5 steps to build the Washington Nationals into a contender this offseason

The last 5 seasons since the Washington Nationals won the 2019 World Series in 7 games over the Houston Astros have been tough, and that's putting it mildly. From trading away a generational talent in Juan Soto to saying goodbye to numerous franchise legends like Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, and Ryan Zimmerman, the franchise has undergone a complete facelift.

While the rebuild has brought in some new faces who us fans hope will lead to the next era of successful Nationals baseball in James Wood, Dylan Crews, CJ Abrams, and others, they aren't going to get it done by themselves. Every successful team has a combination of homegrown talent, trade acquisitions, and free agent signings that all come together for the pursuit of a World Series title. The 2019 Nationals were a great example of this, and perhaps it's time for General Manager Mike Rizzo to make some acquisitions that are going to help the club be competitive again.

In this article, I will be putting on my General Manager cap, and will outline an offseason plan that I would put in place for the Nationals to finally build upon their 71-91 records of the last 2 seasons, and hopefully usher the franchise back into contention. Big shoutout to James O'Hara, who created a Washington Nationals GM exercise to give every fan a chance to build their own roster for 2025, complete with salary numbers for many big names and trade targets. You can find this page here, and be sure to give him a follow over on Bluesky as well!

Just in case you didn't see my appearance with Ryan Clary on the Locked On Nationals Podcast last weekend, I went through and detailed my offseason wishlist for Mike Rizzo and the Nationals' front office, and also gave my detailed reasoning for why I believe that he will be able to build a contending team this offseason if given a green light by ownership. I've been very open in my backing for Rizzo in that while his moves over the last couple years such as trading Soto have been tough, he is still the right man for the job in helping the Nats to return to relevance. I am steadfast in my belief of this, and you can catch my appearance on the podcast below.

Without further ado, let's take a look at my attempt at being the General Manager of the Washington Nationals, and helping to return the franchise to the promised land in just 5 steps. Just a disclaimer, this entire piece gets thrown into the trash if the club makes a surprise signing of Juan Soto, but since the chances of that happening are extremely low, if not zero at this point, let's jump into my plan.

**Again, please note that I went for more of a realistic approach and did not just throw money at every free agent possible to build a contender. I did try to stick within the criteria of not giving the club a Top 10 payroll going into 2025 to appease the Lerner family, while also laying out a roadmap to a few very legitimate moves for the club to improve the overall product on the field.**

1. Acquire a Veteran Ace

For starters here (no pun intended), the Washington Nationals need to go out and acquire a veteran starting pitcher to lead the crop of young arms in the rotation. Those young arms, consisting of 2024 holdovers in MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin, DJ Herz, and Mitchell Parker, are all solid arms, with Cade Cavalli and Josiah Gray also figuring to factor into that picture at some point pending their return from injury as well.

However, none of them have truly proven themselves capable of being the true ace of a staff. While that's not necessarily a bad thing, if the team is going to get themselves back to October baseball, they are going to need a guy that they would have the confidence to hand the ball to for Game 1 of a playoff series, and as of right now I don't believe that guy is on the roster.

As for some names I would target that fit this pedigree? There a bunch of great arms in this free agent class that would make a ton of sense, but I don't think the Nationals will be players for some of the top tier names like Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell, or Max Fried. Instead I believe the Nationals will be in the territory of landing pitchers in that second wave of starters, with guys like Nathan Eovaldi and Jack Flaherty fitting into this territory. I also could see them going for a bounce-back candidate like Walker Buehler or Shane Bieber as well, who will likely cost even less than Eovaldi or Flaherty.

As for my pick? Although I predicted earlier this offseason that the Nationals would sign Jack Flaherty, I would prefer the club sign Nathan Eovaldi instead to anchor the team's rotation every fifth day. My reasoning here is simple, and I talked about it last week when breaking down Bleacher Report's prediction that the club would sign Eovaldi and another guy that I will talk about later on.

"He comes with a fantastic track record of postseason success, with a 3.05 ERA in 17 career playoff appearances with 12 starts, and a solid 9-3 record overall. I would have the utmost confidence in the Nationals handing him the ball for Game 1 of a playoff series, and he would be the veteran ace that could help to stabilize the Nationals' young rotation."

