What was the most unexpected development of the Nationals’ 2023 season? How about the way they managed to keep the vast majority of their roster healthy?

The Nats used only eight starting pitchers, and five of them topped 120 innings. Seven of their regular nine position players avoided the injured list altogether. Four relievers appeared in 50-plus games.

It was a remarkable run of good health for an organization that didn’t exactly boast a lot of depth to account for major losses.

Not that the Nationals completely avoided the IL. Cade Cavalli tore his elbow ligament in March and missed the entire season. Victor Robles hurt his back in May and barely played after that. Stone Garrett broke his leg and injured his ankle on a scary play in August. Riley Adams broke a bone in his wrist in September. Oh yeah, and then there was Stephen Strasburg.

When the team reports for spring training this week, though, optimism will reign throughout the clubhouse. This should be, for the most part, a healthy roster to open camp. But plenty of eyes will be focused on the aforementioned players returning from injury.

The most significant moment of the Nationals’ 2023 spring training didn’t happen on the field. It happened in an office room at the team’s complex, when Keibert Ruiz grabbed a pen and signed a long-term extension with the club.

Whether Ruiz’s eight-year, $50 million deal was a good move for the organization or the player remains to be seen. He enjoyed an improved season at the plate but regressed behind the plate, calling into question his ability to stick as a franchise catcher for years to come.

But the significance of the move doesn’t change. After countless attempts to get other young cornerstone players to sign long-term extensions before reaching free agency fell flat, the Nats finally got this one done. And they got it done five years before Ruiz would’ve even been eligible for free agency, making him the first player in club history to agree to such an extension at such an early stage of his career.

That, of course, produced an obvious follow-up question: Can they do it with anyone else?

“This is the first one we’ve ever got done, yeah,” general manager Mike Rizzo said at the time. “But it wasn’t the first attempt at it.”

We’ve entered the homestretch of the offseason at last. Pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach on Wednesday, at which point the 2024 season begins in earnest.

So we’re going to spend these final days of winter previewing the top stories that are likely to play out at spring training. And one of the more intriguing ones involves a couple of still-young everyday players who could be running out of time to retain their jobs.

Neither Victor Robles nor Luis García Jr. enjoyed a positive 2023 season. Robles because he barely played due to a back injury that proved far more serious than initially believed. García because he regressed at the plate and in the field and wound up demoted to Triple-A for a brief while.

Entering the offseason, there was real reason to wonder if one or both wouldn’t be back this spring. Or, at the very least, if the Nationals might bring in some competition to push them.

At this point, that hasn’t happened. Robles enters camp as the starting center field. García comes to West Palm Beach as the starting second baseman. But neither should feel totally secure about his standing yet.

The Nationals’ minor-league coaching staffs are mostly unchanged for the 2024 season, with one notable exception: They’ve overhauled much of their hitting staff.

The organization announced its full player development staff this afternoon, five days before pitchers and catchers officially report for spring training. Though there was a change at the top of the depth chart – former director of scouting operations Eddie Longosz replaced De Jon Watson, who was let go after two seasons leading the department – most of the coaches and trainers are returning to their same roles.

That includes the managers of all six minor league affiliates: Matt LeCroy (Triple-A Rochester), Delino DeShields (Double-A Harrisburg), Mario Lisson (High-A Wilmington), Jake Lowery (Single-A Fredericksburg), Luis Ordaz (Florida Complex League) and Sandy Martinez (Dominican Summer League).

Most of the pitching coaches return, as well: Rafael Chaves (Triple-A), Mark DeFelice (High-A), Justin Lord (Single-A) and Franklin Bravo (FCL). Rigo Beltran, formerly the Guardians’ bullpen coach, replaces Joel Hanrahan as Double-A pitching coach (though Hanrahan is staying with the Nats as rehab pitching coordinator). Feliberto Sanchez is the new pitching coach in the Dominican Summer League.

All development coaches also return this season: Billy McMillon (Triple-A), Oscar Salazar (Double-A), Mark Harris (High-A), Carmelo Jaime (Single-A) and Destin Hood (FCL).

