2025 was not exactly a banner year for the Washington Nationals, but that does not mean there were not any fun moments. As the year comes to a close, I wanted to highlight six of the coolest things that happened
on the field for the Nats this year. We discussed how important 2025 was off the field, but now we will look at some on-field memories.
With a 66-96 record, this season did not go according to plan. It is never a good sign when a whole regime gets fired. However, there were still some good times this year and I had a blast covering these moments. Let’s get into the list, which is in no particular order.
The first moment to discuss actually occurred on Opening Day. When MacKenzie Gore took the mound for his first career Opening Day start, he was a man on a mission. He sliced through the Phillies lineup with ease. Sure, there were shadows, but that does not take away from how impressive the outing was.
Gore looked ready to take the leap to ace status. Everything was working for him on that March afternoon. His fastball was lively, his curveball just dropped off the table and he was showing a new slider to left handed hitters that was nasty. Gore struck out 13, while walking nobody and allowing just one hit.
That dominance continued for the first half of the season. Gore made his first All-Star team, and posted a 3.02 ERA in the first half. Things went off the rails after the All-Star break, but Gore showed how high his ceiling really is. Ironically, the Nats bullpen immediately blew the game when he came out, an ominous sign of things to come.
The next moment may be one that you have forgotten about. Back in April, the Nats made history by turning their first triple play since moving back to DC. It came against the Mets on April 25th and was shrouded in controversy.
Former Nat Jesse Winker hit a line drive which Nathaniel Lowe allegedly caught. Then Lowe threw it to second base to double off the runner and finally, CJ Abrams tagged the runner standing on second base to get the triple play. It was an odd play that was very confusing.
Upon further review, it did not seem like Lowe actually caught the ball, but the play stood. It was the first triple play in team history. In a season where so much went wrong for the Nats, this went so right. They ended up winning the game in walk off fashion and the Mets missed the playoffs by one game.
Another fun moment that occurred in April is when the Nats knocked off the champion Dodgers. Baseball is a sport where anything can happen, and this series proved that. The lowly Nationals won two out of three against the Dodgers, who won their second straight World Series this year.
I remember going to one of the games, where the Nats blitzed the Dodgers. James Wood hit two home runs and Brad Lord struck out Shohei Ohtani multiple times. Despite the cold weather, it was a really fun night.
That series, as well as a series win against the D-Backs afterwards had fans believing that this year could be a breakthrough for the Nats. The Nats were not a horrible team the first couple months. However, things really went off the rails when the month of June rolled around.
Speaking of June, there is one highlight from that miserable month. It is kind of funny that one of the highlights of the Nats season was a walk off homer to snap an 11 game losing streak, but here we are.
After losing three straight games to the lowly Rockies, the Nats losing streak had reached 11 games. The vibes were absolutely horrific. Between all the losing and Davey Martinez’s comments about how it is never on coaching, things were rough.
Game four of the Rockies series was another dog fight. Then in the 11th inning, the Nats young star James Wood had a signature moment. He hit an absolutely towering home run to straight away center to walk it off and snap the losing streak.
He ended his season on a sour note, but Wood’s first half was so impressive. There were so many majestic home runs and impressive moments. Hopefully he can get back to that kind of form in 2026.
The next thing I want to talk about is actually a few plays combined. Jacob Young had a flair for the dramatic in the outfield this year. He made a few absolutely insane catches in 2025. Young has always been a defensive ace, but it felt like he made more acrobatic plays this year. We wrote about all of his crazy plays in September.
My favorite one came late in the season against the Mets. He made an insane catch where he made a play at the wall, but the ball popped out. His instincts came through though. Young kicked the ball in the air to himself and made an absurd play.
He made another crazy catch later in the game, which ended up costing the Mets in a big way. In a season where the Mets were one win away from a playoff spot, the Nats magical plays proved costly.
The last highlight is yet another one of those magical plays against the Mets. This one came courtesy of Daylen Lile. As Nats fans know, Lile had a ridiculous month of September, where he won NL Player of the Month. He was an absolute hitting machine and was spraying the ball all over the yard.
While Lile is known for hitting a ton of triples, he took things one step further on this play. In extra innings, Lile smacked a ball that the center fielder just missed. The ball rolled away from the center fielder and Lile was on the move. At first, I was thinking he hit a triple, but he ended up going all the way home.
This inside the park home run proved to be the difference, and the Nats won a dramatic game. It was the crown jewel of a month full of highlights for Daylen Lile. I cannot wait to see what the young outfielder has in store for us in 2026.
Sure, it was not a great year for the Nats. That does not mean that there were no fun memories. Some of the Nats young players showed their insane potential. Hopefully 2026 is the year where these guys can put it all together and show consistency.
