The Washington Nationals could have a departure materialize with multiple teams evaluating one Nationals' starter
Ahead of the second half of the 2026 regular season, the front office have been tasked with answering whether the Washington Nationals will become buyers or sellers at the trade deadline. With the team hovering around .500 for the bulk of the last two months while staying in the conversation for the final wild card spot, the Nationals will likely wait until the last minute to gauge whether an incoming or outgoing move ultimately comes to fruition. Yet the front office is reportedly evaluating the market for one Nationals.
Luis Garcia Jr. has drawn trade interest from teams around the league, per The Athletic.
Garcia is coming off a monster end to the first half of the regular season after belting four home runs and notching 11 RBIs while hitting .308 through the month of July. That includes a multi-home run game in a 2-for-4 day against the Pittsburgh Pirates along with four multi-hit games this month. Garica is also just two RBIs away from tying his career-high previously set in 2024 while he is hitting .284 and slugging .554 in 2026, which would set new career highs. His 68 RBIs also rank tied for third across all of baseball this season, while Garcia is one double away from tying his career high.
His emergence in the regular season marks a notable development not only because of Garcia's history at second base, but also after the Nationals drew concern at the position given the multiple candidates viewed to be competing for arguably the biggest question in the infield through spring training.
Garcia's 20 home runs in 2026 also marks a new career-high, sitting tied for 20th across baseball, while he joins both CJ Abrams and James Wood as Nationals with at least 20 this season. 18 of Garcia's 20 home runs have come against right handed pitchers, yet the trio have been the spark for why Washington has consistently ranked top five across baseball in the stat.
What the asking price would be for the 26 year old New York City native would be the next question as the front office evaluates a move, though a possible evaluation of the emerging infielder could be the signal that the front office will opt to become a seller as many expected ahead of the regular season.
Sitting at 49-49 overall, the Nationals will look for a resolution ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
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