Currently, the Nationals' starting outfield consists of James Wood in left, former #1 prospect Dylan Crews in right, and Jacob Young in center. However, 29-year-old outfielder Alex Call has been the Nationals' best hitter since late 2024. Call hit .343 last season before getting injured and has so far hit .400 in 2025. The Nationals have been getting Alex Call some everyday playing time with all the success, but it makes things interesting for the rest of the team.
Third-year outfielder Jacob Young was the everyday center fielder last year and came into 2025 with a lot of promise for the team. Unfortunately, Young has struggled out of the gate, hitting .167 over 18 at-bats, which has given Alex Call the chance to start every day. The argument for Young to play consists of his gold-glove caliber defense and compelling speed. Unfortunately, those same traits are found in Alex Call.
Alex Call has been blocking Jacob Young from playing time, and they both have been blocking tons of organizational top prospects from moving up the ladder as well. There are 8 outfielders on the Nationals' Top-30 prospects list, including Robert Hassell III, Daylen Lile, Andrew Pinckney, Brenner Cox, and Elijah Green. Hassell and Pinckney both got playing time with the big league team this past spring training, and both played well, with Hassell hitting .370 and Pinckney hitting .250.
There are so many decent outfield prospect options that it would be smart for the Nationals not to keep them all. If they do want to contend, they would be smart to trade for a high-leverage reliever or top 3 starter for their rotation, and it would be hard not to offer up a handful of these players. Many mock trades have consisted of outfielder Robert Hassell III (among others) being traded to multiple teams, including Seattle for RHP Luis Castillo, and going back to San Diego for RHP Dylan Cease, who has already had immense success in Nationals Park, where he threw a no-hitter against the Nats last season.
As of today, the Nationals' starting outfield should consist of Alex Call in LF, Dylan Crews in RF, and either Robert Hassell III or Jacob Young in CF, in my opinion. James Wood should begin becoming an everyday DH, as the defense on his end has always been inconsistent with slim glistens since his call-up. With Josh Bell only hitting .167 thus far, James Wood could take over that role for the foreseeable future. The only issue is that I don't foresee the club wanting to make their superstar player a DH only, as they will likely give him a longer leash in the field.