Spring training 2026 just continues to roll right along for the Washington Nationals, who have shown just about everything you would expect them to so far. For a club without high expectations coming into camp, they have actually performed quite well to this point, even having a winning record through the first couple of weeks.
But as spring training gets a little bit of an alteration due to the World Baseball Classic, teams all across the league are getting chances to compete against some of the top international teams out there. The Colorado Rockies had the great luck to play against Team USA, which is just such a laughable mismatch when you think about it.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Nationals had their opportunity to play against the Team Venezuela, a squad that features a ton of big-league talent. The team has some of the game's best stars like Ronald Acuna Jr., Maikel Garcia, Salvador Perez, and Jackson Chourio, among others, and is a team that could be poised to make a solid run once the WBC officially kicks off.
Although it was an exhibition game, it does make it that much more impressive that the Nationals were able to defeat their team 5-1, and the manner in which the Nationals won was also nice to see. While neither team hit particularly well, the Nationals held Team Venezuela to just 5 hits, with all of those aforementioned players not recording a hit.
Offseason acquisition Foster Griffin looked solid in his debut for the Nationals, as he fired 15 of his 29 pitches for strikes, and only allowed 2 hits and a walk over 2.0 shutout innings. He struck out just 1 hitter, but he at least passed the eye test for his first appearance of the spring.
Keibert Ruiz continued his recent surge, as he clobbered a 3-run homer while hitting right-handed over the left field fence, and he is looking to cement his place on the major league roster. Daylen Lile also snapped out of his slow start, recording a pair of hits and a stolen base as he looks to get warmed up. We are still waiting for Dylan Crews and James Wood to break out of their slow starts, but of course, both players still have a lot of time to get ready for Opening Day.
What did you think of the Nationals taking down Team Venezuela on Wednesday afternoon? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.