With just one series remaining in the 2026 season for the Washington Nationals , the majority of the attention is going to shift to what takes place this winter and spring.
Roster building will be key. The front office has to overhaul the pitching staff based on the struggles of the bullpen and starting rotation the past few years, but it's unclear how much financial flexibility president of baseball operations Paul Toboni will be given, even with some monstrous contracts set to come off the books.
Beyond that, there were some massive strides made on the farm this season . And because of that, some new players are going to be a factor for the major league roster in 2027. That adds another wrinkle to the situation, as the Nationals would love to feature homegrown talent anywhere they can.
But the other way Washington could shuffle things around this offseason is by making some trades. And Sam Sallick of Federal Baseball has circled three interesting names as possible trade chips.
Washington Nationals third baseman Brady House | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Sallick dove into the state of the first base position for the Nationals. And because of Abimelec Ortiz 's struggles following a red-hot start to his big league career , there are tons of question marks at the cold corner going forward.
Andres Chaparro emerged in the second half of the year , but did he actually turn the corner or was that a fluke? Will Yohandy Morales be able to defy some of what the underlying metrics suggest will happen to his game in the bigs, or will he be a boom-or-bust, inconsistent hitter? And can Brady House live up to his former top prospect billing, or is he going to be a high-strikeout, average defender going forward?
That's what makes things murky in the nation's capital. While House plays third base, he could be impacted by the youth movement that is set to take place next year with top prospect Seaver King seemingly ready for The Show . And because Ortiz is the only left-handed-hitting platoon option in the trio of Ortiz, Chaparro and Morales, it's likely that Ortiz will continue to get opportunities, especially because this front office has high hopes for what he can become after they traded for him.
Because of that, it wouldn't be surprising to see someone get dealt this winter.
Washington could sell high on Chaparro's strong second half and present him as a power-hitting infielder who can hit both righties and lefties. Morales is a former top 30 prospect who tore up the Triple-A level and then slashed .279/.279/.651 with four homers, four doubles and 10 RBIs across his first 15 MLB games at the age of 24. And then there's House, who likely would draw the most interest as a 23-year-old former No. 11 overall pick who has flashed high-end defense and massive pop at times during the early stages of his MLB career.
Would one of those guys be able to net the Nationals a controllable pitcher or two who can factor into the mix in 2027? Perhaps. And while Toboni likely doesn't want to move on from any of those players, he's shown that he is not afraid to make a deal that he believes will benefit the franchise.
Keep an eye on some notable trades being made this offseason. While I would be shocked if House was one of the players who was dealt, it wouldn't surprise me to see either Chaparro or Morales get moved for some more win-now pitching help.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/nationals/onsi as Three Interesting Names Circled as Possible Offseason Trade Chips for Nationals .