Nationals pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach in five days for the start of spring training. Two weeks later, as the Grapefruit League gets rolling, MASN will be in town for the first of seven exhibition broadcasts.

MASN’s spring broadcast schedule, revealed this morning, includes six games in Florida, plus the new-look exhibition finale in D.C. featuring the club’s Opening Day roster against the organization’s top prospects.

The spring training slate commences Feb. 28 when the Nats host the Red Sox at the newly renamed CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. The crew will be back four days later for a March 3 tilt with the Marlins.

Three of MASN’s spring broadcasts are for road games, though two of those (March 9 and 22) still take place in West Palm Beach, with the Astros the designated home team in the shared facility. But on March 15, the broadcast will originate from Port St. Lucie, where the Nats face the Mets at 6:05 p.m. in the nightcap of an exhibition doubleheader that opens with a 3:05 p.m. game between both club’s top prospects.

The Nationals’ March 17 home game against the Mets also will be broadcast live on MASN from West Palm Beach.

The countdown is on, at last. Pitchers and catchers are set to report to West Palm Beach in six days, at which point the longest, slowest offseason ever will come to an end and we can all turn our sights upon the 2024 season for real.

There will be much to preview about spring training in the coming days, so be sure to check each day for those articles. But before we get to that, let's do one final Q&A to wrap up the offseason.

Submit your questions in the comments section below, then look for my responses throughout the morning ...

We’ve spent much of the winter discussing the Nationals’ offensive strengths and weaknesses, asking if the changes they’ve made will make a positive difference this season. We looked at the pitching staff and wondered where the improvement will come from in 2024.

But what about the Nats’ defense? Should it be improved from last season? Could it be worse? It’s about time we tackled that subject as we move within a week of the start of spring training.

For those who don’t remember, the Nationals were not a good defensive team in 2023. They were 26th in the majors (tied with the Phillies) with minus-30 Defensive Runs Saved. They were charged with 90 errors, ranking in the bottom half of the league. Their “Defensive Efficiency” – the percentage of balls in play they converted into outs – was 68.2 percent, ranked 24th. Their catchers threw out only 14 basestealers, tied for second-fewest in the majors.

Which isn’t to say everything was bad in the field.

CJ Abrams made major strides at shortstop, and by season’s end he was both making all the routine plays as well as a number of non-routine plays, looking every bit like a keeper there.

Planning to come to spring training? Or just thinking you might like to come to spring training someday, but aren’t sure what to expect? You’re in luck, because we’re giving you all the advice you need right here.

On Monday, we detailed everything you can expect at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches, both on workout days and game days. If you missed it, please check out that article as well as this one.

Today, we’ll discuss everything important that takes place away from the ballpark. Consider this your definitive guide to West Palm Beach …

First, though, you have to get to West Palm Beach. You have several options.

Both American Airlines and JetBlue offer nonstop flights from Reagan National Airport to Palm Beach International Airport. United has a limited number of nonstops from Dulles, though it’s a seasonal service and doesn’t appear to start until March. And you can also get there from BWI on Southwest.

Would you believe the Nationals are about to enter their eighth spring training in West Palm Beach? Doesn’t it feel like yesterday we were all still in Viera, complaining about long drives to road games and controlled brush fires off in the distance beyond Space Coast Stadium?

The Nats made the move south to their new complex in 2017, and it’s been a win for the organization, no doubt. The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches is one of the nicest spring training facilities in baseball, and after more than a decade spent driving all over the state of Florida for road games, the majority of Grapefruit League games are now no more than 15 minutes away.

Is West Palm Beach better than Viera for fans? I’ve heard both sides of the argument over the years, if we’re being honest. While the new complex is much nicer, and there’s more to do in the area, West Palm Beach is considerably more expensive and access to players isn’t quite as unrestricted as it used to be.

Having said all that, it’s still a great fan experience. And if you’ve never been before, what are you waiting for?

