Washington

Nationals

Lyon, 21, was a 10th round selection by the Mariners from the 2025 draft class. He made just four starts at Single-A Modesto after finishing up his collegiate season in 2025, posting a 7.30 ERA, 1.54 WHIP and a 15/3 K/BB ratio over 12 1/3 innings. He’s at least a couple of years away from being an option to help the Nationals.

The 22-year-old backstop was the 12th overall pick from the 2021 draft. Ford spent most of the 2025 season at Triple-A Tacoma where he slashed a healthy .283/.408/.460 with 16 homers, 74 RBI and seven stolen bases in 458 plate appearances. With the struggles of Keibert Ruiz and the rest of the Nationals’ catching depth being unsettled, the door is open for Ford to seize a significant role on the club’s Opening Day roster, which could lead to fantasy relevance.

Gore has been at the epicenter of trade chatter for weeks this offseason, with The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon reporting earlier this week that more than half the league has at least checked in on his availability. ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel add that the Nationals are listening, but their asking price remains “understandably high.” The 26-year-old southpaw was brilliant in the first half of last season to earn his first All-Star Game selection before fading after the break and missing time with shoulder inflammation. Even so, he’ll be just 27 on Opening Day and profiles as a prime target for clubs unwilling to meet the stratospheric costs attached to the marquee arms in free agency or on the trade block. It also becomes a massive early decision for new president of baseball operations Paul Toboni as he spearheads the club’s rebuilding effort.

Pineda, 23, spent his first seven years in the minor leagues in the Phillies’ organization. In 2025, he slashed a meager .211/.320/.364 with nine homers, 37 RBI and a 90/47 K/BB ratio across 394 plate appearances at Double-A Reading. He’ll add outfield depth in the upper minors for the Nats.

The Nationals hired the youngest manager in 53 years when they picked 33-year-old Blake Butera to man the helm. Now they’ll have a 31-year-old coaching first base. Ray, the fifth overall pick in the 2016 draft, got one at-bat with the Brewers in 2021 and retired at 27 after the 2022 season. He’s joining the Nationals after managing for the Cubs in the ACL the last two years.

A 2018 second-round pick who had spent his entire career in the A’s organization, Baum experienced a velocity spike last season, putting him into the 95-98 mph range with his fastball. Unfortunately, it didn’t make him any more effective, as he finished with a 5.50 ERA between Double- and Triple-A. The Nationals will see if they can do more with him and maybe get him to the majors for the first time.

The Nationals will have no non-tenders this year. Adams, who hit .186/.252/.308 in a career-high 286 plate appearances last season, has seemed to be on the cut line two years in a row, but he’s again sticking around, and he’ll be the favorite to serve as Keibert Ruiz’s backup. The right move here, if the Nationals were at all serious about getting back into contention, would have been to drop Adams and pursue a halfway decent starting catcher to play over Ruiz.

Mejia’s long-winding odyssey took an unexpected turn this past season as he successfully transitioned full-time to the mound, posting a respectable 4.59 ERA and 58/34 K/BB ratio over 49 innings across 45 relief appearances at three minor-league levels, finishing the year at Triple-A. The 31-year-old journeyman hasn’t appeared in the majors in nearly five years — and that was as a utility infielder. He should at least have a chance to compete for a spot in Washington’s season-opening bullpen this spring.

King, the 10th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, hit .359/.468/.563 line with three homers, a 15/11 BB/K ratio, and 11 steals over 18 games in the AFL. The 22-year-old had a down season in 2025, but looks to have figured things out towards the end of the season and in Arizona. He’ll likely start the year in Double-A with the chance to get promoted if he continues playing like this.

Bennett returned from Tommy John to post a 2.27 ERA in 18 starts and one relief appearance in the minors last season, and he was also one of the best pitchers in the AFL, finishing with a 4.50 ERA and a 25/5 K/BB in 20 innings. He might debut in the second half of next season. Franklin, who was acquired from the Cubs for Michael Soroka at the deadline, was also a pretty easy call here. Cornelio is more of a surprise, as neither his stuff nor command seems major league quality, but the Nationals have a lack of starting pitching depth and plenty of flexibility when it came to the 40-man roster. He might get a chance to compete for a spot in spring training.