Ever since Ryan Zimmerman officially retired, the Washington Nationals have had a revolving door at first base. The team went with internal candidates for the 2026 season. That worked as Luis Garcia Jr. made a position switch from second base to first base and put up good defensive numbers after about six weeks of full acclimation to the position, and the his offense took off at the same time.

From May 9 until the time that Garcia was traded, he was one of the hottest hitters in baseball. The lefty hit .305 and slugged .659 with a .996 OPS in that 70 game span. When Garcia was traded, his lefty bat was replaced internally by Abimelec Ortiz. But Ortiz after a scorching first two weeks after his MLB debut just forgot how to hit. For his final 30 games, it was painful to watch. He hit .136 with a .371 OPS with no power. The team was also giving him almost all at-bats against right-handed pitching and pulling him for pinch-hitters late in games against lefty pitching.

The good news is that both Yohandy Morales and Andres Chaparro were hitting well from the right-side as first baseman. However, the Nats like platoon matchups whereby they started Ortiz against right-handers, and Chaparro and/or Morales against lefty pitchers.

As the Washington Nationals look ahead to the 2027 season, the front office faces an intriguing puzzle at the cold corner. First base and the designated hitter spot have become a revolving door for years. While the second half of the season provided plenty of reason for optimism thanks to the emergence of some powerful young right-handed hitters, it also exposed a glaring lack of balance in the lineup. To maximize the roster’s potential, the Nationals need to commit to a first base strategy. Maybe the answer lies within.

Looking at the farm system, there is no stand-out left-handed top prospect first baseman. To bridge this gap, the Nationals have a few distinct pathways this offseason. The most aggressive route would be navigating the trade market and MLB Trade Rumors wrote yesterday that the Yankees could trade Garcia who will be due an arbitration-eligible salary of $11 million per projections from MLBTR.

With an excess of right-handed corner bats with Ethan Petry in the minors, Morales, and Chaparro who possess similar skill sets, Washington is in a decent position to consider a trade from a position of surplus if they could readily identify a lefty bat that a team was willing to move. An intriguing internal name, Leandro Pineda, is a 24 year old lefty batter who the Nats saw improve from Double-A to Triple-A. He was mostly an outfielder and has a few games in his career at first base. At 6’3, he also has size and some power. Can that translate or would he meet the same fate as Ortiz?

Ultimately, building a championship-caliber lineup requires adaptability. While some talent evaluators argue that matching handedness isn’t strictly necessary if a hitter is productive enough, the Nationals’ organizational philosophy points toward a desperate need for balance. Finding a left-handed bat to share duties at first base will insulate their young right-handed hitters, lengthen the lineup, and give Washington the tactical flexibility they need to compete in a grueling division. But again, maybe the answer lies within.

Let’s just say the Nats stick with both Morales and Chaparro and allow them to start against right-handed pitching, that could allow President of Baseball Operations, Paul Toboni, to pursue a left-handed outfielder and move James Wood into a more permanent role at the DH.

Here is your shocker of the day in a small sample size, Morales had 26 at-bats against right-handed pitching and hit three home runs, a double and three singles for a .923 OPS. Yep, small sample sizes. Well, Chaparro also hit righties better in a larger sample size of 82 plate appearances and hit .311 with a .905 OPS.

We have named one top lefty first baseman free agent in Jake Bauers, and a corner outfielder in Ian Happ. Both will be expensive. Neither are sure-things. And they are both over 31.

Maybe we just came up with the solution to the conundrum –> give Morales and Chaparro starts at first base against right-handed pitching. Look to find a suitable left-hander to platoon in right field since we know that Dylan Crews struggles against right-handed pitching. Here is a list of free agents.