After the signing of Kyle Finnegan, the Nationals roster is close to being set. Outside of the fourth bench spot with an ongoing completion between Jose Tena, Andres Chapparo, Juan Yepez, and Nasim Nunez, the most intriguing storyline is who will crack our final 5-man rotation spot, between DJ Herz, Mitchell Parker, Shinnosuke Ogasawara, and Cade Cavalli if he proves he’s healthy in the next couple months.
Without losing any key pieces in free agency, let’s take a look at a few former Nationals from last season who have signed elsewhere, mostly in minor league deals looking to crack an Opening Day roster.
Joey Meneses - New York Mets
Although he is one of the more disappointing duds on this list, Nationals fans should never forget Joey Meneses and his unbelievable run in 2022 after the Juan Soto trade.
Meneses was one of the best hitters in baseball over 56 games in 2022, putting up 1.7 fWAR with 13 home runs and a 158 WRC+, before disappointing seasons in 2023 and 2024.
Meneses is a long shot to make the Mets roster, especially after the recent re-signing of Pete Alonso. Look for Meneses to be a depth piece in Triple-A for New York, potentially getting a shot there or elsewhere if there are injuries ahead of him on the depth chart.
Brandon Sproat gets Joey Meneses on 3 pitches in live BP pic.twitter.com/V6zDZfP5xe
— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) February 23, 2025
Eddie Rosario - Los Angeles Dodgers
Eddie Rosario’s disastrous Nationals tenure ended fairly quickly, getting DFAd after 57 games, putting up a .183 average with 7 home runs and a war over -1.
Rosario has been a reliable major league bat from 2017-2023, always being a streaky hitter, but the wheels seemingly fell off last season after poor play in DC and Atlanta.
Rosario is another long shot to make the Dodgers roster, but you always have to consider the Dodgers know something we don’t. Rosario will be one of those all-time Nationals trivia pulls as he remarkably was our Opening Day center fielder last season.
Eddie Rosario slugs the first home run of #SpringTraining! pic.twitter.com/hLpMRZl4sk
— MLB (@MLB) February 20, 2025
Tanner Rainey - Pittsburgh Pirates
This is one of the sadder ones. I have always been a big fan of the former World Series Champion Tanner Rainey, but he clearly was not the same after coming back from injuries last season.
When Rainey was on, he was one of the more dominant under-appreciated relievers in baseball, being one of the only bright spots in the 2020 and 2022 seasons before getting Tommy John surgery.
Rainey has done well in his two appearances for Pittsburgh this far, with 4 strikeouts over 2 scoreless innings. Rainey needs to continue his strong start and flash higher velocities, but with a thin bullpen, has a good shot to pitch meaningful innings in Pittsburgh this year.
Tanner Rainey goes 1-2-3 in the 5th pic.twitter.com/6cePHLWoCI
— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) February 22, 2025
Ildemaro Vargas - Arizona Diamondbacks
Ildemaro Vargas was an all-time good guy, providing value with his versatility and decent glove, but it was definitely time for him to move on from the organization.
Vargas will be remembered more for his good clubhouse vibes and a big smile, but at 33 years old, has a chance to make MLB rosters in the future with his versalitiy.
Vargas has done well over 11 at-bats thus far, with 5 hits, including a home run. Vargas will probably not make the roster, barring injuries, but it is easy to root for a guy like him to pull it off.
Welcome back, Vargy 😤
— Reno Aces (@Aces) February 21, 2025
Aces all-time-hit leader, Ildemaro Vargas launches a 4️⃣0️⃣3️⃣ foot home run in his first at-bat back in a @dbacks uniform pic.twitter.com/BKaHxTlT76
Joey Gallo - Chicago White Sox
Joey Gallo was another disappointing signing in Washington, occasionally flashing the power and a smooth glove at first base, but for a majority of the time, showed more of the bad side with injuries and strikeouts.
In his lone season in DC, Gallo almost exclusively played first base, hitting 10 home runs with a 70 WRC+ and -0.2 fWAR in 76 games. His strikeout rate was an astonishing 39.2%, while he still gets his walks, with an above-average 12.3% walk rate.
Gallo has a decent shot to break out of camp on the Opening Day roster on a lowly White Sox squad, coming off arguably with worst season in MLB history at 41-121.
Jim Thome working with Andrew Vaughn and Joey Gallo on the backfields. Vaughn described this drill as “getting on the ball” as they stand at an angle. Thome was first up for Gallo pic.twitter.com/u36CQVdXuA
— The Welsh (@IsItTheWelsh) February 22, 2025
Other notable departures: Jordan Weems (Braves), Amos Willingham (Braves), and Dylan Floro (Athletics), Harold Ramirez (Mexican League), with Patrick Corbin and Nick Senzel currently unsigned.