While there hasn't been a ton of news surrounding the Washington Nationals recently besides the acquisition of Nathaniel Lowe from the Texas Rangers a few days ago, a couple of former Nationals made headlines for a couple of different reasons that you can read about below.
Additionally, the club has yet again been tied to a big free agent target that has yet to sign with a club for the 2025 season.
2019 World Series Champion Joe Ross signs with Phillies
Just before Christmas, former National and 2019 World Series Champion Joe Ross officially inked a 1-year, $4 million deal with the NL East rival Philadelphia Phillies. He will add to "Nationals North" along with fellow former Nationals Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, and Jesús Luzardo, who was once a 3rd round pick of the Nationals before being dealt to Oakland in the Sean Doolittle trade.
Ross has carved out a very solid career for himself, as after taking a few years to get back to the MLB level following his departure from the Nationals, he solidified himself as a valuable swingman arm in 2024 with the Milwaukee Brewers. He started 10 games and made 25 total appearances for the Brewers, and had a very solid 3.77 ERA.
He was a very solid pitcher for the Nationals for a few years, and he is probably best known for making a spot start for the club in Game 5 after Max Scherzer was scratched from his start. He did not receive the win, but did receive the ring for his efforts. We wish him nothing but success in his new role, except if he's pitching against the Nationals, of course.
Nationals pegged as landing spot for Anthony Santander
In a prediction made by Sam Fosberg over on X on Christmas eve, the Nationals are once again being linked to free agent outfielder Anthony Santander, who we have written about frequently as being a great fit for this team.
Fosberg runs a blog over at The Skippers View, and also made some other free agency predictions that could have relevance to the Nationals as well regarding a couple potential targets for the club, as you can see in the tweet below.
Updated FA predictions:
— Sam Fosberg (@discussbaseball) December 25, 2024
- Corbin Burnes (SF)
- Alex Bregman (BOS)
- Pete Alonso (NYM)
- Anthony Santander (WSH)
- Teoscar Hernandez (LAD)
- Tanner Scott (TOR)
- Jack Flaherty (DET)
There have now been a handful of people that have tied Santander to the Nationals, but there has been no evidence that the Nationals are planning to make a move to secure the services of the veteran outfielder. Even with the addition of Nathaniel Lowe, the hope among many, myself included, is that the club will bring in one more bat to stabilize the lineup, but it's still unclear how much the front office plans to spend.
Former National Ehire Adrianza calls it a career
Our final piece of news is that former Nationals utilityman Ehire Adrianza has officially announced his retirement from the MLB. In case you don't remember Adrianza, he was a member of the 2022 Nationals, and had a pretty forgettable tenure in the Nation's Capital.
In just 31 games and 94 plate appearances with the club, he hit below the Mendoza Line and had an OPS of just .458 before being traded at the deadline to the Atlanta Braves for outfielder Trey Harris, who was in the minors with the Nationals for a couple years before electing free agency this offseason.
While his Nationals tenure wasn't his best work, he still carved out a 12-year career in the MLB, and played in 624 games at the highest level of competition for the sport in the world. Happy trails, Ehire!
What do you think of this Nationals News roundup? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.