On Sunday, the Washington Nationals continued to play their frustrating brand of baseball that has unfortunately become a staple of their 2025 season. While the team has been dealt frustrating hands such as numerous injuries and a prolonged slump from their best player in James Wood, the wins have not been coming in as frequently as you would like to see at this point.
One of the worst news pieces over the long weekend came in the form of All-Star lefty MacKenzie Gore, who has struggled with inconsistency in the second half of the season, has been placed on the 15-day Injured List with left shoulder inflammation. As one of the only bright spots of the team in the first half of the season, Gore has not been the same guy since his name became heavily involved in trade rumors, and now the rest of his 2025 season is seriously in doubt.
If that is the last we have seen from Gore in 2025, it will be another frustrating campaign for the lefty from a fan perspective, as we saw prolonged stretches of dominance coupled with inconsistency and continued bad outings that have made his overall numbers look worse than they should. Combine Gore's inconsistent second half with the fact that Jake Irvin and Mitchell Parker have barely pitched at a big league level for the better part of multiple months now, and it's very clear to see why the Nationals have struggled to win games.
However, with the calendar finally turning to September, the Nationals finally have some reinforcements headed to join the big league club for the stretch run. On Monday against the Miami Marlins, the Nationals will send lefty Andrew Alvarez to the mound for his big league debut, and he is one of 2 September call-ups for the 2025 season.
Alvarez, a 2021 12th-round pick of the Nationals, has pitched to a 3-7 record, 4.10 ERA, and 1.25 WHIP in 25 starts for AAA Rochester, and he will take the place of Gore in the rotation for the foreseeable future. This will be a great opportunity for the 26-year-old Alvarez to show the organization what sort of value he can offer for the future, and hopefully he can provide a much-needed lift to the starting rotation.
Besides Alvares, the Nationals are also recalling utilityman Nasim Nuñez, who is set to be more of an insurance policy and potentially a guy that gets some looks with the season nearing a close. Nuñez is a defensive wizard and a menace on the basepaths, but doesn't really offer much at the plate with the bat. The team knows that they have in Nuñez, but for a club that has looked extremely lifeless over the last couple of weeks, perhaps giving him some playing time will allow the club to find a spark on the field and in the clubhouse.
What do you think of the Nationals' 2025 September call-ups? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.