The Washington Nationals organization heading into 2026 is a number of things. While the overall record at the end of the season might not look pretty, the main focus and priority of this season has to be focused on getting the most out of their in-house talent.
Lots of their young core talent has had both flashes of greatness but also some struggles, and to this point there is no youngster who has been exempt from issues at this point. Even All-Stars like James Wood have had issues when it comes to strikeouts or defense, and former National and fellow All-Star MacKenzie Gore also struggled a lot with consistency.
It should be clear that these players were under the leadership and guidance of an outdated coaching staff and front office, meaning they were not being put in positions to succeed to the best of their abilities. One youngster in particular who struggled initially was outfielder Daylen Lile, who went from an underrated prospect in the organization to rookie star by the end of 2025.
Lile went from a guy who could potentially get squeezed out of a future Nationals outfield combination alongside Wood and Dylan Crews to being looked at as a key cog for the foreseeable future. It seems like every Nationals fan knows this, but apparently Anthony Franco from MLBTradeRumors might not see things the same way.
In fact, in a recent article he produced that listed several under-the-radar trade possibilities for the Houston Astros, Lile's name was the first one he mentioned. He said Lile looks more like a "quality complementary player than a cornerstone of a rebuilding Nationals team." and said the front office could be open to having trade conversations about dealing him.
His article was purely speculation, as there have not been any mentions about Lile being a possible trade candidate, especially considering the fact he's under control through 2031. The Nationals should be competing by the time he is close to being a free agent, and it is very likely that the club would decline any sort of advancement from other clubs to trade for him.
Franco also mentioned his poor defense as a reason why the Nationals could try to trade him, but overall his reasoning did not make a ton of sense when you actually think about it. Lile was just a rookie, and Toboni already told him that he was too good of an athlete to be as bad defensively as he was when he took over the position. Lile is firmly part of the Nationals' plans going forward, and him being included in this article was egregious.
What do you think about this terrible trade suggestion by this writer from MLBTradeRumors? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.