At the very least, the Washington Nationals provided their farm system a jolt when they shipped their ace MacKenzie Gore to the Texas Rangers in a five-for-one blockbuster. It’s going to be a long time before anyone can determine who was the “winner” of that deal, if at all. But what the Nationals and this new regime seem to be focused on at this point in time is getting young pieces back in return to mold while coming up the ranks of their revamped developmental system.

While president of baseball operations Paul Toboni reportedly turned down what was deemed to be an “aggressive pitch” from the San Francisco Giants for shortstop CJ Abrams, he’s made it clear this winter that he’s been willing to listen to offers for his players.

Nationals Shopped Jacob Young to Teams This Offseason

In a bit of a surprising report, they stated, “Washington also has been shopping shortstop CJ Abrams and outfielder Jacob Young this offseason. Young is a Gold Glove-caliber center fielder with four years of control.”

While the Abrams news had previously been known—especially because teams around the league reportedly were also inquiring about his availability early on in the winter—it was notable to see Jacob Young’s name pop up in trade news.

Why Nationals Should Trade Jacob Young

First, there’s a chance Washington could get a sneaky-good return for the center fielder that adds even more talent or depth to this farm system. And secondly, by moving on from Young, it opens up more playing time for players the new regime has to evaluate at the big league level.

Like mentioned before, there is no doubting the elite defense Young brings to center field, with him having been nominated for a Gold Glove Award in each of the past two seasons. His absurd 38 outs above average and 25 defensive runs saved accrued over less than 2,500 innings is nothing short of spectacular.

But the 26-year-old also doesn’t bring much to the table when it comes to offense. He has a career .247/.310/.316 slash line and OPS+ of 78 that is 22 points below the league average of 100. Young struggled in 2025 compared to what he did in 2024, slashing .231/.296/.287 with an OPS+ of 68.

The Jekyll and Hyde nature of his game makes it hard to project what his market might be or what the Nationals could even get in return for him. But teams around Major League Baseball have coveted elite defense in center field for forever. So there should be some price point a team would be willing to pay to have him man their center spot, especially with four years of club control remaining.

Shipping Young out of town would also open things up for players like Robert Hassell III—who was once a highly-coveted prospect—Christian Franklin—one of the return pieces of the Michael Soroka trade and a Rule 5 Draft protectee—and even 30th-ranked prospect Andrew Pinckney—who hit 20 home runs in Triple-A last season.

At this point, it appears like Young is what he is; an elite defender who will always struggle at the plate against major league pitching. Meanwhile, it’s still not clear what those other players can be when it comes to their careers in the bigs.

So if Washington can find a trade partner that gives them another avenue to boost their farm system, then not only will they accomplish what they’re looking for on that front. But they’ll also be able to make evaluations on other players who could have higher overall ceilings than Young.

Other Notable News on the Nationals

• Nationals Reportedly Turned Down ‘Aggressive Pitch’ From Giants for CJ Abrams
• Some MLB Execs Think Nationals Might Have Gotten Fleeced in MacKenzie Gore Trade
• Nationals Finally Trade MacKenzie Gore in Monster Blockbuster Deal With Rangers
• Nationals’ Waiver Claim of Mickey Gasper, DFA of Andry Lara Is Latest Roster Shake-Up