Daylen

Lile

Lile came into today 0-for-12 with a walk and five strikeouts in five spring training games, but he did go 2-for-2 in an exhibition game against Venezuela. Everything is a super small sample size at this point in the season, but this was also Lile’s first hard-hit ball of the spring. The 23-year-old had a really nice rookie season last year, but his 2025 performance did come out of nowhere a bit after hitting .262/.347/.388 in 130 minor league games in 2024. He will be the starting left fielder to begin the season, but with James Wood, Dylan Crews, Jacob Young, and Robert Hassell III all MLB-ready as well, Lile will need to produce to hold onto his spot.

Lile is starting to gain traction as a popular fantasy sleeper this spring on the heels of a stellar rookie campaign in which he batted .299/.347/.498 with nine homers and eight steals across 351 plate appearances. The unheralded 23-year-old corner outfielder lacks a singular elite carrying tool, but he profiles as the type of player whose overall impact outweighs the sum of his individual tools — not flashy in one category, but quietly useful in almost all of them.

Horton enters as the heavy favorite after emerging as one of baseball’s most dominant pitchers in the second half, posting a dazzling 1.03 ERA across 61 1/3 innings over 12 starts. Baldwin would be a worthy choice in most years after cementing himself as Atlanta’s catcher of both the present and future during an impressive full-season debut, slugging 19 homers across 124 games. Durbin’s inclusion comes as a mild surprise over unheralded Nationals outfielder Daylen Lile, who posted an .845 OPS with 35 extra-base hits over 91 contests. Nationals center fielder Dylan Crews and Dodgers starer-turned-postseason closer Roki Sasaki entered the year as preseason favorites, but both missed most of the campaign due to injury. The winner will be announced on Monday, November 10.

Lile started the Nationals comeback with a two-run homer off Sean Burke in the fourth inning. After drawing a walk in the sixth, he knocked a base hit in the seventh for his second hit of the day. The 22-year-old outfielder has hit .302/.350/.503 with nine homers, 51 runs scored, 41 RBI, and eight steals across 348 plate appearances.

Lile has had a tremendous month of September to close out his rookie season. The 22-year-old is now hitting .298/.345/.492 with eight home runs, 39 RBI, and eight steals in 89 games. He’s played well enough that the Nationals may have to seriously consider starting him over former first-round pick Robert Hassell III when the 2026 season kicks off.

It’s a significant relief for the Nationals that the unheralded rookie standout managed to avoid serious injury when his left knee slammed into the unpadded area below the left-field wall attempting to make a sliding catch over the weekend against the Mets. The 22-year-old is back at DH and batting cleanup in his return to the lineup after missing just one game.

Lile was hurt while colliding with the side wall on an attempted sliding catch during Sunday’s game. He might be ready to go tomorrow.

It’s an unfortunate development for Lile as it could potentially end his stellar rookie season depending on the severity. The unheralded 22-year-old, who delivered a go-ahead inside-the-park homer during Saturday’s extra-inning marathon, slammed into the area below the wall attempting to make a sliding catch in foul territory. It’s an encouraging sign that he was eventually able to walk off the field under his own power. There should be an additional update on his status after he undergoes some precautionary imaging.

The Nationals led this one 3-0 most of the way, only to give up two runs in the eighth and one in the inning. After a scoreless 10th, Lile hit a long fly to center with one on in the 11th. The ball got over Cedric Mullins’ head and off the wall, leading to a long ricochet that no one was in position to handle. If figured to be Lile’s 12th triple, but he just kept running and turned into his seventh homer instead. Lile also had an RBI single earlier in the contest. He’s hitting .288/.337/.477 and making a case for a spot on NL ROY ballots.

Lile entered September with four triples on the season, but he’s since added six in 16 games and is now tied for fifth in the majors in the category. It’s been six years since a player has finished in double figures in triples and single digits in homers, but both Lile (10 triples, six homers) and Jung Hoo Lee (11 triples, eight homers) are in position to do so this season.