Bennett Lehmann, on Nathan Eovaldi

While Eovaldi has at times struggled with durability, given the fact that he's 34-years-old and has the postseason track record necessary to lead a young rotation, his signing would give the club a reliable arm every fifth day. If not Eovaldi, I'd have my eyes on Walker Buehler, who is a prime bounce-back candidate coming off a World Series title with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he looked a whole lot better in the postseason than he did in the regular season.

Sign RHP Nathan Eovaldi for 3 years, $60 million

2. Find a solution at 1st Base

The second piece to the puzzle for my Nationals offseason plan is to fix the gaping hole that has existed at first base. Since the retirement of Ryan Zimmerman in 2022, the position has had a variety of players that haven't worked out from Joey Meneses to Joey Gallo. It's time that the club addressed the need in a big way this offseason, and luckily for the Nationals there are plenty of options to do just that.

Most teams are going to see Pete Alonso as the prized possession of the position this offseason, and while the New York Mets' first baseman might even be a target that the Nationals will pursue, his price tag is going to cost a lot more than some of the other alternatives on the open market. If the Nats chose to sign Alonso, it would change the way that I view my next section that I'll get into here in just a bit.

But for the sake of the exercise here, my pick to finally put an end to the misery that has been first base for the Washington Nationals is going to be Christian Walker from the Arizona Diamondbacks. He has been a guy that I have written about for awhile as being a great fit for the club, and the more I look into it, the better I feel about potentially signing him.

He brings Gold Glove defense, having won the award for each of the past 3 seasons in the National League, and has hit an average of 33 per season in that same time span as well. Those are two huge boxes that a young team needs at first base in stellar defense and legitimate power that can bolster the lineup as a true threat to protect Crews, Wood, and Abrams.

Since he will be 34-years-old the day after Opening Day in 2025, the club can sign him on a shorter-term deal, allowing him to serve as the guy at first base until the Nationals are successfully able to further develop a prospect like Yohandy Morales, who made his way up to AA this past season and could use another season or two down in the minors before taking over the position long-term. Walker would be able to serve as a veteran leader and stable presence for the Nats infield, and surely hitting 30+ homers can't hurt either.

Should the team choose to go the cheaper route, names to watch out for as potential options would be veterans Josh Bell, Paul Goldschmidt or Carlos Santana. While a reunion with Bell could make sense and he could be cheaper than Walker, there is definitely a drop-off in production that you get with either of these three alternatives. This position likely boils down to how deep they feel the farm system is, and if a guy like Morales is believed to be ready for the majors in a year or two, maybe a 1-year deal to one of these guys makes more sense.

Sign 1B Christian Walker for 3 years, $54M

3. Bring in another Impact Bat

This is where it gets fun. If you're still reading at this point, first of all, thank you. Second of all, this is the area that I am most excited to see which direction the club chooses to go, as there are certainly a number of options that make a ton of sense for the Nationals. While obviously we would all love for a Juan Soto homecoming, the odds of that happening are slim and none, and slim just left town.

However, to me there are two names here that make a ton of sense for different reasons, and both of them have already been connected to the Nationals in some early offseason rumors. The first of the two names is Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman. While I will admit that I have never been the biggest fan of his over the years, there's no denying the consistency and true veteran presence that he could bring to the younger Nats' clubhouse. He would be this era's version of the Jayson Werth signing in 2011, given that they were both guys with a track record of consistency, success, and obviously have the championship pedigree.

While the 30-year-old has never been able to match the success he had back in 2019 when he accounted for 8.9 WAR and an absurd 1.015 OPS, he has been a consistent 4.0+ WAR guy since then in every season in which he has played at least 145 games. He is reliable in that you can basically pencil him in every year for 25-30 homers, 90+ RBIs, and stellar defense at third base, where he actually took home his first career Gold Glove award in 2024. This signing would be a signing that would take some getting used to, but would be a great addition in my opinion.

The other guy that would make a ton of sense is outfielder Anthony Santander from the Baltimore Orioles. He is coming off a 2024 season that saw him make his first All-Star appearance, and hit a career-high 44 homers while also driving in 102 RBIs. He has been a consistent power threat for the Orioles over the past few years, and it seemed like things really came together for him in 2024. While I do think he also would be a worthwhile signing for the club, given that he's just 29-years-old, hits for a ton of power, and likely could be had for less than Bregman, his signing to me presents more risk in the fact that I think the floor is a lot lower with him than it is with Bregman. Combine this with the fact that Santander's defense in the outfield has been subpar at best, and it leaves the question of where he would play should he be brought into the fold.

