The day has finally come. After weeks, months, and even years of speculating about the futures of the leaders of the rebuild for the Washington Nationals, manager Dave Martinez and General Manager Mike Rizzo, both have been fired following the team's sweep at the hand of the Boston Red Sox on Sunday afternoon.
Wow. That is my initial reaction following the absolute bombshell tweet that sent social media ablaze this afternoon. For months, it seemed as if the Lerner family was dragging their feet through the rebuild, but now they have finally made the tough call for the future of their ballclub that has been overdue for years.
Since winning the World Series in 2019 in improbable fashion, the Nationals have been the 2nd-worst team in baseball, only ahead of the Colorado Rockies, and have wasted the efforts of players like MacKenzie Gore, James Wood, and CJ Abrams, who all came into the organization in the stunning Juan Soto trade back in 2022.
BREAKING: The Washington Nationals have fired general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 6, 2025
The organization has had issues with various aspects of the team, from player development to external free agent additions, and there had been nothing done about it. While there have been successes like Travis Sykora and Brady House, the failures in player development from 1st round draft picks like Mason Denaburg, Elijah Green, and Carter Kieboom, among others, to continued failed free agent pickups like Lucas Sims, Colin Poche, and Maikel Franco, there is plenty of blame to go around throughout the entire organization.
But with the MLB Draft exactly 1 week away, Rizzo will not be the primary decision-maker for the 1st time since 2008, as he took the job with the Nationals in 2009. The decision by the Lerner family comes as the team had decisions to make on the long-term futures of both Rizzo and Martinez, who had options due this month, and it appears as if the team will be undergoing a dramatic change.
In the interim, Mike DeBartolo, the team's Senior Vice President and Assistant GM to Rizzo, will be promoted to the interim GM, and will be in charge of leading the team's most pivotal draft in over a decade as the Nationals look to climb out of the league's basement. An announcement on who the team will appoint as the interim manager will come on Monday, where the Nationals will have an off-day before going to St. Louis to face the Cardinals on Tuesday.
We will have much more to discuss over the coming week as more information begins to trickle out, but for now, there is a renewed hope from fans of the Washington Nationals for the first time in what feels like a very long time, as the team looks to get back to their winning ways from the 2010's decade.
What do you think of the Nationals firing both Mike Rizzo and Dave Martinez? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.