One of the highlights of the offseason is the Hall of Fame discourse. Every year a new ballot comes out and voters decide who will head to Cooperstown. This year it will be very intriguing because there are no obvious first ballot Hall of Famers. For my money, Andruw Jones is the most likely of the group to make the Hall of Fame.
However, there is one more interesting thing for Nationals fans. Now that the franchise has been around over 20 years, plenty of former Nats are going to be on Hall of Fame ballots. This year, three former Nats will be on the ballot. Howie Kendrick, Daniel Murphy and Gio Gonzalez all made the ballot this year.
None of these guys are likely to make it past the first ballot, but it is still an honor just to be on the ballot. You have to have played in the league for over a decade to make the list. If you are in the league for that long it means you had a great run in the league.
While none of these guys will be Hall of Famers, all three had some huge moments. Surprisingly, Howie Kendrick had by far the most WAR of the group with 35. The vast majority of that value came with the Angels, where he posted 28.5 WAR. However, his most memorable moments actually came in DC.
His home run in Game 7 of the World Series gave the Nats a lead they would not relinquish. Kendrick also hit a 10th inning grand slam to get the Nats over the hump in the NLDS. That 2019 season from the 35 year old Kendrick was so memorable. Despite that, he is still not going to make the Hall.
While he had the least WAR of the three, Daniel Murphy had the best peak among the group. His first two seasons in DC were absolutely outstanding, especially his 2016 season. Carrying over his momentum from his 2015 playoff run with the Mets, Murphy hit .347 with 25 homers and a .985 OPS in 2016. He finished second in MVP voting, only behind Kris Bryant.
Murphy was such a great pure hitter who found a way to tap into power in DC. Watching him hit was so much fun. He was really an artist at the plate. I think Murphy would do a great job as a hitting coach if someone hired him.
Lastly, Gio Gonzalez is also on the ballot. He spent the most time in DC of the trio. While he was never the ace of the staff, Gio was a great two or three starter for a number of years. His best season came in 2012 when he won 21 games and posted a 2.89 ERA. Mike Rizzo made a lot of great trades over the years, but his acquisition of Gonzalez was one of his best.
Gio could be a frustrating pitcher at times due to his shaky control. However, he was usually effectively wild. He never went super deep into games, but he could give you 5 or 6 innings of quality pitching most of the time. Gio was never truly elite outside of 2012, but he was a very good pitcher.
Moving forward, there are going to be more and more Nats on the ballot. Next season, a big name will be hitting the ballot. 2026 will be Ryan Zimmerman’s first year of eligibility. While he is unlikely to make Cooperstown, I would not be surprised if he stuck on the ballot for more than one year.
Zimmerman posted 40.1 WAR, which is a very good number. If it were not for injuries, I really think Zimmerman had a chance at Cooperstown. He only had one 2 WAR season after he turned 29. From 2014 to 2021, he only posted 6.4 WAR, which really put a dent in his Hall of Fame case.
Ryan Zimmerman is a Nationals legend, but his career still could have been better. It is really a shame that his body broke down only a couple years after the Nats entered their competitive window. They could potentially have another title if Zimmerman held up for longer. He had that great 2017 season, but outside of that, Zimmerman did not age very gracefully.
The first big time National to actually make the Hall of Fame is going to be Max Scherzer. It sounds like he will play another season, but he will be going straight to Cooperstown on the first ballot. Scherzer has over 75 WAR and is one of the best pitchers of his generation. Mad Max is an absolute no doubter for Cooperstown.
After that, we will have to wait a little bit. Like Zimmerman, Stephen Strasburg’s prime was too short for Cooperstown. If his body could have held up even for a few more years, Strasburg would be an interesting case due to his postseason dominance. However, he did not do enough.
Bryce Harper and Juan Soto are likely to be Hall of Famers at some point, but at this rate, they will go in wearing another uniform. That is disappointing, especially in the case of Soto. Due to the collapse of the Nats, the team had to trade away a generational talent to restock their talent pool.
It will be interesting to follow this Hall of Fame cycle. I love looking at all the ballots and thinking about how I would vote. One day, I hope to have a Hall of Fame ballot myself. Maybe by the time Juan Soto is up for Cooperstown. Regardless, it is very cool to see three great Nationals on such a prestigious ballot.