Sure, he could play first base, but in this scenario I've already signed Walker, and with a younger and more athletic outfield consisting of Crews, Wood, and Jacob Young (maybe Robert Hassell III?), there's a chance you're signing Santander to be a primary Designated Hitter, while occasionally drawing starts in the outfield. Given that his contract would likely exceed $100 million, that's a lot of money to give to a primary DH at this time, unless you want to try to hide him in right field and slide Dylan Crews to center, leaving Jacob Young as a trade candidate or fourth outfielder.

Personally, although I wouldn't be mad with either signing, I'll choose to open up the checkbook to give this iteration of the Washington Nationals their very own Jayson Werth, and will lock in Alex Bregman with a long-term deal. Truthfully, I can see the Nationals signing either one of these guys since they've already been linked to both Bregman and Santander this offseason, so I'll go with my gut and opt for the LSU product.

Sign 3B Alex Bregman for 6 years, $180 million

4. Bolster the Bullpen

This section has changed dramatically due to Friday's transactions that included the decision to non-tender incumbent closer Kyle Finnegan. While I wrote in my piece covering the move that Finnegan was a good reliever but was nothing special, the fact of the matter is that the Nationals now have a huge need at the back end of their bullpen, and will need to address the unit overall via free agency or by exploring the trade market.

With Finnegan's non-tendering coming from the standpoint that the organization clearly did not believe he was going to be worth his estimated $8.6 million amount due in arbitration, the Nats are going to want to do what they've always done, and cut corners anywhere they can when it comes to their bullpen. Last offseason, it worked out with a couple of cheap signings in Derek Law and Dylan Floro, who were able to serve as late-inning guys to help bridge the gap to Finnegan for the ninth.

However, this offseason, I believe that the Nationals will find their man for the ninth inning via trade, and will bring in Pete Fairbanks from the Tampa Bay Rays. The 6'6" righty is absolutely nasty, and for a Rays team that will be playing their home games from the Spring Training field of their division rival New York Yankees, shedding payroll might be something they choose to do. Fairbanks is 48/56 in save chances over the last two seasons, and also boasts an impressive 31.7% strikeout percentage, safely above league-average. We know the Rays are always open to making moves, even if it means parting with some of their top talent.

Fairbanks is affordable, as he will count for just $3.67 million in 2025 with a $7 million club option for 2026. Basically the Nats could acquire 2 years of control for a great reliever that will cost them only about $2 million more than it would have cost the club to re-sign Finnegan for just the 2025. A package of Trey Lipscomb and Jackson Rutledge or one of them with another minor leaguer or Top 30 Prospect should be enough to get it done. The Nationals secure their closer and only give up a pair of players with no real path to the big league club, but still have a couple of other spots that will need to be filled.

You would think that your two lefties in the bullpen for next season should be incumbent arms Jose A. Ferrer and Robert Garcia, but I would love to see an upgrade over Garcia, who struggled with inconsistency last season while posting a 4.22 ERA. I would go out and try to bring in lefty AJ Minter from the division rival Atlanta Braves, as Spotrac only projects him to have a market value of about $2.7 million. While I don't think that's necessarily accurate for a guy with a career 3.28 ERA and a 29.3% career strikeout rate, but if we were able to take away a bullpen weapon from a division rival for cheap, I would pull the trigger. With Minter being only 31-years-old, I would be content with an affordable 3-year deal to get him to defect from the Braves.

With the loss of a pair of righties following the non-tender of Kyle Finnegan and Tanner Rainey, the club now has to fill two more spots at the back end of the bullpen that we weren't previously anticipating. As for the name I'm looking at to replace Finnegan and Rainey, I would be looking to sign veteran righty Phil Maton, and giving September call-up and Virginia Tech alum Zach Brzykcy a spot in the bullpen due to his electric stuff. Maton should be able to be had on an inexpensive, short-term deals and will fill a major need for this bullpen. Spotrac projects Maton to be in the range of a 1 year, $4.1 million deal, which is just what we need to fill this spot. The veteran righty will be a setup piece to get to newly acquired closer Pete Fairbanks, and we just overhauled the back end of the bullpen for less than $12 million in total value this season. As a reminder, Finnegan was projected to make $8.6 million alone in 2025 after arbitration, so I'll take the 3 quality arms we can acquire instead of just him.

