The 2025 season has been rough for the Nationals, but it brought plenty of rookie debuts. Ten players got their first taste of the majors this year, giving Nats fans glimpses of what the future might look like. Some of those first games stood out more than others. Let’s count down the top three best Nationals debuts of 2025.
3. Daylen Lile
Daylen Lile’s debut came on May 23 against the Giants, and he wasted no time. The 22-year-old outfielder lined the first pitch he saw into left-center for a single, checking off his first big league hit right away. The Nationals lost 4-0, but Lile’s swing gave fans something to hang on to in an otherwise quiet game.
DAY 1 pic.twitter.com/dHO0iMLZvP
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) May 23, 2025
Lile’s call-up was memorable from the start. At Triple-A Rochester, manager Matthew LeCroy played his walk-up song in the clubhouse to surprise him with the news he was headed to Washington. A second-round pick in 2021, the quick arrival of his promotion even caught Lile off guard. Former manager Davey Martinez praised him afterward, saying he liked the way Lile used the whole field and “looked very poised out there.”
That first hit set the tone for what Lile is doing now. After a brief trip back to the minors in June, he has turned into a real spark in Washington’s lineup. He’s batting .288 with a .796 OPS, five home runs, nine triples, and eight stolen bases. The triples stat especially catches the eye because he’s already tied Bryce Harper’s rookie record. From the very first pitch he saw in the majors, Lile has shown he belongs.
2. Robert Hassell III
Robert Hassell III waited three years after the Juan Soto trade to finally reach Washington, and when his chance came, he made the most of it. The 24-year-old debuted on May 22 against the Braves and went 2-for-5 with two runs, a stolen base, and scored the walk-off winning run in a 10th-inning thriller. His first at-bat proved memorable in its own right. He swung at the first pitch he saw and lined a single into right, a keepsake that was quickly retrieved. Just two pitches later he stole second, helping ignite a four-run rally that showed right away the kind of impact he could make.
AS ADVERTISED, bobby barreled pic.twitter.com/yeYnczXdBe
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) May 22, 2025
Hassell became the first player in Nationals history to record multiple hits and a stolen base in his debut. And he capped it off by scoring the walk-off run that extended the team’s win streak to five. For a player who had dealt with injuries and had his debut pushed back a day by rain, he managed a big payoff. After the game, Hassell admitted he “kind of blacked out,” still buzzing from the adrenaline of crossing home plate with the winning run.
After his debut, Hassell went through the ups and downs most young players face. The Nats sent him back to Triple-A in June but he started raking there, showing better plate discipline and more power than before. That run earned him a call back to Washington in August, and he hasn’t been sent down since. He looks more comfortable at the plate now and is starting to settle into his role.
1. Andrew Alvarez
Andrew Alvarez made his debut on Labor Day, Sept. 1 against the Marlins, and it was one to remember. The 26-year-old lefty threw five scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four. He worked efficiently through 81 pitches and kept the Marlins off balance all afternoon. When he left the game, the Nationals had a 2-0 lead that held up as a combined shutout.
It was the first time since the franchise moved to Washington in 2005 that a Nats pitcher went five or more scoreless in his debut. Not even Stephen Strasburg, whose debut remains one of the most talked about in baseball, pulled that off.
Alvarez’s debut was even more memorable because his catcher, C.J. Stubbs, was also playing in his first game. Together, they became the first rookie pitcher-catcher duo in Nationals history to debut and combine on a shutout. Alvarez even carried a no-hitter into the fifth before escaping his only jam with a strikeout. Afterward, his teammates dumped a water cooler on him, a fitting moment for a 12th-round pick who spent four years in the minors and started this season winless in Triple-A.
The Show offs 👯♂️ pic.twitter.com/5oD3SgU7w6
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) September 1, 2025
The Nationals had dropped eight straight going into Alvarez’s debut, and his start turned out to be exactly what they needed. He has already followed it up with two more strong outings and is pitching his way into the 2026 rotation. After that first game, Alvarez called the moment “no more than a miracle,” saying, “It’s hard to put into words… you dream of this as a kid.” His win also placed him in rare company, becoming only the third Nationals starter since 2010 to win his debut.