The Washington Nationals are listening to trade offers for left-handed starter MacKenzie Gore amid a busy offseason pitching market. Multiple teams have inquired about the 26-year-old All-Star, though the Nationals' asking price remains high. Gore had a strong 2025 season, striking out 185 batters in 159 2/3 innings.
As teams seek to bolster their starting rotations this offseason, MacKenzie Gore has emerged as a prime trade candidate from the Washington Nationals. According to ESPN's Buster Olney, the left-hander is "definitely" expected by some teams to be traded soon. Reports from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon indicate that more than half of Major League Baseball clubs have at least checked in on Gore.
Nationals president of baseball operations Paul Toboni acknowledged the interest during Wednesday's Baseball Tonight podcast. "He's really good, so it doesn't surprise me that teams are reaching out on him," Toboni said. He revealed having a direct conversation with Gore, telling him: "Hey, before we even really hop into this, this is going to be a thing. Teams are going to call about you because you're really good. What I'm tasked with -- and what the group here is tasked with -- is we want to hold a high bar, but also we're going to listen because that's part of our job."
Toboni expressed optimism about Gore's future, stating: "I'm really excited about the development prospects for him, too. Assuming he's in a Nats uniform next year, I think we're going to get the best version of MacKenzie that we've seen in his career."
ESPN's Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel noted that the Nationals' asking price for the 26-year-old is "understandably high." Gore, under club control for two more seasons, earned his first All-Star nod in 2025. He made at least 30 starts for the second consecutive year, posting a 10.1 K/9 rate since 2023.