The Winter Meetings just wrapped up and the stove was hot down in Orlando. There was a lot of action around the league, especially relating to the NL East. However, the Washington Nationals did not get in on that action. I wanted to discuss this busy week of activity, as well as what is next for the Nats.
Going into the week, there was a lot of buzz around the Nats. A MacKenzie Gore trade felt imminent and rumors were swirling around CJ Abrams. However, the only move the Nats made at the Winter Meetings
was selecting Griff McGarry in the Rule 5 Draft. Plenty of questions still remain about what this Nats roster will look like on Opening Day.
There are even more questions about what the rival New York Mets will look like. The Mets lost a pair of very familiar faces this week in Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz. It will be interesting to see what the deep pocketed Mets will do to replace these two stars. They also traded longtime left fielder Brandon Nimmo before the Winter Meetings. The 2026 Mets are going to look very different to previous iterations of the team.
Let’s dive deeper into Alonso first because he is going from one Nats rival to another. Ever since David Rubenstein became owner, the Orioles have been rumored to make a big splash. That finally happened when they signed Alonso to a 5-year $155 million deal yesterday. After a down year last season, the O’s look determined to get back to the postseason.
As Nats fans know all too well, Alonso is one of the game’s premier sluggers. His 264 home runs with the Mets are the most in team history. Now he is bringing that light tower power to Baltimore. That lineup is going to be loaded with talent. They still have some holes on their pitching staff, and could potentially make a run at MacKenzie Gore.
It will be interesting to see how the Mets try to replace Alonso. He has been a huge part of their team for a long time. They have internal options such as Mark Vientos, but how would the notoriously emotional Mets fanbase react to replacing Alonso internally? There has been some buzz about the Mets trading for Willson Contreras of the Cardinals as well.
The Mets also lost their long-time closer Edwin Diaz, but they have already signed Devin Williams to replace him. Williams is coming off a rough year, but was excellent for many years with the Brewers and the underlying numbers were still strong despite poor results with the Yankees.
Speaking of Diaz, he decided to go to the Dodgers in a move that makes the rich even richer. He signed a 3-year $69 million deal to play for the back to back World Series champions. Despite spending big on Tanner Scott last year, the bullpen was a problem area for the Dodgers last year. Like the Nats did in 2019, the Dodgers found just the right mix for the bullpen to work in the postseason. However, when you can go out and sign the best closer in baseball, why not go for it.
The Mets are going to have to make a lot of moves to replace the talent they let out of the door and satisfy their fanbase. After last season’s collapse, GM David Stearns is really shaking up that core. He is truly getting the chance to build the team in his image. I am curious what they do from here.
While the Mets are making big changes, the Phillies are running it back. They re-signed Kyle Schwarber on a 5-year $150 million deal. The hulking slugger hit 56 homers last year and got paid for that performance. It is crazy that Schwarber was non-tendered going into his age 28 season and the Nats were able to pick him up. Since the Cubs let him go, Schwarber has hit 219 home runs.
This Phillies core is aging a bit and they seem to be getting further and further away from their goal of a World Series. However, they could not afford to lose Schwarber. They need to make shakeups to their roster, but Schwarber is the heartbeat of that team. The Phillies will need to make adjustments to get over the top, but keeping Schwarber ensures that they will be a contender, at least for the next year or two.
The Braves also made a smaller splash late in the Meetings, signing veteran Mike Yastrzemski to a 2-year $23 million deal. He has been one of the most consistent players in the league over the past few seasons, but he is 35 now. I am curious to see what the Braves do to re-establish themselves as a force in the division.
For the Nats, plenty of questions still remain. They have a ton of holes on the pitching staff, though it sounds like Paul Toboni will pursue pitching reinforcements. It remains to be seen how much money he will spend on those reinforcements, but it sounds like they won’t be shopping at the top of the market this year. There is also a hole at first base which needs filling.
The futures of MacKenzie Gore and CJ Abrams remain up in the air. Rumors have been swirling around both with Toboni looking to re-set this rebuild. If I had to bet, I would wager that Gore is traded while Abrams stays. However, anything can happen and there are still plenty of unknowns with this new regime.
It was a very interesting week for the NL East. Plenty of moves were made in the division and the stage was set for further activity. The Phillies still need to shake up their aging core a bit. The Mets need to replace all the production they have lost this past week. We will see how the Braves respond to missing the playoffs for the first time since 2017. Most importantly for us, we still need to see what Paul Toboni has up his sleeve in his first offseason as the Nats President of Baseball Operations.
