PROSPECT REVIEW: DAYLEN LILE

Age on opening day 2025: 22

How acquired: Drafted in second round in 2021 from Trinity High School in Louisville, Ky.

Ranking: No. 12 per MLB Pipeline, No. 17 per Baseball America

MLB ETA: 2025
* Projected by MLB Pipeline

OK, maybe this hasn’t been as great a year as many probably hoped it would be. There’s still plenty to be thankful for today, though, right?

Of course there is. Even as it pertains to baseball, which may not be back to the level we’d all prefer but undoubtedly is trending in the right direction at last, with the ultimate payoff perhaps not as far off as you’d think.

So before you put the turkey in the oven and sit down to watch what on paper looks like three pretty blah football games, let’s run through everything the Nationals are thankful for on this day …

KEIBERT RUIZ
The opportunity to bounce back from a poor season that in some circumstances could have cost him his job, but won’t here because of the contract extension he signed in 2023.

LUIS GARCIA JR.
Just enough of a display of faith from his manager and general manager to get one last shot to realize his potential this year, which he most definitely did.

PROSPECT REVIEW: ELIJAH GREEN

Age on opening day 2025: 21

How acquired: Drafted No. 5 overall in 2022 from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

Ranking: No. 21 per MLB Pipeline, No. 19 per Baseball America

MLB ETA: 2026
* Projected by MLB Pipeline

We don't typically associate Thanksgiving with baseball. That other national pastime tends to get all the attention this time of year. But baseball has been somewhat on the mind in recent days, especially with the Nationals' notable decision Friday night to non-tender Kyle Finnegan, leaving themselves without a closer.

There's still so much offseason to come, and there's no way to know what else is in store between now and the day pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach. The outlook could look completely different then than it does right now.

So, before basting that turkey or mashing those potatoes, let's answer some questions. As always, you can submit your queries in the comments section below, then check back throughout the morning for my responses ...

PROSPECT REVIEW: ROBERT HASSELL III

Age on opening day 2025: 23

How acquired: Traded with MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, James Wood, Jarlin Susana and Luke Voit from Padres for Juan Soto and Josh Bell in August 2022; originally drafted No. 8 overall by Padres in 2020 from Independence High School in Thompson’s Station, Tenn.

Ranking: No. 13 per MLB Pipeline, No. 14 per Baseball America

MLB ETA: 2025
* Projected by MLB Pipeline

As the dust settled from Friday night’s decision by the Nationals not to tender contracts to Kyle Finnegan and Tanner Rainey, a few follow-up thoughts came to mind.

One, they barely have any veterans on the roster anymore, with 24-year-old Luis Garcia Jr. (who debuted in August 2020) suddenly the most tenured player on the team.

Two, they have several holes to fill in their bullpen now, most importantly identifying a new closer.

Three, they’ve trimmed their financial commitments for 2025 and beyond down to an absolute minimum at this point.

Not that Finnegan had some kind of exorbitant contract, but the salary he would’ve commanded through the arbitration process this winter (likely between $8 million and $9 million) would’ve made him the highest paid player on the current roster.

PROSPECT REVIEW: BRADY HOUSE

Age on opening day 2025: 21

How acquired: Drafted No. 11 overall in 2021 from Winder-Barrow High School in Winder, Ga.

Ranking: No. 3 (No. 84 overall) per MLB Pipeline, No. 4 (No. 79 overall) per Baseball America

MLB ETA: 2025
* Projected by MLB Pipeline

Thanksgiving is four days away, officially kicking off the holiday season. It also may kick off a busier time for the Hot Stove season.

It has been predictably quiet around the league since the World Series ended a month ago. But we’re now two weeks away from the start of the Winter Meetings, with many around the industry already anticipating a busy week in Dallas.

No, that doesn’t mean they think Juan Soto will announce his decision. It’s more that they think some mid-to-upper-level free agents will come off the board and a couple of teams could execute some trades.

Where does that leave the Nationals?

Their free agent needs and targets have been well documented, while the free agent pool grew after Friday’s non-tender deadline. Their farm system is stacked if they wish to acquire major league talent through a trade. But could they go the opposite route and flip a current big leaguer for more prospects to add to their minor league depth?

Twenty-four hours ago, the Nationals’ most pressing roster needs appeared obvious. They needed a power-hitting first baseman. They needed a veteran starting pitcher. They needed an experienced reliever or two for a setup role. And maybe they needed another productive offensive player who could either hold or share the DH role with someone else.

And then just like that, they added another pressing need to the list: a closer.

Friday night’s unexpected decision not to tender a contract to Kyle Finnegan – fellow reliever Tanner Rainey also was non-tendered – created a major void in the Nats bullpen. Maybe Finnegan wasn’t an elite lockdown closer, but he ranked second in the National League in saves this season and over his five seasons in D.C. totaled 88 saves and 291 appearances, third-most in club history in each category.

Manager Davey Martinez’s remaining relief options boast nothing close to that kind of resume.

Derek Law, who was tendered a contract before Friday’s deadline, is a durable and reliable reliever, to be sure. But the 34-year-old has notched only 13 big league saves across parts of eight seasons with six different clubs. His value lies in his ability to take the ball as often as his manager needs him, which led to a whopping 75 appearances and 90 innings pitched this season. He actually pitches more regularly than a typical closer does.

The Nationals surprisingly parted ways with Kyle Finnegan tonight, choosing not to tender a contract to their All-Star closer four months after turning down trade offers for him.

The club also non-tendered reliever Tanner Rainey, the last remaining active member of the 2019 World Series roster, before this evening’s leaguewide 8 p.m. deadline.

Five other unsigned arbitration-eligible players were tendered contracts: Second baseman Luis García Jr., catcher Riley Adams, left-hander MacKenzie Gore and right-handers Josiah Gray and Derek Law. Reliever Mason Thompson, who missed the entire season following Tommy John surgery, already agreed to terms on a one-year contract with the team Thursday evening.

The decision to let Finnegan become a free agent with one year left of club control was unexpected, especially after general manager Mike Rizzo opted not to accept offers for him at the July 30 trade deadline while dealing setup men Hunter Harvey and Dylan Floro for prospects. In non-tendering him now, the Nationals receive nothing in return for a proven late-inning reliever who ranked second in the National League this season with 38 saves.

Finnegan’s late-season struggles, though, may have changed some club officials’ minds about him. Owner of a 1.98 ERA on July 4 (shortly before he was named an All-Star for the first time), he saw that number skyrocket to 5.93 over his final 28 appearances, leaving his season-ending mark a pedestrian 3.68. That marked four straight years in which he finished with an ERA between 3.51 and 3.76.

The Nationals have tendered contracts to all unsigned 40-man roster players with the exception of Kyle Finnegan and Tanner Rainey.

Finnegan and Rainey are now free agents.

The 40-man roster is now at 36. 

There was a point late this summer when it looked like there was a legitimate two-man race for National League MVP. Yes, Shohei Ohtani was doing his usual thing in Los Angeles, but Francisco Lindor was playing out of his mind as well for a Mets club making a surprise run at the postseason.

Could Lindor actually beat out Ohtani for the most prestigious individual award in baseball?

In the end, the answer was a clear no. While Lindor did help get New York into the playoffs, he missed eight key games down the stretch with a back injury. Ohtani, meanwhile, had a closing stretch for the ages: seven homers, 11 stolen bases and an insane .547/.586/1.057 slash line over his final 12 games, during which he became the first player in major league history in the 50/50 Club.

So it came as no surprise Thursday night when Ohtani was named the 2024 NL MVP in a unanimous vote. It’s the third MVP of his illustrious career, and he joins the immortal Frank Robinson as the only players in history to win MVP in both leagues.

That historic performance made Ohtani an easy decision for me on my MVP ballot, which I was fortunate enough to receive this year as one of two designated voters from the Baltimore/Washington chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. I’ve voted for MVP several times before, and sometimes it’s been a tough call. I remember waiting until the final day of the 2007 season before picking Jimmy Rollins over Matt Holliday. This one really wasn’t a tough call in the end.

If you were asked to predict the Nationals’ Opening Day lineup right now, you could probably rattle off six names without too much fear of being wrong. James Wood, Jacob Young and Dylan Crews figure to return as the starting outfield. CJ Abrams and Luis Garcia Jr. are likely to return as the starting middle infield. Keibert Ruiz is all but certain to start behind the plate.

We know first base is a top priority for the organization this winter, with several prominent free agents available if the Nats are ready to spend big again. And the DH slot could be filled by an outside acquisition, by someone already in the organization or some combination of the two.

But what about third base? That’s where it gets more complicated.

The hot corner has truly been a revolving door around here the last five seasons. From 2014-19, Anthony Rendon played 736 games there. The only other player to appear in more than 34 games there was Yunel Escobar, who took over the position in 2015 when an injury plagued Rendon saw more time at second base.

But since Rendon left for Anaheim following the World Series, the Nationals have searched for and failed to find a permanent replacement at third base. A whopping 19 players have appeared in at least one game there since 2020, only two of them seeing action in more than 100 games: Ildemaro Vargas (126) and Carter Kieboom (114).

Voting for the annual Baseball Writers' Association of America awards is hardly easy. There is a lot of pressure when filling out your ballot because of the pedigree and history that are attached to the awards.

If there was an “easy” one of the four, it would probably be Manager of the Year.

When it comes down to Rookie of the Year, Cy Young and Most Valuable Player, there are so many statistics that can be used to compare and contrast the candidates. It sometimes comes down to which ones the voters value more, and that often changes (i.e. the emergence of sabermetric numbers over the last decade).

But for Manager of the Year, there is really only one stat that matters: Record. Then that is often balanced against a team’s expectations coming into the season and any hardships they had to endure (roster changes, injuries, prolonged slumps, etc.).

Voters also take a team’s talent level into consideration. Dave Roberts may never win another Manager of the Year award because the Dodgers are always loaded with MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year candidates with World Series-or-bust aspirations.

The Washington Nationals selected the contracts of outfielder Robert Hassell III and right-handed pitcher Andry Lara on Tuesday. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcements.

Hassell III, 23, joins Washington’s 40-man roster following his second full season with the organization. The No. 8 overall pick in the 2020 First-Year Player Draft, Hassell was acquired at the 2022 Trade Deadline in the deal that also brought CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, James Wood and Jarlin Susana to the Nationals.

Washington’s No. 13 prospect, according to MLBPipeline.com, Hassell III is coming off a strong Arizona Fall League season in which he hit .281 with seven doubles, one triple, four homers, 19 RBI, eight walks, five stolen bases and 17 runs scored in 22 games for the AFL Champion Salt River Rafters. His 12 extra-base hits ranked third in the league, while his 19 RBI were tied for seventh.

A native of Franklin, Tennessee, Hassell III hit .241 with nine doubles, two triples, five home runs, 28 RBI, 35 walks, 15 stolen bases and 44 runs scored in 85 games between Single-A Wilmington, Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Rochester in 2024. He reached base safely in 24 straight games for Harrisburg from April 9 to May 11, tied for the fourth-longest streak in the Eastern League in 2024. Within that streak, he was named Eastern League Player of the Week on May 6 after going 12-for-24 (.500) with two home runs in six games during the week.

Lara, 21, paced Washington’s system in wins (11) and WHIP (1.16), ranked second in innings pitched (134.2 IP) and third in strikeouts (132) in his fourth professional season in 2024. He ranked second among qualified Nationals Minor Leaguers in ERA (3.34) and opponents’ batting average (.227) in 25 games between High-A Wilmington and Double-A Harrisburg.

It’s a deadline day across Major League Baseball, with a host of prospects about to be added to their organization’s 40-man roster.

Officially, this is the deadline for teams to protect players from being lost in next month’s Rule 5 Draft. That draft, if you’ve forgotten, gives clubs the opportunity to snatch prospects away from other clubs for the low, low price of $100,000, provided they’re willing and able to keep those prospects on their 26-man major league roster (or injured list) the entire season.

The Nationals, who completely sat out the Rule 5 Draft from 2011-21, jumped back into the fray the last two winters, taking right-hander Thaddeus Ward in December 2022 and infielder Nasim Nuñez in December 2023. Both players made it through a full season in the majors, but Ward is now a member of the Orioles after getting placed on waivers following a rough season at Triple-A Rochester. Nuñez, meanwhile, barely played in Washington this year but did impress with his eye-popping glovework and blazing speed on the bases when he did get a chance to take the field.

Which players are eligible for this year’s Rule 5 Draft? In the most simplistic terms, it’s anyone who was drafted out of high school or signed internationally in 2020 or earlier, plus anyone drafted out of college in 2021 or earlier, who isn’t on his club’s 40-man roster.

