The Washington Nationals are going to look a lot different in 2026 than they did to end their tumultuous 2025 season, and fans of the organization like myself are thanking their lucky stars. Nobody knows if the approach by the Nationals to hire a bunch of young yet touted coaching prospects will work out, but it's a worthwhile gamble by the franchise.
For years, the Nationals had been looked at as an organization that was a bit behind the times with regard to hitting practices, pitching practices, and of course multiple aspects of player development, scouting, and drafting. Fortunately for the sake of the organization, many new faces and ideas will be entering the building for the first time in a very long time.
However, with new faces entering the building on the coaching staff side of things, the Nationals will be saying goodbye to many faces that had become mainstays in the organization. The organization of course said farewell to former General Manager Mike Rizzo as well as former skipper Dave Martinez back in July, which caused other guys to get a chance to receive a long look from the top brass in the organization with regard to their long-term fit.
One of those guys was Miguel Cairo, who took over as interim manager for the Nationals after Martinez was let go. Cairo was very similar to Martinez in many ways, as he was an old-school manager that wasn't as up-to-speed with a lot of analytical trends in modern baseball. However, Cairo was extremely fiery and willing to stick up for his players a lot more than Martinez did in his final season, and that might very well go down as Cairo's legacy with the Nationals, which is not a bad thing at all.
After interviewing for the Nationals' managerial opening before Butera was hired, Cairo is now moving on to his next chapter, as he will now be headed up the Beltway to join the Baltimore Orioles and new skipper Craig Albernaz as an infield coach. Cairo finished this season with a 29-43 record as the interim manager, and will help provide the rookie manager Albernaz with a stable veteran coaching presence.
Hopefully for Cairo he is able to be successful in whatever his next role entails, as he was put into an impossible situation this year with the Nationals, but never complained about it whatsoever. We will be wishing him the best in his new chapter!
What do you think of Miguel Cairo taking a new position with the Orioles? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.