It’s been a while since I published one of these fan guides – looks like the last one was in 2019! – so it’s probably a good time to revisit the subject. We’ll focus today on what you can expect baseball-wise at the complex each day, then Tuesday we’ll run through everything you need to know about everything else away from the ballpark.

We are now inside of two weeks until pitchers and catchers report, so the offseason is nearly finished.

And what an offseason it’s been for the Nationals, who have … acquired a total of four major league players, not even totaling $10 million spent on those players.

OK, so it’s been an awfully quiet winter on South Capitol Street. There’s still time for Mike Rizzo and Co. to make more moves, though. And given the swath of still-unsigned free agents out there, we may see teams continue to add significant players after spring training has already commenced.

But since we’re getting close to the finish line now, it’s probably a good time to take an updated look at the state of the Nationals’ organization depth chart. We did this way back on Nov. 8, at the outset of the offseason. How does it look today compared to then?

(Note: Players listed below are on the 40-man roster, except for those with an asterisk next to their names.)

The Nationals opened the 2023 season with one left-hander in their bullpen: Anthony Banda. Not necessarily because Banda had a strong track record or performed well in spring training. But because they felt they needed a lefty in their Opening Day bullpen.

One month later, Banda and his 6.43 ERA were designated for assignment. And the Nats spent the next seven weeks functioning with nothing but right-handed relievers.

By late June, Joe La Sorsa had been claimed off waivers from the Rays and called up to the majors, followed soon thereafter by homegrown prospect Jose A. Ferrer. And on Aug. 1, the team claimed Robert Garcia off waivers from the Marlins, giving it three lefty relievers for most of the rest of the season.

What had been a huge void in the organization now appears to be in much better shape. Garcia and Ferrer each performed well at times and will be in the mix for spots in this year’s Opening Day bullpen. La Sorsa was more erratic and was DFA’d this offseason, though he remains in the organization and will be at spring training as a non-roster invitee.

And now the Nationals are adding another potential left-handed option to their bullpen plans after signing veteran Richard Bleier to a minor-league deal Thursday evening.

The Nationals could open spring training today with the pitching staff they already have in place and be content with that. Not thrilled, mind you, but content.

They have five returning starters, several intriguing fallback options and a top prospect on track to return from Tommy John surgery in June. They have four fairly established back-end relievers, plus a number of other arms good enough to fill out the rest of an Opening Day bullpen.

It wouldn’t be the best pitching staff in baseball, not by a longshot. But it would be a full staff of 13 major-league pitchers, with no obvious outliers taking up roster spots who clearly didn’t deserve to be there.

Thing is, spring training doesn’t start today. There are still two weeks to go until pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach. And with a host of free agents still unsigned, there’s still time for the Nats to add to their pitching staff if they so desire.

The real question, then, is: Do they desire to add to their pitching staff? And if so, how much are they willing to spend to do it?

Major-league camp in West Palm Beach is going to feature the best minor-league players in the Nationals organization.

Dylan Crews, James Wood and Brady House are among the prospects who have been invited to big-league camp this spring, the team announced Tuesday. The three consensus top prospects in the organization all will get their first opportunity to be part of a big-league clubhouse, compete against top competition and make their case to club officials to earn promotions to D.C. in the near future.

The Nats announced 11 non-roster invitations altogether, the first batch of minor leaguers who know they’ll be in major-league camp. More invitations are expected before pitchers and catchers report to The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches two weeks from today, whether in the form of free agents who sign minor-league deals or more current members of the farm system who get a chance to move up.

In addition to Crews, Wood and House, the Nationals announced invitations to outfield prospect Robert Hassell III, infield prospects Trey Lipscomb and Darren Baker and catcher Brady Lindsly. They also extended invitations to four players with major-league experience who signed minor-league contracts: outfielder Travis Blankenhorn, first basemen Lewin Díaz and Juan Yepez and left-hander Joe La Sorsa.

Hassell, Lipscomb and Baker all will draw interest this spring, and all could make their major-league debuts sometime in 2024. But the spotlight will shine brightest on the three top-rated prospects, all of whom are expected to reach the big leagues this year.

Ask Joey Gallo what stats matter most to him, and he’ll tell you he pays attention to on-base percentage, OPS and isolated power. He’ll also tell you what he doesn’t pay attention to.

“I don’t look at average,” he said. “Because I want to throw up if I do.”

Don’t worry about tiptoeing around the subject of batting average with Gallo. Whatever you think of the cringeworthy numbers he’s posted throughout his career, he thinks worse of them.

Gallo, who signed a $5 million deal with the Nationals last week and was formally introduced via a Zoom call with reporters Monday, has played parts of nine seasons in the major leagues. His career batting average is .197. Only once has he finished a season with an average better than .209.

He finds that just as unacceptable as you do. He also knows it’s not as easy to fix as you might think.

A smorgasbord of Nationals thoughts on this Monday morning as Detroit Lions fans around the world cope with coming oh-so-close to their first Super Bowl appearance and the rest of us cope with another Chiefs-49ers matchup …

* The Joey Gallo signing became official over the weekend after the 30-year-old slugger passed his physical. Gallo is now a member of the Nats, having agreed to a one-year, $5 million deal that also includes a mutual option for 2025.

Before anyone gets too worked up over that last nugget: Mutual options almost never get picked up. If the player has a good season, he’ll want to decline it and see if he can get a better deal as a free agent. If the player struggles, the team will decline it because it won’t want to overpay him for a second season.

So for all practical purposes, this is a one-year contract for Gallo, who will be motivated to put up big numbers and try to parlay that into a better deal next winter, whether from the Nationals or someone else.

The odds of Gallo fitting into the Nats’ 2025 plans probably aren’t great. If things go as they’re supposed to go, the outfield will be filled with James Wood and Dylan Crews joining Lane Thomas. (And even if some part of that preferred plan doesn’t come to fruition, there’s still Robert Hassell III, Daylen Lile, Jacob Young, Stone Garrett and others who could ascend to an available starting role.)

We’re not quite there yet, but spring training is drawing near. Pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach in a mere 18 days, and at long last the 2024 Nationals will begin to take shape.

There will be more optimism surrounding this year’s team than there was a year ago, with the organization hoping to take another step forward after improving from 55 to 71 wins. But how much better should we believe the Nats actually are?

Nobody’s going to try to claim this roster stacks up with the best rosters in the National League. The key question is: How does it stack up to last season’s roster?

Over the last few days, we’ve been attempting to answer that question, position by position. We started Friday with the pitching staff. Today, we look at the position players. So, do the 2024 Nationals look better, worse or the same?

CATCHER: Slightly better
The Nationals actually had one of the better catching corps in the majors, in terms of offensive production, last season. Their collective .729 OPS ranked ninth in the big leagues, and their 84 RBIs ranked sixth. Keibert Ruiz returns as the top catcher and will hope to take another step forward in his offensive game while also hoping to make a bigger step forward in his defensive game (which was lacking in 2023). Riley Adams enjoyed a highly productive season in a backup role, and it will be interesting to see if he gets more than the 158 plate appearances he took last year.

We’re not quite there yet, but spring training is drawing near. Pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach in a mere 19 days, and at long last the 2024 Nationals will begin to take shape.

There will be more optimism surrounding this year’s team than there was a year ago, with the organization hoping to take another step forward after improving from 55 to 71 wins. But how much better should we believe the Nats actually are?

Nobody’s going to try to claim this roster stacks up with the best rosters in the National League. The key question is: How does it stack up to last season’s roster?

Over the next few days, we’ll attempt to answer that question, position by position. We’ll start today with the pitching staff. So, do the 2024 Nationals look better, worse or the same?

