Aug 10, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; The Washington Nationals logo appears on a fungo bat in the dugout before the game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Nationals' Exciting Young Core Can't Keep Them from Bottom of MLB Rankings

Originally posted on Washington Nationals on SI
By Kyle Morton | Last updated Aug 26, 2025 8:00 AM ET

The Washington Nationals, in a season that once carried promise of a surprise push for a playoff spot, have cratered out, and they continue to occupy last place in the National League East Division.

It's a year in which some things have broken their way. The division looked like a gauntlet at the start of the campaign but has softened considerably, with the Atlanta Braves floundering and the New York Mets being merely pretty good rather than a potential World Series contender.

Despite the tough record, the 2025 season was always more about the growth of the young players that comprise the Nationals' future core more than it was about wins and losses.

As the team takes the No. 28 spot in the latest edition of MLB.com's league-wide power rankings, the likes of outfielder James Wood, shortstop CJ Abrams, outfielder Dylan Crews and second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. still look like strong building blocks in the field, along with starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore.

Unrelentingly Tough Schedule Punishes Nationals

John Jones-Imagn Images

Even if Washington is not currently built to take a strong record into the dog days of summer and build on it when the pretenders fade, their recent schedule is certainly doing them no favors in terms of allowing them to build positive momentum.

The Nationals have been tasked with teams either entrenched in their respective playoff races or firmly in the postseason picture for over two weeks, facing the Kansas City Royals, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets and the Phillies again before heading to the Bronx for a three-game set with the New York Yankees.

Washington posted a 5-8 record during that tough span, including a series win at home against the Mets. Still, it was certainly not enough to warrant a climb back up the power rankings. The Nationals aren't in much danger of sinking further with the Chicago White Sox and Colorado Rockies behind them, but the Pittsburgh Pirates at No. 27 have rattled off four straight wins and are a clear cut above where the Nats find themselves right now.

It's a hard pill for fans to swallow, as on May 31, the team was just two games below .500, had won four in a row and sat five games back of the last wild card spot while owning a better record than five other NL teams. Now, it's just the Rockies that Washington can look down at.

This article first appeared on Washington Nationals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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