Heading into the 2026 season, the Washington Nationals looked like surefire sellers.That changed over the course of the year, as the Nationals -- powered by their league-best offense -- kept themselves in the playoff hunt heading into the trade deadline. But a stumble before Aug. 3 forced the front office's hand, as they went from planning to add big league pieces to help with their postseason push to selling off a few of their best trade assets to get prospects for the future.Still, it wasn't as busy of a deadline as many anticipated. CJ Abrams stayed put, which should give fans hope that a long-term deal can be worked out between the two sides. However, despite being fairly dormant, Washington was able to take advantage of the seller's market this year, as they ultimately made four trades before the 2026 deadline.Traded Curtis Mead to Boston Red SoxWashington Nationals third baseman Curtis Mead | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectThe Nationals got things started early when they traded Curtis Mead to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for left-handed pitcher Connelly Early back on July 25.Although president of baseball operations Paul Toboni said at the time that this didn't signal their desire to be full-on sellers ahead of the deadline, this move was a precursor of what was to come. Regardless, this looks like a savvy trade on paper for Washington. They acquired a 23-year-old ascending lefty who has a career ERA of 3.24 across 21 MLB starts. When he returns from the injured list, he'll be able to help the Nationals this season and in the long run as a staple of their rotation.As for Mead, he immediately got injured with the Red Sox when he was hit by a pitch and suffered a broken wrist. But even without that unfortunate injury taking place, Washington looked like winners of this deal since they were able to flip the former top prospect -- who wasn't even on the team to start the campaign and was in the midst of a breakout season -- for a controllable high-end starting pitcher. That is good business.Traded Luis Garcia Jr. to New York YankeesWashington Nationals first baseman Luis Garcia Jr. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectThe big move for the Nationals came on Aug. 2 when they dealt Luis Garcia Jr. to the New York Yankees in exchange for a package that featured four right-handed pitchers -- two of them who were top 30 guys in the Yankees' pipeline.Outside of Abrams, it became clear that Garcia was Washington's best trade chip. A report previously stated that the Nationals were no longer listening to offers on the breakout slugger, but their five-game losing streak ahead of the deadline must have changed their thinking. So, by getting back a reliever with MLB experience in Jake Bird, a flamethrowing major league-ready bullpen arm in Yovanny Cruz and two intriguing pitchers with big-time stuff in Jack Cebert and Ben Grable, Washington addressed a massive need of theirs with one trade.Traded Christian Franklin to Baltimore OriolesWashington Nationals outfielder Christian Franklin | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectTechnically, on a timeline basis, this was the Nationals' third move ahead of the trade deadline and their first on deadline day. This was also the second time in as many years that Christian Franklin was involved in a trade deadline day with Washington. But this time, instead of being acquired by the Nationals, he was dealt to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for minor league right-handed pitching prospect Joe Glassey.It's not clear what the upside of Glassey is, especially because he was an undrafted free agent and was not considered a top 30 Orioles prospect. However, he does have a 2.20 ERA across 48 minor league bullpen outings with 97 strikeouts to 10 walks in 65 1/3 innings pitched. So there is at least some potential there. And with a crowded outlook in their outfield, Washington felt it was best to roll the dice on Glassey by shipping out Franklin to get it done.Foster Griffin Traded to Cleveland GuardiansWashington Nationals pitcher Foster Griffin | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectThe headliner of deadline day was Foster Griffin getting sent to the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for a package that netted the Nationals four players in return: pitchers Will Dion, Josh Hartle and Kendeglys Virguez, and outfielder Nick Mitchell.Only Hartle was ranked within the top 30 of the Guardians' pipeline. The right-hander has a 3.24 ERA across 44 minor league outings (43 starts) with 197 K's and 77 walks over 208 1/3 innings pitched. Before the trade, he was pitching at the Double-A level, so that's likely where Washington will send him whenever he arrives to the organization.As for Dion, he's spent the last three years pitching in Triple-A. The lefty owns an ERA of 3.62 across 21 relief appearances this season. But he's been impressive with 52 strikeouts and seven walks in 37 1/3 innings, which is the best K/BB ratio of his career.Virguez is a 22-year-old right-hander pitching who was at the Double-A level with Cleveland. He's primarily been used as a reliever in his career, but it will be interesting to see how he'll be utilized by the Nationals. Mitchell has had a disappointing season this year with a .240/.358/.360 slash line and just five home runs and 39 RBIs across 75 Double-A games, but he gets on base at a high clip.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow