With Patrick Corbin, the Nationals' Opening Day Starter in '21, '22 & '23 off the team and Josiah Gray last year's starter, now on the IL, who gets the nod for Opening Day against the Phillies?
The Nationals have plenty of starters regarding the opening-day role. While there is an argument for all, it comes down to LHP Mackenzie Gore and RHP Jake Irvin. The only question is, who gets the nod? While Gore would be the presumed favorite, Jake Irvin might have done just enough in 2024 to earn the role as the #1 guy. Many factors play into Dave Martinez's decision when looking at who the starter might be. As much as I favor Jake Irvin as a fan, Mackenzie Gore will be the opening-day starter, and here is why.
The Nationals traveled to Cincinnati last season for Opening Day, the first time in quite some time they began a season on the road. The Nats return home to start the year in 2025 when they take on the Phillies on March 27th at 4:05 pm.
With the Nats being at home and the team wanting to sell as many tickets as possible given that it is Opening Day, you would have to think that they want to headline your best starter. Not only is MacKenzie Gore the bigger name, but he likely matches up better against Philadelphia's hitters. A lot of their big bats like Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Bryson Stott, Brandon Marsh, and Max Kepler all hit from the left side. While most teams do not "play the matchup" anymore, it would be wise to start an LHP on the mound and limit the damage those sluggers could do to an RHP such as Jake Irvin.
Ignoring the matchups, I believe Jake Irvin deserves it more. Irvin had an incredible first half in 2024, pitching to a sub-2 ERA, before running out of gas at the end of the year. Gore did have a decent season as well, even though fans expected more for the third-year soon-to-be Ace.
While Gore and Irvin are the favored 1 and 2, spring training performance will play a bigger role than usual this season. The Nationals have another pitcher on the roster with Opening Day experience, that being RHP Mike Soroka. Soroka was named the opening day starter with Atlanta in 2020. While the stats and injuries have derailed Soroka's recent career numbers, he could still be a more favorable option than RHP Trevor Williams or LHP DJ Herz. Soroka is a former All-Star and All-MLB 2nd teamer in 2019.