Nationals Make Their First Move of the Offseason, And It Involves the Pitching Staff
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The 2026-27 offseason officially got underway at 9 a.m. EST on Oct. 29 when major league players became free agents, and that put the Washington Nationals on the clock when it comes to their plans this winter.
With pitching additions being a must, president of baseball operations Paul Toboni and the rest of the decision makers wasted little time making their first move of the offseason.
The Nationals announced that they claimed right-handed pitcher Braxton Roxby off outright waivers from the San Francisco Giants, and they designated fellow right-hander Zak Kent for assignment as the corresponding move. While this is not a headline-inducing addition, it should come as no surprise that Toboni and the front office are making more low-level moves like they did last year.
Who Is Braxton Roxby?
For what it's worth, Roxby has an interesting profile.
The 27-year-old was undrafted and worked his way up to the majors this past season for his debut by being a high-strikeout guy throughout his time in the minors. Across 215 relief appearances and 296 innings pitched on the farm, Roxby recorded 375 strikeouts. He also owns a 4.04 ERA and has held opponents to a batting average against of .214.
Roxby had four big league outings for the Giants this past season. He gave up two earned runs on six hits across 5 1/3 innings pitched. He only struck out three and walked two, which put his K rate in the 13th percentile at 12% and his walk rate of eight percent in the 60th percentile.
The good news is that TJStats graded out Roxby's stuff as above average. As a primary sweeper and slider thrower who pairs those pitches with a four-seam fastball, his sweeper earned a TJStuff+ rating of 108 while his four-seamer was graded at 104. Across a bigger sample size at the Triple-A level this past season, Roxby finished with a 102 TJStuff+ rating. His sweeper remained at 108, while his slider earned a grade of 105 and his four-seamer a flat 100.
Whether Roxby can actually carve out a role for himself in Washington's 2027 bullpen will be determined at a later date. But taking a flier on him and moving off Kent, who had an ERA of 5.68 across nine appearances with the Nationals last season, makes sense at this point in the offseason.
Bigger moves should be coming later this winter, but Washington is officially on the board with their first move by bringing in Roxby on a waiver claim.
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Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai