With the Washington Nationals set to resume the second half of the 2026 regular season, we take a look at how they fared through the first 97 games
Somehow, the MLB season has already passed its midsummer milestone. The All-Star break is officially in the rearview mirror, which means it's time for the home stretch of the season, complete with playoff pushes, an impending trade deadline and a combination of hope and existential dread.
Before we march forward, though, it's worth taking a look at what's transpired for the Washington Nationals over the first half of a surprisingly good season. To that end, let's hand out some grades for different players and units before games start back up tonight.
A note: All stats are from Baseball Reference unless otherwise noted.
James Wood and CJ Abrams: A
What a first half from the Nats' top two young studs.
Coming into the season, both James Wood and CJ Abrams were considered potential trade bait. Just a few months later, they have made themselves completely indispensable.
Both players were named to the National League all-star team, and deservedly so. Abrams accumulated 2.9 wins above replacement to date, with an OPS .862. Wood sits at 4.2 wins above replacement and a .984 OPS, the latter of which leads the National League.
If there was any doubt about whether either Wood or Abrams were franchise cornerstones, there isn't anymore.
Foster Griffin: A+
Before the season, some thought that Foster Griffin, a 30-year-old rookie out of Japan's NPB, could be a positive addition to a Nationals rotation in need of quality arms.
Boy, has that prediction proven true.
Griffin has blown any and all expectations completely out of the water in the first half, pitching to a 2.77 ERA and earning a spot in the all-star game. A relative soft-tosser, he has used an impressive seven-pitch arsenal to flummox opponents all season.
Who knows if his performance will hold up to this level, but Griffin has already outplayed any reasonable hopes for what he could be at the major league level.
The ace of the rotation now heads into the second half of the season fresh off a pair of strikeouts against three batters faced in his lone inning in Tuesday's All Star game.
The bullpen: F- (is that a thing?); and the pitching as a whole: D+
Just how bad has the Nationals bullpen been in the 2026 season? Everybody knows it's been ugly, but let's take a look at the numbers.
According to insidethepen.com, Washington's bullpen has posted a 5.22 ERA so far, good for third-worst in the majors behind only the Colorado Rockies (5.25) and Kansas City Royals (5.35).
At times, though, it has been even worse than that. In a brutal four-game set against the Philadelphia Phillies in late June, relievers gave up more than 20 (!) runs, blowing multiple games. That's not to mention the 27 blown saves on the year, which is nearly unfathomable.
The Nationals aren't a great pitching team as a whole -- they have a collective ERA of 4.75, with some inconsistent peaks and valleys from potential ace Cade Cavalli and consistent, and bad, outings from Miles Mikolas -- but the bullpen has been even worse. If this team wants to be truly competitive in the near or distant future, that will have to change.
The offense: A
The Nationals offense was always supposed to be better than the team's pitching, but the absolute firework show the team put on over the first half was still a revelation.
Ahead of Friday's game, the Nationals are second in home runs (138), second in RBI (490), first in stolen bases (103) and tied for first in total runs scored (516).
And, while Wood and Abrams have been excellent, it isn't just the stars carrying the team. Washington has gotten excellent seasons out of other players (2 WAR and an .871 OPS), Nasim Nunez (34 stolen bases), Curtis Mead (1.6 WAR and an .843 OPS) and more.
This team as a whole might not be ready to contend yet -- you can thank the pitching for that -- but the bats certainly are.
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