For the Washington Nationals, 2025 is all about letting their young core develop and seeing what they have for the future. Of course, their goal is to qualify for the postseason for the first time since 2019, but that is likely a longshot. Instead, the success of this season will be measured by the growth of their young core.
Having debuted in 2020, Luis Garcia Jr. isn’t always considered as much a part of the young core as players like James Wood and Dylan Crews, each of whom are beginning their first full seasons as major leaguers. It is easy to forget, with 2025 being his sixth season, but Garcia Jr. is still only 24 years old. His age and potential, as a former top 100 prospect, make him an integral part of the Nats’ future and his development an integral part of this season.
The Nats clearly think highly of Garcia Jr., having batted him third on Opening Day. Then, in the second game of the year, they faced their first left-handed starting pitcher and Garcia Jr. found himself on the bench.
Last season, despite breaking out and being voted the Nats’ Player of the Year by the local media, Garcia Jr. almost exclusively played against right-handed starting pitchers. Ildemaro Vargas served as Garcia Jr.’s primary platoon partner, starting at second base against left-handed starting pitchers. This year, Amed Rosario is inexplicably assuming the Vargas role. As such an important part of the Nats’ future, Garcia Jr. should be given every opportunity to develop this season; he is not going to develop while sitting on the bench.
Admittedly, Garcia Jr. performs better against right-handed pitchers than he does against lefties. Last season, he hit .288 with 17 homers against righties, good for a 120 wRC+. Against lefties, he hit just .259 with one homer, a 78 wRC+. It is important to note, though, that he had 414 plate appearances against righties and only 114 against southpaws. With such a small sample size, it is difficult to read much into his relative struggles. He has also not been given an opportunity to improve against left-handed pitching.
Perhaps platooning Garcia Jr. with Rosario gives the Nats the best chance to win games in 2025. However, the front office showed us with another lackluster offseason that they are still more focused on winning in the future than now. Then, during Spring Training, Mark Lerner told the Washington Post that he doesn't think the Nats are quite ready to win yet, saying, “there’s no point in getting a superstar and paying him hundreds of millions of dollars to win two or three more games.” Following that logic, there’s also no point in stunting the growth of one of their building blocks to win two or three more games in yet another rebuilding season.
This is not at all a knock on Rosario. After all, he went 3-for-5 in his Nats’ debut, with a home run and three runs scored while playing in place of Garcia Jr. But, there is a reason the Nats were able to sign Rosario for just one year and $2 million this offseason. He should be used as a utility player, receiving somewhat regular playing time while spelling players all over the field, not taking away consistent playing time from a key building block.
After serving as Garcia Jr.’s primary platoon partner last year, Vargas is now playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate. Rosario likely faces a similar fate. Meanwhile, the Nats envision Garcia Jr. partnering with CJ Abrams to form their middle infield duo on the next playoff-contending roster.
Although the Nats may not be as competitive as they would like to be yet, their young core will give people a reason to pay attention regardless of the standings. This season provides a crucial look into the future and gives their inexperienced players opportunities to grow while the team doesn’t necessarily have World Series aspirations. That opportunity should not be stolen from any of the young players, including Luis Garcia Jr., especially to give playing time to someone who may not even be on the roster a year from now.