CBS Sports took a look at how first-year managers have fared across baseball to start the 2026 MLB regular season with Washington Nationals manager Blake Butera drawing praise.
The Washington Nationals fell back in the loss column following an 11-3 loss in game one against the Minnesota Twins, putting the struggles at home back under the microscope once again. Yet big picture, the Nationals have been one of the more impressive teams to start the 2026 regular season, especially among first year managers.
Manager Blake Butera ranked third in CBS Sports' rankings of first year managers to start the 2026 regular season, slotting Butera behind Walt Weiss of the Atlanta Braves and Craig Stammen of the San Diego Padres.
Butera, of course, is the youngest among all the first year managers after becoming the youngest to become an MLB manager since the 1970s, giving the Nationals juice after the Mike Rizzo era. CBS Sports pointed to Washington outperforming preseason expectations with the Nationals hovering around .500 throughout the season despite botching a handful of attempts to climb back over the hump.
Maybe the biggest question not related to the roster has been why the Nationals have struggled so mightily at home, yet still, it has been an encouraging start under the youth movement now taking over at Nationals Park.
Dayn Perry of CBS Sports noted the Nationals are "deep in a rebuilding process" while noting they're comfortably ahead of both the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets in both the division standings and run differential.
"The Washington offense in particular has been impressive," Dayn Perry of CBS Sports said of the Nationals. "Butera assumed the role after serving as the Rays' director of player development, which means he may be well-suited for such a young roster. So far, the Nats under Butera have proved much more respectable than most anticipated."
It's an encouraging sign for Butera, who has infused optimism into the Nationals and doing so his way, including turning to an opener in several games this season for the Nationals' first time since 2019.
It has been the pitching that has been the biggest hinderance for the Nationals this season with both the starting rotation and bullpen sore spots amid several injuries, leading to a pair of roster moves on Sunday along with Cionel Perez opting to declare for free agency instead of accepting his assignment in Triple A Rochester.
Meanwhile, the Nationals will return to action on Wednesday night on ESPN with Miles Mikolas set to take the mound to face the Twins in game two of the series. The Nationals have struggled mightily at home in 2026, averaging nearly three runs fewer at home than on the road, with a chance to buck the trend on the national spotlight.