The Nats have had a strong start to exhibition play in Florida; for whatever that is worth. Mark & Al begin with James Wood seeing a lot of action in RF so far this Spring Training. Wood has a lot of CF experience in the minors and LF duty in the majors, but has not found a permanent spot in the outfield. There is also conjecture that Wood could switch to 1B within the next few seasons.

(14:30) Brady House homered twice in the Spring Training opener vs. Miami. House struggled mightily in his rookie season at the plate, but this will be his first Opening Day in the Big Leagues at 3B.

(21:40) The annual February focus on improved base running.

(26:25) The Nationals did not seem to sign a collection of veterans that could be flipped at the Trade Deadline unlike previous seasons.

(35:10) Is there another signing on its way or only if there is an injury?

(37:30) Mark relayed questions to Manager Blake Butera that were contributed from subscribers at natsjournal.com

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Grapefruit League play is just days away. Mark (From West Palm) & Al open with Dylan Crews, who is looking to bounce back after an injury filled rookie season. Crews showed signs of power last year with 10 homers, but his average was barely over the "Mendoza Line".

(10:10) Blake Butera was singing the praises of CJ Abrams and expects him to return to All-Star form. The hosts also dive into the notion of him not returning to the trade market until this summer despite many expecting Abramsto be dealt at the same time as MacKenzie Gore.

(19:00) The new manager made mention that Cade Cavalli has been standing out so far this spring. Cavalli returned to the Washington mound last August for the first time in three years due to injuries and made ten starts in the process.

(27:40) Catching up on recent additions to the bullpen on minor league deals.

(34:45) What is Luis Garcia Jr.'s primary position? Is it 2B or 1B?

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"Pitchers & Catchers" (and a lot more) have reported to West Palm Beach to begin the 2026 Nationals campaign. Mark (Live from Florida) & Al discuss the initial impressions of a camp run by Paul Toboni & Blake Butera. Hear what the reaction has been to the upgrade in technology and infrastructure behind the scenes.

(14:00) Washington signed veteran starting pitcher Miles Mikolas to a one-year deal around $2M. Mikolas has not had a ERA below 4.00 since 2022, but consistently starts over 30 games a year.

(18:30) An early look at the potential starting rotation and if Cade Cavalli will take the mound on Opening Day.

(22:40) Almost all position players have already reported to Florida, including James Wood.

(31:15) This is a critical season for Dylan Crews, who is aiming to take on a larger leadership role in the clubhouse.

(34:00) Updates on Travis Sykora & Jarlin Susana, who are out for the season, but are participating in Big League Camp.

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Just one day after making his first big move as Nationals President of Baseball Operations, Paul Toboni joins the podcast for a wide ranging conversation. Mark & Al begin by asking him about trading MacKenzie Gore to Texas in exchange for five prospects. The discussion then touches upon Free Agency, 1B, building a bullpen, CJ Abrams' future, working with ownership, and more. Stay tuned after the 25 minute interview to hear the hosts give their thoughts on the Gore deal and other observations from interviewing Toboni.

(01:00) Gore traded to Texas

(08:00) Competitive timeline

(14:30) Approach in Free Agency

(15:20) 1B Situation

(18:35) CJ Abrams' future

(20:00) Bullpen construction

(22:40) Did you run the Gore trade past ownership?

(25:30) Extended post interview reaction from Al & Mark

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The Nationals announced on Wednesday that the era of games airing on MASN is over and that the next chapter of local broadcasts will be on the newly formed "Nationals TV". Al & Tim explain what this means and how this will align with some other MLB team's broadcast situation.

(06:00) A refresher on the decade plus litigation between the Orioles & Nats over MASN that suddenly ended last year.

(12:15) How will the new broadcast compare to its predecessor?

(21:15) Alexa Datt has reportedly been hired as the team's new sideline reporter and she comes from the Cardinals broadcast team. Who will replace Bob Carpenter as the play-by-play announcer?

(23:00) The Orioles will remain on MASN, but MASN2 will no longer exist.

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The new era of Nationals leadership just completed their first time representing the franchise at the annual MLB Winter Meetings. Mark (After returning from Orlando) & Al begin with the results of the Draft, where they were not allowed to end up with a top 10 pick. The Nationals had the ping pong balls bounce their way initially, but due to the leagues rules they will settle for #11 overall.

(06:00) Evaluating the chances that MacKenzie Gore and/or CJ Abrams get traded this off-season.

(15:00) Parsing through Toboni's recent note to fans that could be interpreted as a heads-up that we are headed towards a new rebuild.

(19:10) Handicapping the catcher situation now after the trade with Seattle. Harry Ford is one of the top rated catching prospects and Keibert Ruiz still has many years left on his extension.

(27:30) Why did Washington trade away Jose A. Ferrer?

(30:15) A check at the new technology that Toboni has added to the infrastructure of the organization.

(36:10) Jake Irvin, Riley Adams & Luis Garcia Jr. were among those were tendered by the team to return in 2026.

(40:00) Would Abrams move to 2B if he is not traded?

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