason.
In my opinion Soriano brought legitimacy to the Nats. He brought fans to the ballpark over and over again. He was that superstar that every team trying to establish themselves needs. He was only in Washington DC for one season but man what a season it was.
Tyler Clippard
The 2026 Washington Nationals could have used Tyler Clippard. Actually, every Nats team could use Tyler Clippard. He had two different stints with the Nationals during his long career. His first lasting from 2008-2014 and then his second in 2022.
The definition of consistency, you knew when those glasses came running out of the bullpen it was going to be a stress-free inning. Clippard represented the Nationals twice in the All-Star game with the first coming in 2011 and again in 2014. He was the winning pitcher in the 2011 Mid-Summer Classic.
Clippard never threw the hardest. He never had the best stuff. He was never a superstar. All he ever did was just do his job. I learned what a good pitcher coming out of the pen is supposed to do by watching Tyler Clippard.
Bryce Harper
I want to take you back to April 28, 2012. The Washington Nationals are at Dodgers Stadium playing the Los Angeles Dodgers. 2009 first overall pick Stephen Strasburg is on the mound, and 2010 first overall pick Bryce Harper is in the lineup hitting seventh. This was the debut of what many said was going to be the next greatest player in MLB history.
Everyone first heard about him when he was only 17 years old. He made the cover of Sports Illustrated. He had the mythical like stories said about him in the same way you hear stories about Babe Ruth.
He immediately started showing off why he was considered a generational talent. Harper laced a double over the head of Matt Kemp in the seventh for his first career hit and then threw a laser to home plate in the bottom of the inning which should have been his first career outfield assist.
That night in LA began an incredible seven year run for Harper in DC. He played with reckless abandon. My lunch table was defined by arguments of who was better: Bryce Harper or Mike Trout. It ultimately climaxed in 2015 when Harper won the NL MVP. Even though he left in 2018 he left his mark on a whole generation of Nats fans including me.
Anthony Rendon
Growing up I watched Nationals games with my grandmother. She didn’t miss a game. Whether it was a 7:00 home game or a 10:00 West Coast game against the Giants she would watch to the very last out. Her favorite player was Anthony Rendon. To be honest, I don’t really know why but what I can say is what a player she picked. Tony two bags because arguably the best third basemen in baseball while on the Nationals.
A first round pick in 2011, Rendon became one of the main reasons for the Nationals almost decade of prominence in 2010s. He was a key contributor in the 2019 World Series as he hit two home runs and drove in eight RBIs. One of those home runs came in Game 7 to help give the Nats their only World Series trophy.
He made baseball look so easy with his slick fielding at the hot corner partnered with his loose batting stance and smooth swing. Every night you knew Anthony Rendon would hit a double and probably drive in Trea Turner with two outs.
When I think about Anthony Rendon I think of my grandmother. I think about being in her living room, sitting in a recliner while she is on the couch and both of us cheering on the Nats, but especially Anthony Rendon.
Ryan Zimmerman
I saved the best for last. When talking about certain Nationals players that defined my childhood, how could I not mention Mr. National himself, Ryan Zimmerman.
From his walk off against the New York Yankees at RFK to his walk off against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday Night baseball to open Nationals Park he was here for everything. With the game on the line, you wouldn’t want anyone else up at the plate. When the Nationals made the World Series in 2019 of course it was Zimmerman who hit the first homer for the franchise in the Fall Classic.
Employee number 11 was the first draft pick the franchise ever made and honestly, I can’t think of a better way to establish a culture. A stalwart at third base who had the knack for a flashy diving play or side arm throw that all of us tried to recreate, he eventually moved over to first base later in his career.
He debuted when I was five and retired when I was 21. He was my childhood. Being there for the last game of his career felt like the end of a fairytale run. Everyone realized that something very special just ended. Something that only comes around once or twice in a lifetime if you are lucky. He may not be a Hall of Famer but ask any Nationals fan who watched him play and they will speak about him the way Yankees fans talk about Derek Jeter or Orioles fans talk about Cal Ripken Jr. Ryan Zimmerman will always be my greatest Washington National.
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