Mike DeBartolo pledges ‘fresh approach' as Nationals interim general manager

New York Times

09-07-2025

ST. LOUIS — In his first public comments since the sudden firings of general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Davey Martinez, Washington Nationals interim general manager Mike DeBartolo pledged confidence in overseeing the amateur draft and the trade deadline, and pledged an organization-wide emphasis on integrating more data and technology in baseball operations.
Advertisement
Speaking from the visitor's dugout at Busch Stadium ahead of Tuesday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals, DeBartolo first acknowledged fan vexation as the Nationals, who are 37-53 and in last place in the National League East, torpedo toward another dismal season.
'The fans are frustrated. We're all frustrated,' DeBartolo said. 'We have a lot of interesting, exciting young pieces to build on. We have a lot more we need to build.'
'Simply stepping up our game is not enough, and we need real change. I'm excited to bring a fresh approach, a fresh voice, to this role and integrate more data, more technology, more innovation into our decision-making across the organization at all levels, and hopefully improve the performance of our players as well.'
DeBartolo, who joined the Nationals in 2012 as an intern and worked his way up to assistant general manager in 2019, took over baseball operations Sunday night. He replaces Rizzo, who was in his 17th season as general manager and represented the third-longest tenured head of baseball operations. Washington named bench coach Miguel Cairo as interim manager on Monday. The firings come as the Nationals spiraled in June, when the team went 7-19.
Washington's decision to fire Rizzo and Martinez, who led the Nationals to their first and only World Series title in 2019, wasn't completely surprising, but the timing of the decision was. MLB's annual amateur draft, in which the Nationals hold the top overall pick, is Sunday. The trade deadline is just over three weeks away. The Nationals look to be one of few obvious sellers this year, upping the ante on how to maximize returns for an organization mired in a five-year rebuild.
That responsibility will fall on DeBartolo, whose duties as assistant general manager included daily baseball operations decisions, contract negotiations and player evaluations. He addressed the major-league team Sunday night before it departed for St. Louis, held a Zoom call with the front office Monday morning, and will fly back to Washington, D.C., early Wednesday morning to meet with the president of amateur scouting, Danny Haas, and the rest of the scouting department.
Advertisement
'With the draft and the trade deadline, the two most important decisions and events we have in front of us, that's my job to make those decisions,' DeBartolo said. 'Of course, I'll be in consultation with (owner Mark Lerner and the Nationals ownership group) and work collaboratively with our staff, but I'll be empowered in making those decisions, and I feel prepared and excited to do so.'
A Statement from Washington Nationals Managing Principal Owner Mark D. Lerner:
→ https://t.co/yHjVh4WWVJ pic.twitter.com/85cufOlzrK
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) July 6, 2025
Asked how he'll oversee the draft, DeBartolo credited a 'well-prepared' scouting department and expressed optimism about the cohesiveness of the group.
'The amateur scouting leadership has been working for a year to prepare for this,' he said. 'I've been in the loop and following as well, and have my own opinions and work collaboratively with them. They've been working hard for this moment, almost even before the last draft ended. I'll bring my own voice to that process, take what they have to say and ultimately be responsible for making the picks.'
There are changes DeBartolo would like to make throughout the organization — namely, beefing up analytics departments and bringing in new technology. Those changes will be gradual, especially given the seismic transition.
'Coming from an analytics background and building up that department, I'm excited to try to leverage some of that throughout the organization,' he said. 'We have a lot of great information, and I think there are ways it can be integrated more into all of our processes. I'd like to lead to that transition and integrate that even further.
'Just taking the position two days ago, I think there's a lot more of an ability to use data and technology and innovation at every single level: Decision-making, as part of the player development process, as part of the medical process. So I'm going to bring that philosophy and approach to the role. But it's too early to single out one specific area.'
Advertisement
As for the outlook on the current team, DeBartolo highlighted the play of James Wood and MacKenzie Gore, who were both named first-time All-Stars on Sunday, along with CJ Abrams, as an exciting core to build around. But he also expressed a desire to improve the depth of the roster and the consistency of play.
'There are several young players playing at an All-Star-caliber level,' he said. 'I think we need to build and bolster the support around them.
'These are very young players. Some of them haven't played a 162-game season before, and they're learning and they're growing together.' he added. 'Every single day, the emphasis is going to be building their skill set, getting them better. It's clear from the results we have a long way to go as we build up that consistency and build up the talent level to get where we want to be, which is competing for a playoff spot every single year.'
That they do. As the Nationals prepare for another disappointing second half, they hope they'll at least be able to make substantial progress in yet another year of a rebuild. That will start with DeBartolo, at least for now.