Nationals Former Top Prospect Cade Cavalli Has Highly-Anticipated MLB Return Date Set
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The Washington Nationals opened up some spots on their pitching staff with moves made ahead of the MLB trade deadline, and one of the players who is going to have an opportunity to claim one of those spots is Cade Cavalli.
A first-round pick in the 2020 MLB draft out of the University of Oklahoma, he was once a highly-regarded prospect not only in the Nationals’ farm system but in the entire sport.
From 2021 through 2024, he was a top 100 prospect in at least one of the big outlets, possessing the kind of ability to be an impact performer at the highest level.
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There has been some truly dominant showings for Cavalli throughout his stops at the minor leagues, which led to him receiving a promotion to the Big Leagues in 2022.
Barely two years after finishing his collegiate career, he was toeing the rubber in an MLB game against the Cincinnati Reds on Aug. 26, 2022.
He threw 4.1 innings, showcasing some real positives, such as his six strikeouts, but there were some struggles.
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Seven earned runs were charged aginast him in the loss, but the results weren’t the worst thing to come from that game.
It would actually be the last time he made an appearance until 2024 because he suffered an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery.
Three appearances were made during his return to the mound last year between the Florida Complex League in Rookie Ball and High-A Wilmington as he began to knock off the rust.
He has been able to stay on track in 2025, making 17 starts between Single-A Fredericksburg, Double-A Harriburg and Triple-A Rochester.
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The results have been mixed with a 5.35 ERA across 74 innings with 79 strikeouts, but the Nationals have seen enough that they are willing to give him a shot in the Big Leagues again.
As shared by Andrew Golden, with a hat tip to Grant Paulsen on X, Cavalli is set to make his highly anticipated return to the Major Leagues on Wednesday in a start against the Athletics.
Can confirm that the Nationals are calling up Cade Cavalli to start Wednesday’s game. @granthpaulsen was first with the news.
— Andrew Golden (@andrewcgolden) August 5, 2025
It’ll be his first start in the big leagues since August 26, 2022.
With the season down the drain, it makes all the sense in the world for Washington to get Cavalli some innings in at the highest level and start to build up his arm strength again.
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There are certainly openings in the rotation with Michael Soroka being traded to the Chicago Cubs and Trevor Williams sidelined because of injury.
Cavalli will likely be competing with rookie Shinnosuke Ogasawara for starts down the stretch, as both could be options for the starting rotation in 2025.
The further removed Cavalli is from his Tommy John surgery, the more likely it will be that he regains the form he was showing previously.
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