Last year, the Nationals opted to protect four prospects from being lost, all pitchers: DJ Herz, Mitchell Parker, Zach Brzykcy and Cole Henry. The first three all reached the big leagues, with Herz and Parker becoming mainstays in the rotation and Brzykcy pitching out of the bullpen in September. Henry, whose career has been beset by injuries, totaled only 16 1/3 innings for Double-A Harrisburg and Single-A Wilmington.

The Nationals want to be better in 2025. Better enough to contend in the National League East.

Which means, first and foremost, they’re going to have to play better against the NL East.

It probably won’t surprise you to learn the Nats haven’t finished with a winning record against division opponents since 2019, which just so happens to be the last time they finished with a winning record overall (not to mention the Commissioner’s Trophy). The results against the Braves, Marlins, Mets and Phillies in recent years hasn’t been pretty.

But there has been actual improvement. The low point came in 2022, when the Nationals lost 107 games overall and produced a dismal 17-59 record within the division, a .224 winning percentage. Major League Baseball’s schedule changes beginning in 2023 meant a lot fewer intradivision games, but the Nats still struggled that season, going 19-33 for a .365 winning percentage.

We finally saw real progress this year, resulting in a respectable 25-27 record against the NL East, good for a .481 winning percentage. And most notably, the Nationals actually had a winning record against two division foes, going a solid 8-5 against Atlanta and a dominant 11-2 against Miami one year after stumbling to the exact opposite record in that matchup.

It’s awards season around baseball as the offseason continues. Major League Baseball handed out several individual awards and named the All-MLB teams on Thursday. And the Baseball Writers' Association of America announced the finalists for its major awards this past week, with the winners to be announced over the next four days.

Unsurprisingly, the Nationals were shut out from bringing home any hardware. And it’s been a while since any has come Washington's way. But looking ahead, could the Nats have any contenders in 2025?

Note: This is only taking players currently in the organization under consideration. Of course, there could be other candidates added to the mix this offseason.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Last finalist: Juan Soto (2021)
Last winner: Bryce Harper (2015)

The biggest award of the year is probably the biggest stretch for any Nationals player. The Nats as a team would have to take a big leap forward with one of their budding stars leading the way, or have one of those stars have an unbelievable season on his own.

The Arizona Fall League season wraps up tonight with the annual championship game, and members of the Nationals organization will be participating.

Thanks to a 13-4 victory over the Scottsdale Scorpions in Friday night’s semifinal, the Salt River Rafters earned the right to face the Surprise Saguaros in tonight’s championship in the desert. The Rafters roster is made up of prospects from five major league organizations: the Diamondbacks, Rockies, Twins, Yankees and Nationals.

Only one of the Nats’ top-ranked prospects is playing in the AFL this year, but Robert Hassell III has made the most of the opportunity. After another injury-plagued season in the minors, the 23-year-old outfielder has proven himself healthy and quite productive at the plate this fall.

In 22 games over the last month, Hassell batted .281 with a .360 on-base percentage and .517 slugging percentage, producing seven doubles, a triple, four homers and 19 RBIs. And then he added to those totals Saturday with two RBIs to help lead Salt River to a dominant win.

Hassell, who is eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time, is likely to be added to the Nationals’ 40-man roster within the next week. He’ll come to spring training hoping to make an impression on club officials and convince them he’s finally close to big-league-ready after an up-and-down few seasons since his acquisition from the Padres in the Juan Soto blockbuster trade.

Organizational prospect rankings, by their nature, are going to fluctuate year to year. And this has especially been true for the Nationals, who have seen their farm system completely overhauled in recent seasons.

As recently as 2021, the organization’s top 10 list (as compiled by Baseball America) was headlined by three homegrown pitchers (Cade Cavalli, Jackson Rutledge, Cole Henry) and two internationally signed infielders (Yasel Antuna, Armando Cruz).

Only two years later, that list looked totally different, bolstered by the additions of top prospects acquired in the Juan Soto trade (James Wood, Robert Hassell III) and more recent first round draft picks (Elijah Green, Brady House).

The top-tier talent perhaps peaked one year ago, when Dylan Crews and Yoyo Morales joined Wood, House and Cavalli to create a pretty impressive one through five.

Now, with Baseball America releasing a new top prospects list within the last week, there’s a whole new set of promising young players busting down the doors, with five of the new top 10 having been acquired by the Nationals in the last 16 months alone.