Washington Nationals Future Rests on Shoulders of Dynamic Outfield Duo

The Washington Nationals were a team that many people were keeping an eye on heading into the offseason as a potential spender.

Despite winning only 71 games during the 2024 campaign, a strong foundation has been put in place with the emerging young core the team has. Some of their top prospects from recent years are already making an impact at the Major League level and there are even more high-upside players on the way.

The Nationals are going to be adding to that stable of young players in a few months as they have the No. 1 pick in the 2025 MLB Draft.

Optimism is on the rise in Washington and for good reason. 

Since winning the World Series in 2019, the franchise has endured a lot of losing. But, the light at the end of the tunnel draws near, as they should be improved in 2025 with the veteran additions made over the winter.

Despite not making any huge splashes, the Nationals were able to address a lot of the needs on their roster, raising the team’s floor in the process.

What will determine how high of a ceiling this group has is their top two young players; left fielder James Wood and right fielder Dylan Crews.

Both made their debuts during the 2024 season.

Wood made his on July 1 and after some early struggles, really found his groove. He finished the rookie campaign with a .264/.354/.427, hitting nine home runs, 13 doubles and four triples with 14 stolen bases.

His OPS+ of 122 and Rbat+ of 124 are both well above the league average, showcasing immense potential as he is just scratching the surface of his immense potential with prodigious power and excellent athleticism.

Crews wasn’t as impactful once he debuted a few weeks later on Aug. 26. He had a slash line of .218/.288/.353 with three home runs, five doubles and one triple.

His advanced stats were a little below league average with an OPS+ and Rbat+ of 82. But his hard-hit rate of 45.2% is elite compared to the league average of 39.0%, especially for such a young player.

Both players have incredible upside and in the opinion of Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required), their development is the biggest storyline to watch this year.

“The development of their corner outfielders: Dylan Crews, who is expected to play right, and James Wood, who will play left. Both have the potential to develop into star-caliber players, and for the Nationals to be in a better position next offseason to spend money, they need both to make an impact this year,” the former MLB executive said.

Wood is already overcoming some natural holes in his swing because of his sheer size, standing 6-foot-7, with an above-average walk rate. When he makes contact he is smoking the ball with a 52.3% hard-hit rate and average exit velocity of 92.8 mph.

Defense is where he needs to show improvement in Year 2, as he was a major disappointment in that regard as a rookie.

For Crews, experience seems to be all that he is missing.

He played in only 135 minor league games before making his MLB debut just over a year after being selected in the draft.

If spring training is a sign of things to come, Washington is in store for some fun as he has a slash line of .391/.481/.478 with one triple, three RBI and three stolen bases.

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