NO. 1 STARTER: Slightly better
Though Patrick Corbin started Opening Day yet again, by season’s end it was clear Josiah Gray was the team’s best starter. Not that Gray resembled a true ace, far from it. He finished 8-13 with 3.91 ERA and 1.459 WHIP. But he cut down dramatically on his home run rate from the previous year and increased his strikeout rate. He also showed an ability to finish strong after a rough stretch during the second half. What can we expect from the 26-year-old this season? More progress should be expected. Gray is learning who he is and who he isn’t as a big-league pitcher. He set out to reduce his homer rate last winter and was successful. If he can be successful reducing his walk rate in 2024, he’ll wind up having a better season.

The Nationals’ acquisition of Joey Gallo this week – which still won’t be official for another day or two, by the way – was made with one primary purpose in mind: To inject some power into a lineup that sorely needs it.

The Nats ranked last in the National League with 151 home runs last season. And they had only one individual player top 18 homers: Lane Thomas, who finished with 28.

Gallo, for those who don’t know, has averaged 30 homers in each of his last six full major-league seasons and hit 38 as recently as 2021 with the Rangers and Yankees. He hit only 21 last year with the Twins, but he did that in only 332 plate appearances. His 6.3 percent home run rate was actually right in line with his career average, not to mention more than double the major-league average.

So, Gallo’s presence is going to help the Nationals. But he alone isn’t going to turn the league’s worst power-hitting lineup into even an average one. For that, the Nats will need blasts from others.

There’s still a reasonable chance Mike Rizzo adds another bat this winter, because at the moment the team’s Opening Day designated hitter appears to be … Riley Adams? Jake Alu? Stone Garrett (if he’s healthy)? The options aren’t great, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Rizzo spends a bit more money on another hitter with power potential.

If you missed the news Tuesday, the Nationals actually acquired a major leaguer.

Yes, for the first time in 42 days, they made a move involving the 40-man roster. (OK, actually the move isn’t official yet and may not be for another few days, so the streak technically continues.)

Joey Gallo is going to be a National, the 30-year-old slugger having agreed to terms on a one-year deal that guarantees $5 million, plus the potential for another $1 million earned in incentives, sources familiar with the negotiation confirmed. He’ll need to pass a physical, and the team will need to clear a 40-man spot for him, but then it’ll all be official, and our long winter nightmare will be over.

The Nats hadn’t made a major-league transaction since Dec. 12, when they officially announced the signings of Nick Senzel and Dylan Floro. Suffice it to say, it has been a while.

If you were hoping for a deal to get excited about, this probably wasn’t it. There were bigger names available on the free agent market, many of them coming with a much higher price tag. But don’t blow off the Gallo signing altogether. There is some logic behind it.

Nearly every Hall of Fame election I’ve participated in sadly has been dominated by the issue that plagued baseball for an entire generation: performance-enhancing drugs. With so many great players tainted by PED connections, most of the toughest calls I had to make in my previous 13 Baseball Writers' Association of America ballots required me to invoke the Hall’s longstanding off-the-field criteria, which instruct voters to consider character, integrity and sportsmanship in addition to playing performance.

The good news: There were still a few lingering PED cases on the 2024 ballot, but not many. And all of them concerned players who have been on this ballot for many years, so there wasn’t a whole lot of new research that needed to be considered.

That did not, however, make the 2024 ballot easy. Quite the opposite, because for the first time in a long time, there were a number of really difficult decisions to be made strictly on a player’s on-field performance. Which, to be honest, is how it should be. This is supposed to be the ultimate baseball debate: Is Player X a Hall of Famer or not? And it’s such a better debate when the question involves on-field performance and only on-field performance.

This was actually a smaller ballot than has been typical since I started doing this: Only 26 players up for election, 12 of those first-time nominees who retired five years ago, the other 14 returning candidates who continued to receive at least 5 percent support for up to 10 years of eligibility. As always, a player must be named on 75 percent of the roughly 400 ballots sent out to writers who have been active members of the BBWAA at least 10 years to earn induction into Cooperstown.

And it was refreshing to learn tonight that three players crossed the magic threshold and earned induction: Adrián Beltré, Joe Mauer and Todd Helton. Those three all-time greats will join Jim Leyland, who was elected last month by the Contemporary Era Committee, on the stage in Cooperstown this summer.