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Good Morning, Washington Nationals fans.
Here are your Washington Nationals Morning headlines, news, analysis, and more for Friday, February 20, 2026
Happy Friday, some announcements before we start! Introducing Reese Evans! He will be providing Game Recaps for this season starting tomorrow, so please give him a warm Nats Report welcome!
Tomorrow we will have a special Morning Briefing edition written by Richard to get you set for the first Nationals game of 2026, exclusively for Nats Report+ subscribers only!
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Nats Baseball is BACK!
⚾ DUGOUT DISPATCH
The long winter wait for baseball games to start back up again is finally over for Nationals fans. It may only be for Spring Training, but it signals that the baseball season is back and here to stay for at least the next seven months.
📊 THE BOX SCORE:
The Nationals play split-squad games tomorrow, taking on the St. Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros at 1:05 PM ET
The Houston game will be a home game at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, while the Cardinals game will be an away game at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium
The starting pitcher for the Cardinals game will be left-hander Shinnosuke Ogasawara, while the starter for the Astros game will be left-hander Jake Eder
St. Louis’ starting pitcher will be left-hander Matthew Liberatore
The game against Houston can be watched via Nationals.tv or listened to via WSH Audio on the MLB app, while the game against St. Louis can be listened to via the Cardinals Radio Network on the MLB app
🗣️ LOCKER ROOM LORE
While Spring Training games provide a fantastic opportunity to see how much your own team has grown over the offseason, it also provides an opportunity to see how far your opponents have come as well. This includes their prospects that will see time during Spring Training in hopes of making it to the majors, prospects that could be traded for to aid in a continuing rebuild.
💬 FAN’S CHOICE
Which game are you looking forward to more? Which team do you think looks stronger after the offseason?
📬 SUBSCRIBER CTA
Make sure to pay attention to the Spring Training Liveblog for up-to-date updates about all Nationals Spring Training games and news
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Spring Training Update
Via Washington Nationals
⚾ DUGOUT DISPATCH
With Spring Training in full swing, it can get difficult to keep up with all the news and information coming out of West Palm Beach. Not to fear, this is why Nats Report and the Spring Training Notebooks are here!
📊 THE BOX SCORE:
The Nationals signed right-handed pitcher Drew Smith to a minor league deal that has the pitcher earning $1.7 million if he makes the major league roster
Left-handed pitcher DJ Herz participated in bullpen work, still fighting to come back from the elbow injury that had him out for all of last season
The traffic jam for starting first baseman, which already included Abimelec Ortiz and Andres Chaparro, increased as Luis García Jr. took impressive reps there on Wednesday afternoon, though he moved back to the middle of the infield on Thursday for some other drills
🗣️ LOCKER ROOM LORE
The addition of Drew Smith brings both an effective arm and veteran leadership to the Nats’ bullpen. Smith, over his six years in the majors with the Mets, has a career 3.48 ERA across 191 pitching appearances. Despite coming off of his second Tommy John surgery and not playing all of last season, with a career WAR of 2 and a WHIP of 1.278, he could make a very real and noticeable impact should he make the major league roster.
💬 FAN’S CHOICE
What do you think of the Drew Smith signing? What do you think he could contribute to the Nationals’ bullpen?
📬 SUBSCRIBER CTA
Make sure to check out the previous Spring Training Notebooks from Wednesday and Thursday for any news or insights you may have missed.
And be sure to follow Ryan on his social media channels for the latest updates, videos, and so much more while we’re on the ground at this year's Spring Training!
Want the full breakdown before anyone else? 🔔 Subscribe to The Nats Report Morning Briefing — exclusive access, deep dives, and insider audio drops every weekday morning.
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Introducing our new Washington Nationals ‘Tipline’!
Via Washington Nationals
⚾ DUGOUT DISPATCH
Do you have a story that you would like to see us cover this season? For when there’s something that you want to share, we are introducing a brand new way to interact with the Nats Report. You can now send your tip, question, or article suggestion to [email protected]. You might see your article or suggestion on the site soon!
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📬 SUBSCRIBER CTA
Want the full breakdown before anyone else? 🔔 Subscribe to The Nats Report Morning Briefing — exclusive access, deep dives, and insider audio drops every weekday morning.
WHAT WE THINK THE NATIONALS FRONT OFFICE IS READING
Speed Reads
📌 The Nationals’ direction under Paul Toboni includes ample data without losing the human element (The Baltimore Banner)
📌 MLBPA appoints Bruce Meyer as interim executive director (MLB)