The playoffs have only just begun, but we have already seen former Washington Nationals make an impact. While the Nats missed the postseason for the 7th straight season, there are a lot of familiar faces to watch. There are players who have not been on the Nats for a long time, but there are also guys who were on the 2026 team.
One of those recent Nats is Luis Garcia Jr., who had a huge night in his first career playoff start. Garcia opened the scoring for the Yankees in the bottom of the 4th inning
with a towering solo home run to right field. He got all of a Sonny Gray sweeper and knew it right off the bat.
It would not surprise me if Garcia has a big postseason. In October, you see more velocity and nastier stuff. However, Garcia has never had any issues hitting velocity. He also has a flair for the dramatic. I am happy to see Garcia get a taste of playoff baseball, though I wish he could have done it in DC. There is a chance Garcia becomes a Yankees cult hero this October.
With Garcia’s Yankees eliminating the Red Sox, Curtis Mead will not get a chance to play in October. He was actually added to the roster yesterday after Roman Anthony’s injury. Mead did not get into the game though. After a monster year with the Nats, Mead got hurt in his first game with the Red Sox. We will see what he can do next year because that Mead for Early trade is fascinating.
The other 2026 National who is playing in October is Foster Griffin. We have not gotten to see him yet because the Guardians got a bye. I am curious to see what kind of role Griffin plays for Cleveland in October. He was not as sharp after the trade, but I still think he could be their game 3 starter behind Parker Messick and Gavin Williams.
Yesterday, Griffin’s Guardians learned who they will be playing in the ALDS. The White Sox knocked off the Astros with two convincing wins. There is actually a Nats connection on this White Sox team. Erick Fedde was a first rounder by the Nats back in 2014, but did not have a ton of success in DC.
For most of his career, Fedde has struggled. However, it seems like he turns into a different pitcher when he puts on a White Sox uniform. After going to Korea for a year, Fedde came back with the White Sox and had a phenomenal first half. He was actually part of a three team trade at the 2024 deadline which led to the White Sox acquiring Miguel Vargas, one of their best players.
Fedde was not as good after the trade to the Cardinals. In fact, he got released in 2025 and pitched for 3 different teams. This offseason, he returned to Chicago and pitched to a solid 3.83 ERA in 141 innings. Yesterday, Fedde got the last out of the White Sox first playoff series win since 2005 and was fired up in his playoff debut. While he was on the 2019 Nats, he never actually pitched in the playoffs. Now he is getting his shot.
As we all know, the Phillies core group is littered with former Nats. Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper have been at the top of the Phillies lineup together for years now. Of course, all of those guys spent time in DC. With Harper’s exit from DC and the divisional rivalry, I do not suppose many Nats fans will be rooting for them though.
It looked like Nats fans were going to get a successful hate watch. After the Phillies dropped game one, they were on the verge of elimination yesterday. I know a lot of Nats fans chuckled when Bryce Harper misplayed a ball in the outfield, leading to the Braves taking the lead.
As we know, Bryce has a flair for the dramatic though. In the top of the 8th, Harper tied the game after going back to back with Kyle Schwarber. It was a true postseason moment and it honestly made me miss October baseball in DC.
I do not want to be writing this kind of story next year. Hopefully the Nats will be able to knock the Phillies or Braves off their perch and make a playoff run of their own next season. Watching that series, I see two flawed teams who have aging or stale cores. They have enough talent to make a run, but I think the Nats have a window to strike these next couple of years.
Nationals Park in October is a truly elite atmosphere. I would do anything to get that back. With the way Paul Toboni is building things, I have faith that the Nats can get back to October sooner rather than later. Hopefully I am writing about current Nationals being heroes in the playoffs in 2027, not former ones.
