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Sep 27, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals outfielder Daylen Lile (51) rounds the bases after hitting a two run home run against the Chicago White Sox during the fourth inning at Nationals Park. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Nationals Rookie Daylen Lile's September Should Put Him Into NL ROY Talks

Originally posted on Washington Nationals on SI
By Sean O'Leary | Last updated Sep 28, 2025 3:58 PM ET

While still rebuilding after winning the World Series in 2019, the Washington Nationals have mastered one specific skill: acquiring talent in the outfield.

It started when they acquired James Wood in the Juan Soto trade in 2022. Wood worked his way to becoming a top 10 prospect in baseball and hit 30 homers for the first time in his career this year. Outside of Wood, they have a defensive whiz in Jacob Young, a former No. 2 pick in Dylan Crews and another player from the Soto trade, Robert Hassell III.

One of their best hitters this season is another young outfielder who made his big league debut in May, Daylen Lile. He seemingly came out of nowhere this season to put himself in the National League Rookie of the Year conversation during the month of September.

Daylen Lile's Run to Award Consideration

Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The NL Rookie of the Year race is going to be tight. Without a standout player like Nick Kurtz -- who is going to run away with the award in the American League -- votes are going to be all over the place. Some of the favorites are Chicago Cubs pitcher Cade Horton (2.0 bWAR), Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Isaac Collins (1.9 bWAR) and Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin (3.3 bWAR).

Daylen Lile has also put himself in that race. His bat was going to have to keep him afloat in the race. When in the field, he has a minus-8 outs above average value. So even though he's red-hot at the plate, his bWAR is down at 0.7 because of his poor defense.

Even taking that into consideration, he's going to get a lot of votes because of his offense. Lile leads all NL rookies in batting average (.302), slugging percentage (.503) and triples (11). He is tied for the Nationals' single-season triples record and is two back from the entire franchise's mark. His 139 OPS+ leads the team and is higher than both Baldwin and Collins.

"Special. Because I did not think I was going to be able to do this ... It's worked out pretty good," the rookie told Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post (subscription required).

Before the final game of the season, the 22-year-old has slashed .302/.350/.503 with an .853 OPS, 15 doubles, 11 triples, nine homers and 41 RBIs. He may have an uphill battle given his defensive woes, but the bat has been undeniable and arguably the best among rookies in the NL. Because of that, he should get consideration to, at the very least, be a finalist for the NL Rookie of the Year Award.

Moving forward, Lile might play himself into being a designated hitter with the defense he's showed this season. Washington would like for the former second-round pick to improve defensively, but they're going to need his bat in the lineup no matter what.