Taking one look around the league... What is every team desperate for? From the A's to the regining back-to-back World Series Champion Dodgers, everyone is looking for starting pitching. So what does Washington Nationals President of Baseball Operations Paul Toboni do with the most valuable trade piece he has at the helm of a team itching to take the next step in a rebuild? Absolutely nothing. Sitting on his hands.
It has become time to call this for what it truly is: If the Nats don't trade MacKenzie Gore now, they are without a doubt committing one of the greatest acts of managerial malpractice this franchise will ever see. Gore, a 26-year-old lefty with 185 strikeouts and two years of arbitration left, isn't just a backend rotation piece, he has frontline ace stuff. By refusing to move him now, the Nationals aren't being cautious, they're being reckless.
In this market, Gore's value will never be higher. Contenders and teams desperate to bolster starting rotations are scavenging for whatever they can find. Free agent prices are astronomical, and the trade market for young arms is few and far between. At this moment, Toboni could demand an absolute haul of prospects and major league talent.
If the Nats are choosing to wait and see in 2026, they are putting the house on three massive risks. Beginning with Gore's injury history. Ending 2025 with shoulder inflammation and an ankle issue, if the injuries arise again, all trade value is out of the window. Gore was a Cy Young candidate in June before posting a 6.75 ERA after the All-Star break. If he starts 2026 cold, the ace narrative completely kills itself. Every start that he makes for the 65-win Washington Nationals is a month of cheap control wasted. Contenders and potential trade suitors are paying for years, not months.
The front office seems to think Gore could be the pitching anchor for when James Wood, Dylan Crews, and CJ Abrams are fully ready to win, which is an absolute fantasy. A single pitcher on a thin pitching staff doesn't bring championships back to our nation's capital; depth does.
Trading Gore doesnt kill the rebuild, it fuels it. Taking on arm and turning it into more assests is how you build on your player development for the future. Keeping him in house to watch him throw 160 innings for a fourth place team is quite literally the definition of organizational malpractice.
MacKenzie Gore is a high stakes piece. The Nationals are treating him like he's some sentimental heirloom. He is not Stephen Strasburg. Paul Toboni needs to stop playing it safe and start playing for the future and to win. Trade him before the market cools, or prepare to face the consequences of one of the worst non-moves we've seen.
What do you think? Is Gore an untouchable ace that should be treated with the likes of Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes? Or are the Nats blowing their best chance to inject even more into their rebuild?