What should the Washington Nationals do this offseason to repair the franchise?

The 2024 season is over for the Washington Nationals. Now, the franchise is looking to take a big step forward this offseason.

There’s a lot to like about the direction the Nationals are going. As a team still in the process of rebuilding, this year it was important to see some of their younger players develop and grow.

While it’s good to build a pipeline of young talent to have a strong farm system, eventually those prospects need to come forward and make an impact. That’s exactly what this campaign, in the middle of the infield for Washington, did, and it looks like it will play out in the years to come with CJ Abrams and Luis Garcia Jr.

In addition to these two great young players, the prospects on the field also look promising, with James Wood, Jacob Young and Dylan Crews. Although the future looks bright, there is still work to be done.

Recently, ESPN.com’s Bradford Doolittle talked about what the team needs to do this offseason to fix the franchise.

“What can they do about it? The Nationals rebuild hasn’t taken root yet, but you can see the plan taking root. And this thing might be ready to take off. Assuming the issues that caused CJ Abrams to be sent to the minors don’t persist, the Nationals will have long-term solutions in place at every middle position and both corner outfield spots, just for starters. And while we shouldn’t expect the Nationals to go wild in free agency, they probably could if ownership approved it. With the expiration of Patrick Corbin’s contract, Washington has very open salary prospects. That’s always a good thing, but especially when you have a bottom-up talent base. It’s fun again in DC.”

It’s quite possible that the most important thing for the Nationals this winter will be Patrick Corbin’s exit from his contract. Washington, on paper, should have a lot of money to spend this offseason, and they can attack free agency in a few different ways.

One potential path is for them to spread out their available assets and add several above-average players. On the other hand, they could be looking to make a splash with a player like Pete Alonso.

First base and adding some power to the middle of the order should be the Nationals’ top priorities this winter. Even though the outlook for Washington looks very promising, they don’t appear to be powerhouse heavyweights.

The upcoming offseason will be crucial to Washington’s rebuilding schedule. If the Nationals spend money, they have a young core that looks poised to take a big step forward in 2025.