1889
Washington Nationals at Indianapolis Hoosiers
Washington Nationals 6, Indianapolis Hoosiers 15.
Washington Nationals
This Washington club played four National League seasons at 163-337 and never finished higher than seventh in an eight-club league. The best season is 1887, at 46-76; the worst is the first, 1886, at 28-92.
Connie Mack caught here from 1886, in the first years of a career in the game that ran from 1886 to 1950 as player, manager and owner, which nobody has come close to. Hank O'Day pitched here before becoming one of the era's best-known umpires.
The club was sold after 1889 and its players went to the Players' League. Home was the Swampdoodle Grounds, near where Union Station now stands. Washington has had five different major-league clubs, and this archive holds each separately.
Season by season
| Year | Club | W | L | Pct | Finish | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1872 | Washington Nationals | 0 | 11 | .000 | 11 | — | — |
| 1875 | Washington Nationals | 5 | 23 | .179 | 9 | — | — |
| 1884 | Washington Nationals | 12 | 51 | .190 | 13 | — | — |
| 1884 | Washington Nationals | 47 | 65 | .420 | 7 | — | — |
| 1886 | Washington Nationals | 28 | 92 | .233 | 8 | — | — |
| 1887 | Washington Nationals | 46 | 76 | .377 | 7 | — | — |
| 1888 | Washington Nationals | 48 | 86 | .358 | 8 | — | — |
| 1889 | Washington Nationals | 41 | 83 | .331 | 8 | — | — |
| 2005 | Washington Nationals | 81 | 81 | .500 | 5 | — | 2,731,993 |
| 2006 | Washington Nationals | 71 | 91 | .438 | 5 | — | 2,153,056 |
| 2007 | Washington Nationals | 73 | 89 | .451 | 4 | — | 1,943,812 |
| 2008 | Washington Nationals | 59 | 102 | .366 | 5 | — | 2,320,400 |
| 2009 | Washington Nationals | 59 | 103 | .364 | 5 | — | 1,817,226 |
| 2010 | Washington Nationals | 69 | 93 | .426 | 5 | — | 1,828,066 |
| 2011 | Washington Nationals | 80 | 81 | .497 | 3 | — | 1,940,478 |
| 2012 | Washington Nationals | 98 | 64 | .605 | 1 | Division | 2,370,794 |
| 2013 | Washington Nationals | 86 | 76 | .531 | 2 | — | 2,652,422 |
| 2014 | Washington Nationals | 96 | 66 | .593 | 1 | Division | 2,579,389 |
| 2015 | Washington Nationals | 83 | 79 | .512 | 2 | — | 2,619,843 |
| 2016 | Washington Nationals | 95 | 67 | .586 | 1 | Division | 2,481,938 |
| 2017 | Washington Nationals | 97 | 65 | .599 | 1 | Division | 2,524,980 |
| 2018 | Washington Nationals | 82 | 80 | .506 | 2 | — | 2,529,604 |
| 2019 | Washington Nationals | 93 | 69 | .574 | 2 | World Series · Wild card | 2,259,781 |
| 2020 | Washington Nationals | 26 | 34 | .433 | 4 | — | — |
| 2021 | Washington Nationals | 65 | 97 | .401 | 5 | — | 1,465,543 |
| 2022 | Washington Nationals | 55 | 107 | .340 | 5 | — | 2,026,401 |
| 2023 | Washington Nationals | 71 | 91 | .438 | 5 | — | 1,865,832 |
| 2024 | Washington Nationals | 71 | 91 | .438 | 4 | — | 1,967,302 |
| 2025 | Washington Nationals | 66 | 96 | .407 | 5 | — | 1,916,768 |
| Total | 29 seasons | 1,803 | 2,209 | .449 | — | 1 World Series | — |
Notable events
1889
Washington Nationals at Indianapolis Hoosiers
Washington Nationals 5, Indianapolis Hoosiers 6.
1889
Washington Nationals at Indianapolis Hoosiers
Washington Nationals 0, Indianapolis Hoosiers 9.
1889
Washington Nationals at Chicago White Stockings
Washington Nationals 7, Chicago White Stockings 9.
1889
Washington Nationals at Chicago White Stockings
Washington Nationals 7, Chicago White Stockings 2.
1889
Washington Nationals at Chicago White Stockings
Washington Nationals 5, Chicago White Stockings 9.
1889
Washington Nationals at Cleveland Spiders
Washington Nationals 1, Cleveland Spiders 7.
1889
Washington Nationals at Cleveland Spiders
Washington Nationals 7, Cleveland Spiders 6.
1889
Washington Nationals at Cleveland Spiders
Washington Nationals 7, Cleveland Spiders 11.
1889
Washington Nationals at Pittsburg Alleghenys
Washington Nationals 5, Pittsburg Alleghenys 8.
1889
Washington Nationals at Pittsburg Alleghenys
Washington Nationals 8, Pittsburg Alleghenys 13.
1889
Washington Nationals at Pittsburg Alleghenys
Washington Nationals 3, Pittsburg Alleghenys 6.
1889
Boston Beaneaters at Washington Nationals
Boston Beaneaters 4, Washington Nationals 4.
1889
Boston Beaneaters at Washington Nationals
Boston Beaneaters 4, Washington Nationals 3.
1889
Boston Beaneaters at Washington Nationals
Boston Beaneaters 6, Washington Nationals 2.
1889
New York Giants at Washington Nationals
New York Giants 10, Washington Nationals 4.
1889
New York Giants at Washington Nationals
New York Giants 7, Washington Nationals 4.
1889
New York Giants at Washington Nationals
New York Giants 12, Washington Nationals 4.
1889
Pittsburg Alleghenys at Washington Nationals
Pittsburg Alleghenys 7, Washington Nationals 10.
1889
Indianapolis Hoosiers at Washington Nationals
Indianapolis Hoosiers 9, Washington Nationals 7.
1889
Indianapolis Hoosiers at Washington Nationals
Indianapolis Hoosiers 6, Washington Nationals 9.
1889
Chicago White Stockings at Washington Nationals
Chicago White Stockings 1, Washington Nationals 2.
1889
Chicago White Stockings at Washington Nationals
Chicago White Stockings 3, Washington Nationals 4.
1889
Chicago White Stockings at Washington Nationals
Chicago White Stockings 1, Washington Nationals 4.
1889
Cleveland Spiders at Washington Nationals
Cleveland Spiders 9, Washington Nationals 6.
Notable players
Showing 60 of 124 players on file for the club, most prominent first.