If the season ended today the 39-36 Nationals would be in the postseason. I can’t think of a way to end the season today, but if it did, the Nationals would be tied for one of the NL wild card spots with the Cubs and Padres. MLB devised a complicated formula for looking at the records of three teams that tie each other when they played one another. I’m not going to try all the math but the Nats are 2-1 against both teams so I’m confident they would be the wild card spot winner as of today. Of course there are still 87 games left to play. It’s just a remarkable turnaround from last year’s dismal season considering that there were no big-name additions to the roster.
The Nats took two games out of three this week from the Royals, two out of three last weekend from the Mariners, two out of three from the Giants last week, and two out of three from the Diamondbacks before that. The next seven days will show us where the Nationals really are right now: they play the 41-30 Rays in Tampa over the weekend and then the resurgent, second-place-in-the-division Phillies at home next week.
I can’t not mention that the Nationals still lead the majors in runs scored, with eleven more than the Dodgers. They are tied for seventh in home runs. Second in stolen bases! It’s entertaining at Nats Park this season.
All-Star voting is underway. CJ Abrams is the top vote-getter at shortstop so far. James Wood has been the third best outfielder in the majors but is only 7th in the voting. You can help fix that by voting here. I’m noting that the Nationals acquired both players in the trade for Juan Soto and Wood has been better than Soto this year for $50 million less salary. He also has more votes than Soto. Let’s not forget former GM Mike Rizzo pulled that trade off. His fingerprints are on a large part of this season’s roster.
The Nationals’ best pitchers have been Cade Cavalli and Foster Griffin who have taken very different routes to their spots atop the rotation. Cavalli was the Nats’ first round pick in 2020 out of the University of Oklahoma. He made his debut in 2022 but a series of arm problems cost him the next two years. He came back in 2025 to make 10 starts. This season he has a 3.98 ERA and a 4-4 record but the fancy stats say he’s pitched better than that. Cavalli is 27 and is a big part of the team’s future.
Foster Griffin has the impressive 7-2 record and a 3.32 ERA, though the stats say he might have been a little lucky so far. His fastball doesn’t blow hitters away but his six other pitches keep them guessing every at-bat. The 30-year-old Griffin was drafted by the Royals in the first round in 2014 and made his debut in 2020 but only pitched 8 major league innings in 2020-2022. The following three years Griffin pitched in Japan. The Nationals took a chance on him and signed him for 2026. He is one of the big success stories for the new management, which finds ways to help players capitalize on their strengths and which has them prepared with a plan for every game.
The battle for the National League wild card spots is far from over. Go support the Nats when they play the Phillies next week, or whenever you can. June 25th is Nationals soccer jersey night. This is a team to root for again.
