Given the Nats’ penchant for gambling on injury risk (and losing far, far, far more often than not), it’s no surprise how large this list is or that mist of them are coming off a surgery.
There’s a lot to go through, so let’s get started…
Cade Cavalli
Drafted #1 in 2020, Cavalli posted a three-level 2021 (A+, AA, AAA) and made his MLB debut in late August 2022. It remains his one and only MLB appearance, as he left his third spring training start in 2023 doing the elbow shake, and made three starts over the course of 33 days before allegedly coming down with the flu and then “dead arm.” He is said to have thrown a bullpen session in early September and would have pitched again had the minors season not ended. That he did not appear in the AFL calls into question this claim.
Zach Brzykcy
Brzykcy was signed as an NDFA in 2020 and seemed poised to make the big club in 2023 after a three-level season in 2022. Alas, he, too came down with Nationals elbow and underwent surgery in April 2023. Thirteen months later he began his rehab tour in West Palm Beach and finished it with six appearances in DC. His velocity had fallen a notch but the hope is that it will return this year, though he may have to lean on his curve and split-change more than in years past, though may have been true regardless of injury.
Evan Reifert
Like Brzykcy, Reifert went the NDFA route with Milwaukee and was traded to Tampa Bay following the 2021 season. After two uneven seasons in which he rose to AA, Reifert posted a 1.96/2.34/0.92 line with 14.2 K/9IP. The Rays left him unprotected and the Nats took him in the December 2024 Rule 5 Draft. Despite his mid-90s heat, his go-to pitch is a mid-80s slider.
Hyun-il Choi
Choi was selected in the AAA phase of the Rule 5 draft, so there’s no need for subterfuge. Choi has already had Nationals elbow, which caused him to miss most of 2022 and dimmed his star with the Dodgers. The Korean-born northpaw works with the classic arsenal (FB/CH/SL/CV) but with a low 3/4 delivery. He’s mostly started but one can envision the Nats seeing if the velo ticks up enough that he can shelve the curve and go FB-SL and save the CH for lefties.
Jake Bennett
Alas, the comps to Cavalli are too easy. Both born in Tulsa. Both went on to pitch for Oklahoma. Both drafted high by the Nationals. And both have had TJ surgery. Bennett had his in the fall of 2023, so he should be on the mound in West Palm Beach this spring. The 2022 2nd Rd. pick did not pitch professionally (or for the Nats) so there’s but one season by which to judge him. At Low-A he was dominant (1.93/2.54/1.21) but at High-A he was not (5.57/4.45/1.62), but he was clearly hurt even if the Nats refused to acknowledge it until after he had had surgery.
Luke Young
Young is edging toward the Billy Rowell defense for his inclusion here, as his 2024 production was decidedly subpar when you consider his home/road splits (2.68 ERA vs. 6.56). But he did pitch better after being moved to the bullpen (2.53 vs. 5.14) and had a solid showing in the AFL albeit in a very small sample (10⅔ IP in 10 appearances).
Merritt Beeker
Beeker was drafted in the 11th round and did not put up impressive numbers, but he’s relatively young and lefthanded, the latter of which the Nats do not have in abundance.
Doimil Perez
A former DSL Arm, Perez finally made it stateside in 2024 but did not necessarily break through. But the Nats gave him a fair amount of looks, which, combined with his youth (turned 21 in November) merits a “maybe.”
Reilin Ramirez
Ramirez was one of the few arms from the horrific 2023 DSL team to make it stateside, which might just be the sole reason he’s here, aside from the usual caveats of age and usage.
Camilo Sanchez
Sanchez, a DSL Arm on the ’23 Watchlist, made it to Fredericksburg for four late-season appearances, thus the inference that there’s something the Nats saw him in after the FCL season ended at WPB that warranted a trip to the southern ‘Burg.