Pre-Opening Day Q&A
Before the 2026 season begins Thursday in Chicago, I'm taking your questions about Nationals spring training and what we can expect now
Spring training is over. The 2026 MLB season begins tonight when the Giants host the Yankees. And the 2026 Nationals season begins Thursday when the Nats face the Cubs at historic Wrigley Field.
The last six weeks have been quite a ride, both for the Nats (who made more than a few surprising moves) and for yours truly (who has seen this site take off in a manner that only confirms just how many of you out there care about this team). For the record, we now have more than 6,500 total subscribers who come from all 50 states. (Special thanks to our one subscriber in North Dakota and Montana, whoever you are!)
If you’re merely a free subscriber and haven’t yet become a paid subscriber … what are you waiting for? It’s only $7.99 if you want to try it out for a month, and the price drops to $5.99 per month if you sign up for an annual subscription. That will give you access to every single article on the site and the ability to read and post comments. Which you’ll need to be able to do if you want to participate in today’s Q&A.
Our first Q&A in February was a rousing success, and I’ve mentally and physically tried to prepare myself for what awaits this morning. Let’s get one topic out of the way right now, because I know many of you want to ask: The big announcement about which cable and satellite distributors will carry Nationals TV is coming Thursday morning. It’s frustrating. It’s annoying. It’s as last-minute as it gets. But it’s almost over. The expectation all along is that nearly every major provider in the region will have Nationals TV. As a general rule of thumb: If you already have MASN, you should be getting Nationals TV on the same tier. If you don’t get it, you’ll have to fork over the $99.99 to get the games streaming via the MLB App.
A few more housekeeping items … If you aren’t already a regular listener of the Nats Chat podcast, you can access all episodes right here on the site, including our Season Preview show that was recorded Tuesday. If you haven’t checked out the site’s other resource links, you can view the entire 2026 schedule (with TV and radio info) and the constantly-updating Nats roster via the permanent links below the Nats Journal masthead on the home page. And if you notice some new photo credits in the coming days, I’m excited to announce a partnership with All-Pro Reels, a D.C.-based sports photography company that will be covering most home games and even a few road series (including this first one) throughout the season. They do great work, and their photos will be a perfect complement to my articles.
OK, with those matters out of the way, does anyone have any other questions? If so, submit them in the comments section below. Then check back throughout the morning for my replies. I can’t promise I’ll be able to get to every single one — I do have a flight to Chicago to catch later — but I’ll do my best!
What is the most glaring weakness the Nats have this year and does it have the potential to be fixed by call-ups/mid-season acquisitions? And if it doesn’t, do you have faith in the new administration to tackle this in development? Bullpen, hitting, fielding, and baserunning have all seemed to be points of contention since the beginning of June last year. Want to know what I’ll be cursing at my TV the most about this year.
And just as an aside, thank you so much for everything you do! Longtime listener of the Nats Chat podcast but first year where I’m reading your columns. Following this team would be a far inferior experience without you. I’ll be at the Saturday and Sunday games in Wrigley all caught up on where this team stands.