Trade for Pete Fairbanks (2 years, $10.67 million remaining)
Sign LHP AJ Minter for 3 years, $12.6 million
Sign RHP Phil Maton for 1 year, $4.1 million

5. Sprinkle in another Veteran Signing

Remember some of those names that I sprinkled in at the end of the section about signing a first baseman as potential alternatives to Christian Walker? Well, now is the time where we could see one of those players added to the roster to primarily serve as the DH of the club, but also provide valuable veteran leadership that can help take this team to new heights.

Sure, we've already added Bregman, Walker, and Eovaldi, who are 3 players that are older and have postseason experience, but how about one more singing to serve as the cherry on top of a fantastic rebuild? There are 3 names that I would seriously consider making a move for in order to fill this final spot on the club, and they all could likely be had for fairly cheap. The three names I would consider here are Justin Turner, Josh Bell, and Carlos Santana.

Most of you reading should be familiar with Bell, who spent a year and a half in the Nation's Capital before being sent to San Diego along with Soto at the 2022 trade deadline. While his numbers since leaving the Nats have somewhat declined, he is by all accounts a great clubhouse presence and should be a shoe-in for 20+ homers. The time he spent in Washington included some of the best numbers of his career, and surely he'd welcome a return to DC with open arms, as he's bounced around a few teams since leaving the Nationals.

The other two names, Santana and Turner, are both similar in that they are likely going to be playing out their final couple seasons, but are similarly excellent clubhouse presences with fantastic reputations. The 39-year-old Santana and 40-year-old Turner would both provide a ton of great wisdom, knowledge, and leadership to a club that could certainly stand to learn a few things from some ultimate professionals.

However, with rumors already swirling that Turner is going to be a hot commodity for the same reasons with a couple teams and that Santana might be seeking one last multi-year deal, I'll go ahead and pursue a reunion with Bell for a shorter term and lesser amount than the other two veterans. Spotrac projects Bell to land on a 1 year deal for a value of $5.2 million, Turner at $7.7 million, and Santana at $5.6 million, so we'll go with Bell for that duration and price.

Sign 1B/DH Josh Bell for 1 year, $5.2 million

Starting with a payroll total of $49,766,200, I was able significantly upgrade the club with a combination of free agent signings that will help the club in both 2025, and the next few years as well. By locking up Walker, Bregman, and Eovaldi for multiple years, I've ensured that the club will have the necessary veteran leaders in place to help usher in a new wave of Nationals baseball.

By taking short-term, low-risk fliers on Bell and Maton, I've given myself flexibility to be able to unload them at the deadline just in case things go south this year, and in the event they have big years and are able to rebuild their value, could possibly provide us with a discount next year in free agency as a token of their gratitude.

By bringing in Fairbanks and Minter to bolster the bullpen on deals exceeding 1 year, I've allowed them to settle in to established roles in the bullpen and provide mentorship to some of the younger arms like Ferrer, Brzykcy, and Mason Thompson. These were low-risk, high-upside moves that substantially improve the overall outlook of the bullpen immediately.

In total for the active 26-man roster the payroll would only be $114,281,667, which isn't bad at all until you remember that we must include the $35 million cap hit that the Stephen Strasburg deal still carries as well, bringing our total number to roughly $149,281,667 for the 2025 season. While all of my numbers might not be 100% exact, this number would have ranked just 15th in payroll rankings for last season across the MLB, which still doesn't exceed the consistent Top 10 payroll ranking the club had during the 2010's. Ultimately, assuming the club takes a step towards being competitive in 2025 with my scenario, it could mean that there is room for flexibility to make moves at the deadline or in future offseasons as well, depending on how happy the Lerner family is with my progress.

I believe that my scenario makes everyone happy in this instance. The fans get to watch a vastly improved product on the field with many new household names joining the fray, the Lerner family doesn't even come close to exceeding the $241 million luxury tax, and the Nationals' young stars get a bunch of much-needed veteran leadership to help the club take their next step towards being competitive. Simply put, if you give me the reigns to this offseason and tell me that I can add no more than $100 million to the payroll, I'll build you a contender and still have a hair under $500K left to give all the employees in the organization a little bonus for all of their hard work.

What do you think of my 5 step plan to build the Washington Nationals into a contender? What moves would you rather see? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.